TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Two journalists were detained in Belarus on Friday, a Belarusian journalist association reported, the latest step in a crackdown against dissent in recent years.
Chief editor of the Ranak television channel, Yulia Dauletava, and correspondent Lyudmila Andenka were detained in the city of Svetlahorsk in southeastern Belarus and accused of contributing to extremist activities, the Belarusian Association of Journalists reported. Both have covered protests in Belarus and local authorities. They each face up to seven years in prison if convicted.
A wave of protests rocked Belarus in 2020, following a disputed presidential election in August that year, in which Alexander Lukashenko was declared the winner, securing a sixth consecutive term in office.
The protests lasted for months, the largest and most prolonged show of dissent since Lukashenko came to power in 1994 and began repressing independent news media and opposition.
Lukashenko unleashed harsh measures against the protesters, with police detaining some 35,000 people and beating thousands. Many major opposition figures fled the country, including
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