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Human rights in Belarus

January 01, 1970

The government of Belarus is criticized for its human rights violations and persecution of non-governmental organisations, independent journalists, national minorities, and opposition politicians.[1][2] In a testimony to the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, former United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice labeled Belarus as one of the world's six "outposts of tyranny".[3] In response, the Belarusian government called the assessment "quite far from reality".[4] During 2020 Belarusian presidential election and protests, the number of political prisoners recognized by Viasna Human Rights Centre rose dramatically to 1062 as of 16 February 2022.[5] Several people died after the use of unlawful and abusive force (including firearms) by law enforcement officials during 2020 protests.[6] According to Amnesty International, the authorities didn't investigate violations during protests but instead harassed those who challenged their version of events.[6] In July 2021, the authorities launched a campaign against the remaining non-governmental organizations, liquidating at least 270 of them by October, including all previously registered human rights organizations in the country.[7]

The national flag of 1918 and 1991–1995 has become a symbol of the opposition to the regime of president Alexander Lukashenko

President Alexander Lukashenko has described himself as having an "authoritarian ruling style".[8] Western countries have described Belarus under Lukashenko as "Europe's last dictatorship"; the government has accused the same Western powers of attempting a regime change.[9] The Council of Europe has barred Belarus from membership since 1997 for undemocratic voting and election irregularities in the November 1996 constitutional referendum and parliament by-elections.[10]

Dozens of Belarusian government officials responsible for political repressions, forced disappearances, propaganda, and electoral fraud have been subject to personal sanctions by the United States of America and the European Union.

Electoral process edit

 
The new Flag of Belarus introduced by Alexander Lukashenko following a controversial referendum in 1995

On 10 July 1994 Alexander Lukashenko was elected President of Belarus. He won 80.3% of the vote.

As of 2017, no other presidential or parliamentary election or referendum held in Belarus since then has been accepted as free and fair by the OSCE, the United Nations, the European Union or the United States. Senior officials responsible for the organization of elections, including the head of the Central Elections Commission, Lydia Yermoshina, were subject to international sanctions for electoral fraud:

Lukashenko's official election results at presidential elections
9 September 2001 19 March 2006 19 December 2010
75.6% 83% 79.6%

December 2010 election edit

Main article: 2010 Belarusian presidential election

The presidential elections of 2010 were followed by opposition protest and its violent crackdown by the police. A group of protesters tried to storm a principal government building, smashing windows and doors before riot police pushed them back.[11] After attack of principal building protesters were violently suppressed. Several hundreds of activists, including several presidential candidates, were arrested, beaten and tortured by the police and the KGB.

Lukashenko criticized the protesters, accusing them of "banditry".[12]

Police violence during the protests and the overall conduction of the election caused a wave of harsh criticism from the U.S. and the EU. More than 200 propagandists, state security officers, central election committee staff and other officials were included in sanctions lists of the European Union: they were banned from entering the EU and their assets in the EU, if any, were to be frozen.

August 2020 election edit

 
2020 Belarusian protests
Main article: 2020 Belarusian presidential election

In June 2020, the Amnesty International documented clampdown on human rights, including the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly and association, ahead of presidential elections scheduled for 9 August 2020. The organization reported politically motivated prosecutions, intimidation, harassment and reprisals against opposition candidates and their supporters. The Belarusian authorities targeted and intimidated civil society activists and independent media. Two politicians, Syarhei Tsikhanouski and Viktar Babaryka, were jailed and faced politically motivated criminal proceedings. Hundreds of peaceful protesters, including their supporters, were arbitrarily arrested and heavily fined or held in "administrative detention".[13][14] On 14 August 2020, the European Union imposed sanctions on individual Belarusian officials, after reports of the systematic abuse and torture of Belarusians in a violent crackdown on protesters. The Belarusian security forces beat and detained peaceful protesters, who participated in demonstrations against the official election outcome.[15]

Freedoms edit

Freedom of the press edit

See also: Censorship in Belarus

Since the 2000s, Reporters Without Borders have been ranking Belarus below all other European countries in its Press Freedom Index.[16]

Freedom House has rated Belarus as "not free" in all of its global surveys since 1998, "Freedom in the World";[17][18] the Lukashenko government curtails press freedom, the organization says. State media are subordinate to the president. Harassment and censorship of independent media are routine.

Under the authoritarian president Alexander Lukashenko, journalists like Iryna Khalip, Natalya Radina, and Pavel Sheremet have been arrested for their work. Independent printed media like Nasha Niva have been excluded from state distribution networks.

