MINSK -- A trial date has been set for RFE/RL freelance correspondent Andrey Kuznechyk, whose relatives and colleagues have not been informed about charges he faces since his arrest last year in Belarus.
The Belarusian Association of Journalists said on May 25 that Kuznechyk's trial will be held behind closed doors in the eastern city of Mahilyou on June 8.
Kuznechyk was initially sentenced to 10 days in jail on November 26, 2021, on hooliganism charges that he denies.
On December 6, when his sentence ended, he was not released and was handed another 10-day jail term, also on a hooliganism charge.
After serving that jail term, Kuznechyk was again not released and instead was charged with an unspecified crime.
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Kuznechyk's relatives told RFE/RL at the time that the journalist continued to maintain his innocence.
RFE/RL President Jamie Fly has said the extension of Kuznechyk's sentence "on absurdly fabricated charges" should be considered a crime in itself.
"Andrey's state-sponsored kidnapping continues, all in furtherance of the Lukashenka regime's efforts to block independent information from reaching the Belarusian people. Andrey should be allowed to return to his family immediately," Fly said in a statement on December 6, referring to authoritarian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka.
On December 23, Fly again condemned the Belarusian government's actions against free media and stated that Kuznechyk was among "hostages taken by this lawless regime, not criminals. Factual reporting is not an 'extremist' activity, and journalism is not a crime."
