The Sakharov Prize for 2025 awarded to persecuted journalists from Georgia and Belarus

Awarded
Tři osoby stojí v popředí a drží zarámované dokumenty, zatímco za nimi sedí a stojí zaplněný sál lidí, část publika tleská. Scéna působí jako oficiální událost nebo ceremonie ve velkém konferenčním prostoru.

The European Parliament has awarded the 2025 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought to imprisoned journalists Mzia Amaglobeli from Georgia and Andrzej Poczobut from Belarus. They received the award for their long-standing defence of media freedom, democracy and human rights, despite the repression they face in their countries.

Mzia Amaglobeli is a journalist and the founder of the independent media outlets Batumelebi and Netgazeti. She has become a symbol of pro-democracy protests in Georgia, during which she was also arrested and subsequently imprisoned. Andrzej Poczobut is a journalist and a representative of the Polish minority in Belarus, known for his criticism of Alexander Lukashenko’s regime. After more than five years in prison, he was released at the end of April 2026 as part of a prisoner exchange between Belarus and Poland.

The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought is the European Parliament’s highest award in the field of human rights. It has been awarded annually since 1988 to individuals and organisations that have made an outstanding contribution to the defence of human rights, fundamental freedoms and democracy.

Among its laureates are Nelson Mandela, Alexander Dubček, Alexei Navalny and the Belarusian democratic opposition. The prize is named after the Soviet physicist, dissident and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Andrei Sakharov, who campaigned for the protection of human rights and freedom of thought.
 

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