In February 2021, two Belsat TV journalists Katsyaryna Andreeva and Darya Chultsova were imprisoned for two years for streaming during anti-Lukashenko protests in Minsk.[19]

In May 2021, top news site tut.by which was read by circa 40% of internet users in Belarus was blocked and several its journalists were detained.[20] In July 2021, Nasha Niva news site was blocked with simultaneous detention of the editors took place.[21] Editorial office of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in Minsk was searched with doors being broke, homes of several its journalists were also searched.[22] Coverage of these attacks on independent media by state-run TV channels is considered to be an attempt to intimidate people. According to Current Time TV, state-run media made false accusations about the activities of journalists and invented fake evidences of their guilt without any trial.[23] Amnesty International condemned attack on NGOs by Belarusian authorities.[24]

In July 2021, registrations of Belarusian Association of Journalists, Press Club Belarus and Belarusian branch of writers' PEN center were revoked as a part of attack on NGOs (see #Pressure on NGOs section).[25]

Freedom of religion edit

Main article: Freedom of religion in Belarus

Jews are not the only minority who are alleged to have had their human rights violated in Belarus. On 25 March 2004, the Associated Press reported that a ban exists on home worship in the country and that members of four Protestant churches had recently asked the government to repeal a 2002 law which forbade them worshipping from their own homes, although they were members of legally registered religions.[26] The Christian Post reported in a 21 April 2005 article[27] that non-denominational, charismatic churches were greatly affected by the law, since none of these churches own buildings. Protestant organizations have also complained of censorship because of the ban on importing literature without approval by government officials.

According to Forum 18, textbooks widely used in Belarusian schools (as of 2002) contain anti-religious views similar to those taught in the USSR:

Religion does not teach a believer to strive to lead a dignified life, to fight for his freedom or against evil and oppression. This is all supposed to be performed for him by supernatural forces, above all, god. All that is left for the believer to do is to be his pathetic petitioner, to behave as a pauper or slave...Religion's promises to give a person everything that he seeks in it are but illusion and deception."

The organization also reported that charismatic Protestant churches (such as Full Gospel) and Greek Catholic and independent Orthodox churches (such as those unaffiliated with the Russian Orthodox Church) have encountered difficulty in registering churches.[28]

In 2003 Protestant groups accused the government of Belarus of waging a smear campaign against them, telling Poland's Catholic information agency KAI that they had been accused of being Western spies and conducting human sacrifice.[29] Charter 97 reported in July 2004 that Baptists who celebrated Easter with patients at a hospital in Mazyr were fined and threatened with confiscation of their property.[30]

Only 4,000 Muslims live in Belarus, mostly ethnic Lipka Tatars who are the descendants of immigrants and prisoners in the 11th and 12th centuries.[31] The administration for Muslims in the country, abolished in 1939, was re-established in 1994.

However, Ahmadiyya Muslims (commonly regarded as a non-violent sect) are banned from practicing their faith openly in Belarus, and have a similar status to groups like Scientology and Aum Shinrikyo.[32] There have been no major reports of religious persecution of the Muslim community; however, because of the situation in Chechnya and neighboring Russia concerns have been expressed by Belarusian Muslims that they may become increasingly vulnerable.

These fears were heightened on 16 September 2005 when a bomb was detonated outside a bus stop, injuring two people. On 23 September a bomb was exploded outside a restaurant, wounding nearly 40 people. Muslims are not suspected in the latter attack, which was labeled "hooliganism".[33]

In 2020, the government pressed on major religious groups after they condemned violence during the mass protests. On 26 August 2020, Belarusian riot police OMON blocked protesters and random believers in a Roman Catholic church in Minsk for several hours.[34] The leader of the Belarusian Orthodox Church Metropolitan Paul was forced to resign after criticism of the police and authorities; his changer Veniamin was considered to be a much more comfortable figure for Lukashenko.[35][36] The leader of the Roman Catholic church in Belarus Tadevuš Kandrusievič was banned from returning to Belarus from Poland for several months and was forced to resign soon after the return.[37][38][34]

In 2021, the authorities organized the "All-Belarus prayer" convincing all confessions to make a prayer. Alexander Lukashenko tried to stop the performance of the religious song "The Almighty God" (Belarusian: Магутны Божа) warning Catholic priests not to perform it.[39] In 2021, an official newspaper of Minsk Region published a cartoon depicting Roman Catholic priests as Nazis wearing swastika instead of crosses.[40][34]

In 2023, Freedom House rated Belarus’ religious freedom as 1 out of 4.[41]

Freedom of association edit

The constitutional right of freedom of associations is not always implemented in practice. In 2013, Amnesty International characterized Belarusian legislation on registration of NGOs as "over-prescriptive".[42] Ministry of Justice of Belarus who is responsible for the registration of new organizations uses double standards for commercial and other non-governmental organizations, including political parties.[43] The former need only a declaration to start operations, the latter have to get a permission.[43] Political associations, including parties, however, had difficulties to get a permission. The last new party was registered in Belarus in 2000, because later the ministry denied to register new parties for different reasons.[44] Belarusian Christian Democracy made 7 attempts to register, Party of freedom and progress — 4 attempts; People's Hramada party was also prevented from registration.[44] The ministry justified all these cases by the reasons that are thought to be artificial and flimsy. For example, the ministry refused to register a local branch of BPF Party in Hrodna Region because of "incorrect line spacing" in the documents.[43][44] During another attempt to register this branch, the ministry requested the additional documents that are not mentioned in the law.[45] One of the refusals got by the Belarusian Christian Democracy cited lack of home or work phones information for some of the party founders.[44] Another refusal was based on a statement in the party's charter that its members should be "supporters of a Christian worldview".[42] Amnesty International reported cases of pressure to withdraw signatures needed to register a political party by the local authorities and managers (in state organizations).[42] Several activists (including Zmitser Dashkevich) were imprisoned for "the activity of unregistered associations".[42]

