European Commission: Belarus violates Eastern Partnership Declaration
6- 19.02.2010, 15:36
The authorities have been reminded about conditions of Belarus’ democratization – they haven’t been fulfilled.
Brussels has expressed concern about escalation of repressions against the civil society I Belarus in general and the Union of Poles in particular.
“The actions of the Belarusian authorities directed at changing the administration of the Union of Poles and confiscation of their property contradict to the Declaration of the Eastern Partnership summit signed by Belarus in Prague on May 7, 2009”, - replies the European Commission to a written appeal of an EP deputy Ryszard Czarnecki.
As infromed by the European Radio for Belarus, the European Commission has also expressed concern over the restriction of the freedom of association in Belarus in general and in connection with the situation of the Union of Poles in particular.
“The quality of democracy in a country is also measured by the authorities’ attitude to minorities”, - is noted in the response of the European Commission.
The executive organ of the EC reminds to Belarus that the improvement of relations depends on progress in five fields: absence of political prisoners, a reform of the Election Code in correspondence with the recommendations of the OSCE, liberalisation of the media and establishment of freedom of association and assembly, improvement of working conditions and the legal state of non-governmental organization and a moratorium on capital punishment.
We remind that recently the Union of Poles in Belarus which hasn’t been recognized by the Belarusian authorities, is experiencing a great pressure. People who are fighting for a right to remain an independent organisation, are subject to arrests, criminal cases are opened against them, libellous articles in state-run media are written about them, the Polish Houses belonging to them are confiscated in different parts of the country.
The Belarusian authorities also continue crackdown on the opposition, disbanding peaceful rallies and beating up protesters.
