Yanina Melnikava

Affiliated media: Green Portal, Editor

Incident date: September 3, 2021

Attack type:

• Damage to / seizure of residence / work premises

Who attacked: Authorities

Source: Belarusian Association of Journalists

Location: Belarus, Minsk

Additional information:

In the morning, law enforcers broke down the door to the flat of the editor of Green Portal Yanina Melnikava and came to search the flat as part of a criminal case in which she is a witness. They seized her phone, computer, and digital media. After the search, Melnikava was taken for questioning to the Investigative Committee, from where she was taken to the police department. Later, it became known that an administrative report was drawn up on Yanina for disobedience to the police. According to the police, when the journalist was brought to the police station, she allegedly refused to get out of the official car, waved her arms and tried to run away. Before the trial, she was kept in the detention centre on Akrestsina for three days, where it was cold, there were five people in a three-bed cell, there were no mattresses and blankets, and the handovers from relatives were not accepted. On September 6, the court found Melnikava guilty and fined her 95 basic amounts (BYN 2,755).