Reporters without Borders nominated Natallya Radzina for Netizen Prize-2011

• 17.01.2011, 15:39

Starting from 2008 the award is given to journalists who are fighting for freedom of expression on the web.

The Netizen Prize is an award which is annually given to bloggers, online reporters and cyber-dissenters, who promote freedom of expression on the web, the press-service of the Belarusian Association of Journalists informs.

This year among persons nominated by the Reporters Without Borders for the Netizen Prize are 6 journalists: from Tunisia, Bahrain, Thailand, China, Vietnam and Belarus.

The editor of charter97.org website Natallya Radzina from Belarus has been nominated for the award. This decision is explained by the Reporters without Borders by a special role of the online resource for which Natallya works, and her personal contribution to the struggle for freedom of expression in Belarus. It is said in the letter received by the BAJ from the Reporters without Borders.

The Netizen Prize – 2011 will be given on March 11 in Paris on the World Day against Cyber Censorship.

Natallya Radzina was detained on December 20 overnight in the editorial office of charter97.org in Minsk. Since that time she is kept in the pre-trial detention centre of the KGB (State Security Committee). She is charged in the criminal case opened by the investigation department of the preliminary investigation of the Main Directorate of Internal Affairs of Minsk city executive committee under Article 293 Parts 1 and 2 of the Criminal Code (mass riots). She faces up to 15 years of imprisonment.