European Union And US Criticized Belarusian Authorities After UN Special Rapporteur's Report

The political situation in Belarus was discussed at a meeting with representatives of the EU and the United States.

Brussels is concerned about the content of the report of the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus, Anais Marin. This was stated by the official EU representative at the meeting of the Committee on Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Affairs at the 74th session of the UN General Assembly in New York on October 17.

Anais Marin presented a report on the situation in Belarus in the run-up to the "parliamentary elections". Her speech and discussion of the report were broadcast on the website of the United Nations Web TV, BelaPAN reports.

The EU representative says that the content of the document "causes concern, especially given that for the sixth consecutive year, the Special Rapporteur has faced the lack of cooperation on the part of Belarus. "We support the mandate of the Special Rapporteur and call on the Government of Belarus to cooperate with her," - he said.

According to the Brussels representative, the EU is concerned about the conclusions of the report, according to which Belarus "hasn't made the required progress in reforms and continues to restrict fundamental freedoms". "The assessment of the Special Rapporteur indicates that the situation in the field of human rights may become worse in the run-up to the "parliamentary" and "presidential elections" scheduled for 2019 and 2020. It also causes concern," - he said.

"The report says that only the illusion of compliance with international standards is created, there remain unfavorable conditions for the expression of opposition views, which are a violation of political human rights, the exercise of freedom of peaceful assembly and association faces restrictions, - the EU speaker said. - We call on the Government of Belarus to ensure full respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms before, during or after the election cycle, as well as to create favorable conditions for people to participate in public activities".

"It is necessary to adhere to the principles of the rule of law and human rights, - the EU representative stressed. - This is of key importance for effective policymaking. The EU uses all possible diplomatic instruments to remind Belarus of its obligations in the field of human rights protection ".

Representatives of Poland, the Czech Republic, Germany and Lithuania showed a similar position at the meeting.

The representative of Norway urged Belarus to abolish the death penalty regardless of public opinion, while the United Kingdom - at least to introduce a moratorium as a first step towards abolishing this penalty.

The speaker from the U.S. expressed concern that in Belarus, "there are not enough efforts to stop the practice of restricting human rights, especially the freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of speech". On behalf of her country, she called on the Belarusian government to facilitate the registration of civil society organizations, including non-governmental human rights organizations, "so that they can have an opportunity for an open and constructive dialogue". "We urge the Government of Belarus to demonstrate progress in the human rights agenda ahead of the elections. We hope to improve our bilateral relations," - the American diplomat said.