Iryna Slaunikava

journalist, sentenced to 5 years of imprisonment

Prisoner

Date of birth: 12 July 1970

Date of detention: 30 October 2021

Charges indicted:

  • Art. 342 of the Criminal Code — Organization and preparation of actions that grossly violate public order, or active participation in them
  • Art. 361-1 of the Criminal Code — Creation of an extremist formation, or participation in it

Sentence: 5 years

Penalty: imprisonment in a general-security penal colony

Judge: Mikalai Dolia

Prosecutor: Iryna Padkavyrava

Prison: Penal colony No. 4

Notes: Detention upon return to Belarus, Health issues

Groups: Journalists

Godparent: Thomas Hacker, Member of the German Bundestag

Iryna Slaunikava

Iryna Slaunikava, a former Belsat TV representative in Belarus, was detained at Minsk airport on October 30, 2021 as she and her husband were returning from vacation.

On November 1, judge Maksim Trusevich of the Pieršamajski District Court of Minsk sentenced both to 15 days of administrative imprisonment for allegedly posting content on Facebook that was earlier labeled as “extremist”.

On November 15, for the second time in a row, the journalist was sentenced to 15 days administrative imprisonment, after judge Maksim Trusevich of the Pieršamajski District Court of Minsk found her guilty on charges of “disorderly conduct”.

On November 26, it became known that Iryna Slaunikava was a suspect in a case under Article 342 of the Criminal Code ("organization and preparation of actions that grossly violate public order, or active participation in them").

On August 3, 2022, the Homieĺ Regional Court sentenced the political prisoner to five years of imprisonment in a general-security penal colony.

Journalist Iryna Slaunikava sentenced to five years in jail

On August 3, 2022, the Homieĺ Regional Court handed down a sentence to the political prisoner, Polish Public Television journalist, Iryna Slaunikava. Slaunikava was accused of ‘creating an extremist formation or participation in it’ and ‘organizing and preparing actions that grossly violate the public order, or actively participating in them’ under Part 1 of Article 361-1 and Part 1 of Article 342 of the Criminal Code accordingly.

 

Mail address: Penal colony No. 4. 246035, Homieĺ, vulica Antoshkina 3

Addresses of prisons:

What should I know and how to help?

✉️ Write a letter. Make a scan of your letter or postcard and share it online

🤝 Please use the Russian (or Belarusian) name of the prison

💡 Foreign-language messages may be blocked, so attach a translation (e.g. translate.google.com)

💡 A big guide about helping Belarusian political prisoners from abroad

💡 More tips here

Support “Viasna”