Lithuanian President Urged To Impose Sanctions Against Lukashenka Regime

Belarusians badly need international support.

Today, the Belarusian diaspora in Lithuania handed over an appeal to President Gitanas Nausėda to impose sanctions against the Lukashenka regime. The website Charter97.org has learnt this from one of the leaders of Belarusians of Lithuania Pavel Marynich. Here is the text of the appeal:

To the President of the Republic of Lithuania

His Excellency Gitanas Nausėda

Your Excellency Mr. President,

We, the Belarusians of Lithuania, are contacting you with a request for support.

In Belarus, Lukashenka, illegally holding the post of head of state, unleashed reprisals against the people. Trying to retain power by all means, the usurper gets rid of his opponents, throwing them to jail, and fabricating criminal cases against them. All this happens during the so-called elections, which in Belarus have long been a farce.

The country today found itself in a situation of legal lawlessness, the last islands of fundamental freedoms are being destroyed. Presidential candidates and members of their teams, opposition leaders, activists and bloggers who are in jail are tortured and held in terrible conditions that humiliate human dignity. It is estimated that today at least 45 people have been imprisoned for political reasons. The authorities resort to unjustified violence against citizens and consciously seek to escalate it.

The Belarusian and Lithuanian people are connected by a centuries-old common history, culture, friendship and good neighborliness. We always appreciated the help of the Republic of Lithuania in the striving of Belarusians for independence, freedom and democracy. Thank you very much for that!

Today we urgently need international support, your attention to our situation and a principled stand on massive violations of human rights. You can significantly help stop violence against civilians in Belarus.

We urge you:

Demand the immediate release of all detainees for political reasons, and investigate all cases of torture;

Demand to stop arbitrary detention of civilians, and ensure freedom of speech and assembly in Belarus;

Demand to stop the practice of using unjustified and excessive force against peaceful assemblies of citizens;

Demand conditions for the smooth functioning of independent press;

Demand to immediately stop blocking independent electronic media in Belarus;

Support the civil society in Belarus as one of the most important elements of the Belarusian sovereignty and sustainability, urge the leadership of Belarus not to restrict the registration of NGOs and not to hinder their activities (including the lifting of the blockade of crowdfunding platforms such as MolaMola);

To urge to return to the people of Belarus free elections, without which the country will face an acute economic and political crisis;

Stop political support for the regime, and high-level contacts;

Stop any financial assistance to the government;

Stop trading with state-owned enterprises;

To minimize and limit banking and financial transactions with the government counterparties;

Take measures to freeze negotiations with Belarus on issues of interest to the authorities;

Provide public support to the repressed citizens of Belarus;

Lead at the EU level the resumption of sanctions against the Belarusian officials responsible for repression and harassment;

Seek European solidarity regarding the closure of the unsafe Astravets NPP project, and take all measures to ensure that the electricity generated by the plant does not enter the EU market.

Belarusians of Lithuania, July 3, 2020, Vilnius

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