Meet the Director: 'They Shall Not Know the Truth'

Authoritarian states and dictatorships want to have a monopoly on the truth. That's why journalism in countries like Belarus is one of the most dangerous professions. 

For doing their job—pursuing the truth and describing reality—Belarusian journalists are put on par with dangerous criminals by the regime. There are more than 30 journalists in Belarusian prisons, and hundreds of journalists have had to flee the country to avoid sharing the fate of their colleagues.

Pulitzer Center grantee Jan Bluz's film They Shall Not Know the Truth explores how journalists became the main enemies of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. A screening of the film will be held at the University of Gdańsk's UG Film Center in Poland on June 7, 2024. After the screening, audience members will have a discussion with Bluz, the film's director. Admission is free.

The film's protagonists, Belarusian journalists serving prison sentences, tell how freedom of speech and of the press were gradually destroyed under Lukashenko's rule. Between August 2020 and fall 2022, some 550 journalists were detained in Belarus. Seventy-three media workers have faced criminal charges. 

They Shall Not Know the Truth was produced in cooperation with the Pulitzer Center. (See the trailer below.)

Bluz is a freelance journalist and video producer. He graduated with a degree in American studies at the University of Wroclaw in Poland. He has collaborated with Angora, TVN24, and Belsat TV, among others. 

Bluz is the director and producer of the documentary Underground of Hope (2018, which won the Audience Award at the 18th WatchDocs IFF), Article 293 (2021), and Burnt Roots (2023).

Presenters at the Bluz event will include:

Magdalena Horodecka, who is a literary scholar and sociologist who works at the Institute of Polish Philology at the University of Gdańsk. Horodecka is the author of the books Collecting Voices. The Art of Storytelling by Ryszard Kapuściński (2010) and Intermediaries. Contemporary Literary Reportage to the Other (2020), as well as numerous articles on non-fiction literature. Her classes focus on journalism, literary theory, and cultural studies.

Agnieszka Szczęścikiewicz is a second-year student of Polish philology with a specialization in journalism.

Free admission