Madam Chair,
I would like to deliver this statement on behalf of the following 37 countries: Albania , Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Montenegro, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, the United States, and my own country, Denmark.
In the face of massive, systematic and brutal violence following the 2020 presidential election in Belarus, 17 OSCE participating states invoked the OSCE Moscow Mechanism to look into serious violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms in Belarus.
Madam Chair,
It is with disappointment and concern that we learn of further restrictions on freedom of expression, of peaceful assembly, and freedom of the media in Belarus. There are worrying reports of amendments to a number of Belarusian laws, currently being considered in Parliament, which, if passed, will further restrict basic rights and fundamental freedoms that should be afforded to everyone. Like our EU colleagues, we also remain concerned at the treatment of the Polish community in Belarus.
According to reports by Belarusian NGO’s, since last August’s election more than 35,000 people have been detained, and more than 2,300 criminal charges have been brought against those who have called for greater democracy for Belarus. In his statement of 6 April, ODIHR’s Director, Mr Matteo Mecacci, expressed his concern over the excessive use of force and unjustified and disproportionate penalties. We share his concerns and echo the call for all those arbitrarily detained to
Madam Chair,
It is with disappointment and concern that we learn of further restrictions on freedom of expression, of peaceful assembly, and freedom of the media in Belarus. There are worrying reports of amendments to a number of Belarusian laws, currently being considered in Parliament, which, if passed, will further restrict basic rights and fundamental freedoms that should be afforded to everyone. Like our EU colleagues, we also remain concerned at the treatment of the Polish community in Belarus.
According to reports by Belarusian NGO’s, since last August’s election more than 35,000 people have been detained, and more than 2,300 criminal charges have been brought against those who have called for greater democracy for Belarus. In his statement of 6 April, ODIHR’s Director, Mr Matteo Mecacci, expressed his concern over the excessive use of force and unjustified and disproportionate penalties. We share his concerns and echo the call for all those arbitrarily detained to
Belarus Sentences Famed Translator to Two Years’ House Arrest
PEN America today called the sentence cruel and wholly unwarranted
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 26, 2021
(New York, NY) A court in Belarus this week sentenced translator Volha Kalackaja to two years of house arrest after a one-day trial. Kalackaja who has translated the works of Margaret Atwood, Virginia Woolf, Tennessee Williams, and William Golding was first arrested in January after taking part in peaceful demonstrations in Minsk neighborhood. She was charged with “malicious hooliganism” and held in pre-trial detention for two months. PEN America today said the sentence is cruel and wholly unwarranted.