Money at blood

The Belarusian regime is trying to avoid sanctions with the help of lobbyists from European business-structures.

Yesterday at Belarusian state-run TV in “Nedelya” (“Week”) program some participants of the Association of European businessmen Businesseurope were shown. They expressed “concern over the politically motivated attitude of the EU towards the Belarusian question.”

Such an opinion was expressed by representatives of Latvia, Lithuania, Italy, the Great Britain and Switzerland.

“I think that European legislative authorities which are responsible for imposing any sanctions, should reconsider their position. Many German enterprises have joint manufactures with Belarus now. But I believe that we still have great potential. We are simply obliged to use this potential,” noted the chairman of the association of German economic consulates of Berlin-Brandenburg Ingo Beetz.

The head of an investment company, a member of the headship of the Conservative party in Southern England Simon Hume-Kendall ventured even stronger comment and said: “I am absolutely sure that there is no shortage of rights and freedoms in Belarus. I am convinced that the EU information about Belarus is wrong. We have a representation in Europe now at the highest state level. With the help of the Interior Affairs Ministry we should hold lots of meetings and explain and persuade, in order to help Belarus to be understood by Brussels, and in order to succeed in declaring the sanctions incorrect. That is why I would like to state: citizens of Belarus, you should know that what it happening against you and your country now is completely unjustifiable and unjust.”

Charter97.org has asked independent experts, political prisoners and their relatives to comment on these statements.

Iryna Bahdanava, the sister of the political prisoner and a presidential candidate Andrei Sannikov:

“The economic sanctions considered by the EU by no means influence the economy of the country. They are aimed only against the business which makes Lukashenka and his clique’s purse full. Peftsieu is a man you sells arms. It is a totally immoral business. Chyzh is a sponsor of Lukashenka’s regime for many years. Simon Hume-Kendall,who is hardly known by anyone, acts in his own interests, and simply tramples upon the European values, speaking in support of the dictatorship, where people are thrown in prisons for their convictions, tortured and subjected to humiliating treatment.

It is sad that at the 18th years of the dictatorship in Europe it finds its lobbyists. It is immoral for businessmen to be engaged in lobbying of a dictatorship. While the government of the Great Britain maintains a principled and firm stand towards Lukashenka’s regime, such people place their self-interests higher than the value of human rights and freedoms.”

Pavel Marynich, a businessman, a son of a political prisoner Mikhail Marynich:

“The TV program at the Belarusian TV channel is totally biased, and the statements of the “businessmen” look rather strange against the background of the events which are taking place in Belarus. In the country where the economy works outside the legal framework, but according to the dictators’ decrees, where the system of financial accounting not comprehensible for anyone in the world exists, where there is no independent courts and audit, it is impossible to do civilized transparent business. The fruits of Lukashenka wonderful economy have been evaluated by the world rating and financial agencies properly, and the attitude of the IMF is another vivid confirmation to that. It is not a secret for anyone that in the countries with hyper-inflation there are firms close to the ruling regimes, which derive supernormal profits thanks to inflation processes and multiple exchange rates. It is possible that these defenders of Lukashenka’s regime want to fish in troubled waters, hoping for considerable kickback thanks to this cooperation with the dictatorship.”

Pavel Usov, the Belarusian centre of European Studies:

“If representatives of the European business circles had been defending human rights and stressing the necessity to stop crackdown with the same obstinacy as they are defending their business in Belarus, the situation in the country could have changed in the shortest possible time. Generally speaking, this concerns other non-democratic countries as well. Why businessmen do not clamour about the sanctions against Syria or Iran, but suddenly speak about political bias of the European sanctions against Belarus? There is only one reason: the absence of a common position of all European countries towards Lukashenka’s regime. If the EU members stated the necessity of pressure on the Belarusian regime with one voice, as it was done regarding Gaddafi, and is done regarding Assad and Iranian authorities, no business, even the biggest business, would be able to make such statements.

However, the recent history shows that there is a group of countries which is ready to conduct both economic and political dialogue with Lukashenka, paying no atte4ntion to the deteriorating situation with human rights: these are Lithuania, Latvia, Slovenia, Italy and in some measure Germany.

Alyaksandr Atroshchankau, a former political prisoner, a coordinator of “European Belarus” campaign:

“There is nothing new or unexpected in some representatives of European business’ making statements against tightening of the EU policy. Business rarely thinks about anything except immediate profit, and it is even rarer when business thinks about human rights. However, as the history shows, such approach causes dreadful consequences. All of us certainly hope that greediness and lack of principles would not set the trend in the policy of the European Union. These people do not represent interests of the European Union, and moreover, they are interested in Belarus’ remaining a rogue country with wide possibilities for “gray” and corruption schemes. It would be wrong to allow them setting the trend for the European policy.”