Official Statement on Belarus Crackdown on Media and Demonstrators

28 March 2008

State Department seal

Statement by Sean McCormack
Spokesman of the Department of State

We condemn today’s crackdown on independent media in Belarus, during which some 30 independent journalists in 12 cities were detained without legitimate cause. This follows the violent breakup of peaceful demonstrations in Minsk on March 25, which was accompanied by scores of arrests.  The regime of Alyaksandr Lukashenka has again shown itself as a brutal, authoritarian dictatorship that blatantly ignores human rights and fundamental freedoms.

We call on the Belarus authorities to release immediately all of those who have been arrested and jailed, to assure that those who are injured receive proper medical care, and to hold those responsible to account.  We also call on Belarus to stop its harassment of the remaining independent media still striving to report on the realities in Belarus and to respect freedom of assembly, speech, and independent media in Belarus.

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U.S. Ambassador to Belarus Karen Stewart, speaking from Washington in an exclusive interview for the European Radio for Belarus (ERB), commented on the situation; for full text of her remarks, click here.