Journalist of Hromadske TV of Donbas expelled from Minsk where he was supposed to cover negotiations

Дата: 01 February 2017
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On February 1, Vitaliy Sizov, the journalist of the Hromadske TV of Donbas channel (Public TV of Donbas), was detained by the local police. He was supposed to cover the work of the trilateral contact group in Minsk. Subsequently, the journalist was released with a requirement to leave Belarus within 24 hours.

As reported by Sizov on his Facebook page.

“Today at about 2 am local time I was detained by the police from the hotel in Minsk. I was taken to the central police department, where I stayed until 6 am. There I was told that the Russian Federation has banned me from entering its territory until 2021. Belarus and Russian Federation are allied states, therefore, the ban on entry applies to Belarus (in fact common external border – crossing the border of Belarus is in fact crossing the border of the Russian Federation). In the police department I was repeatedly told that the ban on entry is the initiative of the Russian Federation, to which Belarus has no relation, for this reason I could not discover the reasons for the ban”, – the journalist wrote.

Sizov also said that he was “recommended to leave Belarus within 24 hours”. He stated that he plans to return to Ukraine.

“Thanks to the Ukrainian consulate and embassy for the immediate response and assistance. I am alright. I planned to cover the work of the trilateral contact group in Minsk. Accreditation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus I received without any problems”, – he said.

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