Overview
- Parliament President Roberta Metsola praised the laureates’ defense of free expression and called for their immediate release.
- Andrzej Poczobut was represented by his daughter Jana, while Irma Dimitradze accepted on behalf of Mzia Amaglobeli and delivered her statement to MEPs.
- MEPs cited more than 1,200 political prisoners in Belarus, condemned repression, denounced Lukashenka’s complicity with Russia, and urged stricter sanctions with support for independent media.
- Lawmakers criticized Georgia’s democratic backsliding, denounced the “foreign agents” law and protest crackdowns, called for a rerun of the disputed 2024 elections, and backed personal sanctions on those responsible for abuses.
- The Sakharov Prize, the EU’s highest human-rights honor, was established in 1988 and carries a €50,000 award.