“Igor Losik’s wrongful detention is indicative of President Lukashenko’s continued assault on the freedom of press in Belarus. Unfortunately, Igor is just one of many journalists imprisoned in a country which has repeatedly used the judicial system to punish dissent,” said Freedom Now Legal Officer Adam Lhedmat. “We are confident that the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention will conclude that Losik’s fundamental human rights have been violated and that he should be released immediately.”
Prior to his arrest, Losik worked as a consultant for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and ran Belarus of the Brain, a Telegram news aggregate channel. Around the time of the 2020 presidential election in Belarus, it was the second-most viewed Telegram channel in the country.
On June 25, 2020, he was arrested and initially charged with “violating public order,” for using Belarus of the Brain to create public disturbances ahead of the 2020 election. During his detention, Losik was held incommunicado and was reportedly pressured, under threat of physical violence to him and family, to confess to the charges.
On December 15, 2020, a second charge as brought against Losik also for “organizing mass disturbances.” On March 11, 2021, authorities brought two additional charges against Losik for preparation for “inciting social discord” and for “illegal use of signs prohibited by international law.”
The trial against Losik began in June 2021, and on December 14, 2021, after five months of a closed-door trial, Losik was convicted and sentenced to 15 years. On June 1, 2022, the Belarus Supreme Court rejected Losik’s appeal and upheld the 15-year sentence. Following his conviction, Losik was transferred to a high-level security prison where he is allowed to receive correspondence only once a month and receive visitors, other than his lawyer, only twice a year.
The U.S. State Department, U.S. Helsinki Commission, Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, U.S. Congressman Bill Keating, Lithuanian Seimas Speaker Viktorija Cmilyte-Nielsen, and the U.S. Agency for Global Media, among others, have called for Losik’s release.
In January 2023, a court sentenced Losik’s wife, Darya, to two years in prison on the charge of facilitating extremist activity. The politically-motivated charges were related to Darya’s attempts to petition for her husband’s release. The European Union called the sentencing “shameful.”