Foreign Minister Reinsalu met with Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya
22. January 2021 - 15:32
Today, Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu met with Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya who is on a visit to Estonia. At the meeting, the foreign minister presented Tsikhanouskaya with the Order of Merit of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for her courage in standing up for the freedom of the Belarusian people.
At the meeting in the Foreign Ministry, Urmas Reinsalu expressed his support for Tsikhanouskaya and the people of Belarus, stating that Estonia would continue to keep the issue of Belarus on the agenda of international organisations. “I am impressed by the bravery of the people of Belarus. Despite repressions by the authorities, they continue to protest peacefully for democracy and their fundamental rights. It is crucial to end the violence, release political prisoners and launch a political dialogue, which would result in new, free and democratic elections.”
0 >The UNSC meeting on media freedom in Belarus will take place on January 22. Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
On Friday (January 22), on the initiative of Estonia, the UN Security Council will hold an informal high-level virtual meeting to discuss media freedom in Belarus. The meeting starts at 4 p.m. EET.
The keynote speaker is Irene Khan, the United Nations Special Rapporteur for freedom of expression and opinion. Opening remarks will be made by Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, the leader of democratic Belarus. Other speakers include Member of the Coordination Council Presidium and Head of National Anti-Crisis Management Pavel Latushko, international journalist Gareth Browne and a representative of an independent Belarusian media outlet.
Estonia raises media freedom in Belarus at the UN Security Council | Ministry of Foreign Affairs vm.ee - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from vm.ee Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The United Nations Security Council high-level Arria-formula meeting on Media Freedom in Belarus
On Friday 22 January at 9.00 EST / 16.00 EET, an informal high-level virtual meeting is organised by UN Security Council members Estonia, France, Ireland, Norway, the United Kingdom, the United States, together with additional co-sponsors Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine.
This meeting builds upon an earlier high-level Arria-formula meeting (4 September 2020) on the human rights situation in Belarus. Since the peaceful demonstrations in Belarus following the fraudulent presidential elections on 9 August 2020, we have seen a grim picture of media freedom there. Detentions, imprisonment, torture, as well as death threats are parts of the daily life of journalists in Belarus.