Crackdown on media freedom: Finnish journalists may boycott hockey championship in Minsk

Police have prevented a TV crew of Yleisradio (the Finnish Broadcasting Company) from interviewing residents of Minsk.

On May 8 they made a report from the Belarusian city talking to passers-by in the streets. As their questions touched not only the issues of sports but also those of everyday life in Belarus, police officers ordered the group of foreign journalists, including well-known Finnish sports announcer Kaj Kunnas to stop filming and leave the area in front of the Sports Palace.

The channel’s directors declared that the Belarusian authorities barred the journalists from performing their professional duties. The Finnish Broadcasting Company is considering the recall of its TV crew in protest.

www.belsat.eu/en