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Belarus: Massive human rights violations unprecedented in scope and gravity, says UN expert. GENEVA (5 July 2021) – Belarus has witnessed an unprecedented human rights crisis over the past year, an independent expert appointed by the Human Rights Council said today, calling on authorities to end their policy of repression and to fully respect ...
Mar 9, 2022 · 9 March 2022 Human Rights. The Belarusian Government’s continuing crackdown on political opponents, civil society, journalists and lawyers has seen the fundamental human rights of tens of thousands violated, with no sign of any of the perpetrators being held accountable, the UN rights office, OHCHR, reported on Wednesday.
- Free and Fair Elections
- Governmental Crackdown on Peaceful Protests
- Arrest and Harassment of Opposition Members and Supporters
- Freedom of Expression and Attacks on Journalists
- Freedom of Information
- Death Penalty
- Covid-19
- Key International Actors
The presidential elections were marred by arrests of leading opposition candidates, groundless refusals to register certain opposition candidates for the ballot, and allegations of widespread fraud. In May, the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) refused to register the nomination for Siarhei Tsikhanousky, a popular blogger who at the time was servi...
Officials and police violently dispersed protests on August 9-12 in Minsk and other large cities, using excessive force and resorting to rubber bullets, stun grenades, and tear gas. Riot police detained almost 7,000 protesters and bystanders in four days, subjecting hundreds to torture and other ill-treatment and holding them in inhuman and degradi...
Starting in early summer, authorities launched more than 500 criminal cases against potential presidential candidates, their campaigns’ team members, and peaceful protesters on false charges ranging from mass rioting to hooliganism. Authorities also launched criminal cases against businessmen and staff of companies that supported certain opposition...
The Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ) documented more than 500 incidents of harassment, detention, fines and temporary arrests of journalists from January through mid-November 2020. BelSAT, a Poland-based broadcaster long targeted by Belarusian authorities, estimates it has already paid over US$100,000 in the first nine months of 2020, su...
From August 9 to August 12, internet access in Belarus was severely restricted for 61 hours, leaving access only to 2G networks, permitting text messages and voice calls. Government officials blamed foreign cyber-attacks for the disruptions, but independent experts and an independent monitoring group have attributed them to government interference....
Belarus remains the only country in Europe to carry out the death penalty. In the past year, Belarus is known to have executed one person, Aliaksandr Asipovich, who was sentenced to death in January 2019, and executed by firing squad on December 9, 2019. There are currently four people on death row: Viktar Paulau, Viktar Syarhel, Stanislaw Kosteu, ...
Since March, Belarus recorded over 70,000 cases and 632 deaths. At time of writing, Belarus has 1,208 reported cases per 100,000 people. Throughout the pandemic, President Lukashenka dismissed the seriousness of Covid-19. Authorities did not introduce any lockdown measures despite high levels of community transmission. In November, authorities in M...
The annual report by the United Nations special rapporteur on Belarus, Anaïs Marin, concluded that there were no significant improvements in the human rights situation. Belarus continued to refuse to recognize her mandate and failed to cooperate with her investigations. A thematic report by the special rapporteur documented serious concerns with th...
Sep 22, 2023 · Mr. President. Excellencies. Dear Colleagues, I welcome the opportunity to address the Council and provide an update on the human rights situation in Belarus, in accordance with Resolution 52/29. Three years from the contested Presidential elections of August 2020, the human rights situation in Belarus remains grave, showing no signs of ...
Mar 9, 2022 · GENEVA - The fundamental human rights of tens of thousands of people in Belarus have been violated and the lives of countless others negatively affected by the Government’s continued crackdown on opponents, civil society, journalists and lawyers, without yet seeing the perpetrators held accountable, a report published today by the UN Human Rights Office says.
Sep 18, 2020 · At the end of a memorable day of back-and-forth discussions between the Council President and delegations - featuring more than a dozen points of order by delegations who questioned the right of...
Mar 24, 2021 · The UN’s top rights forum passed resolutions condemning abuses of fundamental freedoms in Belarus and Myanmar on Wednesday, in response to ongoing concerns over the human rights situation in both countries.
