European People’s Party adopted resolution on Belarus

The resolution of the European People's Party (EPP) recalls the recent facts of crackdown on civil society and urges the Belarusian authorities to respect civil liberties.

The resolution of the EPP was adopted unanimously. According to Radio Svaboda, it has been decided to bring up the Belarusian question at the nearest session of the European Parliament which is to take place in a week in Strasbourg.

As Radio Racyja was informed by the chairman of the European parliament’s Delegation for relations with Belarus Jacek Protasiewicz, the resolution is mostly a support to the Belarusian democratic opposition.

“The resolution is a vivid confirmation of the fact that the European People’s Party supports the Belarusian democratic opposition in spite of those not very positive signals which took place recently, especially after the visit of Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to Minsk, when he didn’t met with the opposition. We express our concern over the repressions which started again recently. Besides, we are saying that representation of Belarus in the Parliamentary Assembly of the EU countries and the Eastern Partnership should be formed with participation of Belarusian opposition. The EPP has no doubts about that, and the authorities in Minsk should not expect some better result. When we can offer is maximally 5 seats for Belarusian parliament’s representatives which had been elected undemocratically and 5 opposition members. If the government does not agree to 5 opposition representatives in the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly, there would be 10 of them there,” Jacek Protasiewicz said.