First, I would like to forward my Government’s gratitude to Prof. Benedek for his outstanding work on the issue and for introducing to the wider group of UN member states the Report on the human rights violations before, during and after the presidential elections in Belarus. The facts speak for themselves – the findings are disturbing and leave us with great concern regarding the human rights violations and the undermining of democratic processes in Belarus.
The findings regarding election fraud were confirmed, as were the major human rights abuses, which were found to be massive, systematic and proven beyond doubt. Seeing and hearing how the security forces, by following the orders from the highest political level, have tortured people and used excessive violence are completely unacceptable. The perpetrators of such deeds must be held accountable, because impunity only adds more fuel to the fire. As the report shows, not a single criminal case has been opened on any case of torture and ill-treatment.
Prof. Benedek’s Report states clearly that in Belarus there is no media freedom, no freedom of assembly nor expression. Journalists and bloggers are continuously intimidated and some are facing persecution, due to having voiced criticism towards the authorities. Foreign journalists were either denied accreditation or deported. On top of it, the Belarusian people were experiencing several internet black outs. Therefore, they are deprived of the freedom of speech and expression online as well as offline.
We have previously discussed the situation in Belarus in the Security Council and it worries me that we have seen no improvements. I hope that the Belarusian authorities listen to the recommendations set forth in this report and take them seriously. We hope to see new genuine presidential elections, monitored by ODIHR and other international observers based on the OSCE standards.
Due to the massive human rights violations and attack against democratic principles, Estonia fully supports the sanctions on the individuals imposed by the European Union. In addition to that, Estonia and its Baltic neighbours have imposed their own sanctions on the individuals that have had a central role in falsifying election results in Belarus and have used violence against peaceful protesters.
The calls from Belarus that the Moscow Mechanism is an outdated instrument cannot be taken seriously. It is the instrument of factual information and most importantly – dialogue and cooperation. It is an instrument established by consensus and in good faith by all participating States of the OSCE to help us implement our shared commitments in the human dimension.
Lastly, we are very disappointed by the refusal of the Belarusian authorities to engage with the UN Special Rapporteur Anais as well as with Prof. Benedek. We urge the Belarusian authorities to reconsider their approach, engage with the OSCE and make use of the recommendations in the report. We continue to call the Belarusian authorities for a full and salient cooperation. Estonia stands ready to support an inclusive national dialogue in Belarus in order to resolve the present crisis in a sustainable way, safeguarding Belarus’s sovereignty and independence as well as its safe, democratic and prosperous future. We fully support Prof. Benedek in his work and stand by his recommendations, on how to turn the situation around, for the better of the Belarusian people.
Thank you.