Stefan Fuele condemned arrest of Belarusian politicians

Anca Paduraru, a spokesperson for EU Commissioner, informed that Stefan Fuele condemns detention of the three representatives of the Belarusian opposition in Vorsha.

Today in Brussels the European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy Stefan Fuele presented a new program of the EU “European Dialogue for Belarus’ Modernization”, BelaPAN informs.

“I am glad that together with representatives of the Belarusian opposition and civil society I can start a positive program related to Belarus amid this had time. I hope that our team work, our purposeful work would help us to clarify understanding of how Belarus could look like in the future, and what we need to achieve that,” the European Commissioner noted in a special press-release.

The leader of the United Civil Party Anatol Lyabedzka, the chairman of the Belarusian Left Party “Just World” Syarhei Kalyakin and “European Belarus” coordinator Alyaksandr Atroshchankau were not able to attend the presentation. They were taken off Minsk-Moscow train in Vorsha on March 27 in the night. They planned to fly to Brussels from Moscow. First customs officers stated the oppositionists were suspected of drugs trafficking, and later it turned out they were charged with petty hooliganism, allegedly committed in the train. The trial is taking place in the court of Vorsha (Orsha) and Vorsha district now. All the time before the trial Lyabedzka, Kalyakin and Atroshchankau were kept in the temporary containment cell in Vorsha.

“We condemn the fact that the authorities prevented some participants from visiting Brussels. But this would not stop us from taking into consideration and making an inherent part of the dialogue the views of these people. You may rest assured, we are going to invite to this dialogue all those who have a vision of a better, European future for Belarus,” the European Commissioner has stated in Brussels today.