EU rights award given to jailed journalists from Georgia and Belarus

Strasbourg (dpa) – Two imprisoned journalists received the European Parliament’s prestigious Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought in absentia on Tuesday.

The European Parliament held a ceremony in Strasbourg honouring Andrzej Poczobut of Belarus and Mzia Amaglobeli of Georgia, who were named the prize winners in October.

“I am proud to award this year’s Sakharov Prize to journalists Andrzej Poczobut and Mzia Amaglobeli in recognition of their brave fight for freedom of expression and the democratic future of Belarus and Georgia,” European Parliament President Roberta Metsola said.

She said the legislature “stands in solidarity with Mzia and Andrzej and calls for their immediate release from prison — because speaking truth to power must never be a crime.”

Amaglobeli, a journalist and director of online media outlets, was arrested in January 2025 during anti-government protests and has since been sentenced to two years in prison. She has since become a symbolic figure of Georgia’s pro-democracy movement. Amaglobeli was represented in Strasbourg by her fellow journalist Irma Dimitradze.

Poczobut, a member of Belarus’ Polish minority and a critic of the authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko, has been detained since 2021 and was sentenced to eight years in a penal colony. He was represented by his daughter, Jana Poczobut.

The Sakharov Prize has been awarded annually by the European Parliament since 1988 to individuals or organisations who have made an outstanding contribution to the defence of human rights and freedom of expression. The prize carries an award of 50,000 Euro.

Last year’s prize was awarded to Venezuela’s political opposition. (December 16)