Journalist for top Polish paper allegedly denied medication in Belarusian prison

YURAS KARMANAU

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — A representative of the Polish community in Belarus says a former correspondent for a top Polish newspaper has been denied life-saving heart medication in a Belarusian prison. Andrzej Poczobut has been placed in solitary confinement with no access to lawyers or medical care, according to the Union of Poles in Belarus. He received an eight-year sentence in February for “sowing discord,” in a closed trial that was widely seen as part of a sweeping crackdown on opposition figures and independent journalists. Poczobut covered the mass protests that engulfed Belarus in 2020 following the disputed presidential election that returned authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko to office.