According to the Centre for Legal Transformation, the ministry is also actively refusing to register non-governmental organizations.[45] In 2009, the ministry declared that the registration process was simplified, but the legal experts of political parties doubted this statement claiming that only insignificant issues were affected.[43] In 2012, the ministry started the procedure of suspension of an NGO citing the wrong capital letter on a stamp ("Dobraya Volya" instead of "Dobraya volya") as one of the reasons; the NGO was soon suspended.[42] In 2011 and 2013, the ministry refused to register LGBT organizations; therefore Belarus had no LGBT associations.[42] Human rights organizations also fail to register, so the long-established Belarusian Helsinki Committee is the only registered organization in this area on the national level.[42]

In July and August 2021, Belarusian Ministry of justice started the procedure of closure of several major NGOs, including Belarusian Popular Front, the oldest continuously operating organization in Belarus (founded in 1988, registered in 1991),[46] Belarusian Association of Journalists,[47] Belarusian PEN centre.[48] The liquidation of the oldest green group in Belarus, Ecohome (Executive Director Marina Dubina), was condemned by 46 members of Aarhus Convention and by the European ECO Forum. The remaining members of the convention voted to give the Belarusian government a chance to cancel the liquidation before 1 December 2021, threatening to suspend its membership otherwise.[49]

Judicial system edit

Belarusian judicial system is characterized by the high conviction rate: in 2020, 99.7% of criminal cases resulted in conviction and only 0.3% — in acquittance. This rate is stable for several years.[50] The judicial system is especially severe to people expressing their views: among prosecuted people are journalists, civil activists, people who make political comments and jokes on social networks and put emojis there.[51] Among the most controversial "crimes" are white socks with a red stripe, white and red hair, 70 people arrested in Brest for dancing (some of them were sentenced to 2 years of prison).[52][53] Opposition leader also experience harsh treatment in the courthouses which is sometimes compared with the Stalinist trials.[51]

Capital punishment edit

Main article: Capital punishment in Belarus
 
Europe holds the greatest concentration of abolitionist states (blue). Map current as of 2017
  Abolished for all crimes
  Retains death penalty

Belarus is the only European country that continues to use capital punishment. The U.S. and Belarus were the only two of the 56 member states of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe to have carried out executions during 2011.[54]

Political dissidents and prisoners edit

In December 2010, Belarusian special security forces attacked demonstrators, beat and injured many activists with batons and arrested more than 600 people after a rally in central Minsk to protest the outcome of elections widely seen by Western observers as fraudulent. In their joint statement, Hillary Clinton and Baroness Ashton called for the immediate release of the protesters (including at least seven opposition presidential candidates) and strongly condemned what they termed the "disproportionate" use of force against demonstrators.

Belarus has come under attack from Amnesty International for its treatment of political prisoners,[55] including those from the youth wing of the Belarusian Popular Front (a pro-democracy party). In a report dated 26 April 2005 Amnesty criticised Belarus for its treatment of dissidents, including a woman imprisoned for publishing a satirical poem.[55] Another political prisoner who has been in jail for four years (June 2001 – August 2005) is Yury Bandazhevsky, a scientist who was jailed on accusations on taking bribes from students' parents, although Amnesty International has stated on their website "His conviction was widely believed to be related to his scientific research into the Chernobyl catastrophe and his open criticism of the official response to the Chernobyl nuclear reactor disaster on people living in the region of Gomel.".[56]

The United States Department of State issued a report on 14 April 2005 expressing concern about the disappearance (and possible execution) of the political activists Yury Zacharanka, Viktar Hanchar and Anatol Krasouski in 1999 and the journalist Dzmitry Zavadski in 2000, and continuing incidents of arrest and detention without trial. The State Department has also appealed to Belarus to provide information publicly about individuals who were executed.

A report dated 31 August 2005 from Amnesty USA claimed that, in addition to the Polish minority crisis earlier that year, three Georgians from the youth movement Kmara were detained while visiting Belarus.[57] The activists were detained on 24 August with Uladimir Kobets, from Zubr (a Belarusian opposition movement). According to the report, he was released after two hours after being told that the police operation was directed at "persons from the Caucasus".

The following activists and political leaders have been declared political prisoners at different times:

In 2017, the Viasna Human Rights Centre listed two political prisoners detained in Belarus, down from 11 in 2016.[59]

As of 3 July 2021, number of political prisoners recognized by Viasna rose to 529; as of 22 February — to 1078.[5]

Extrajudicial use of judiciary edit

As noted in the 2008 U.S. Department of State Report, while the Belarus Constitution[60] provides for the separation of powers, an independent judiciary and impartial courts (Articles 6 and 60), the government ignores these provisions when it suits its immediate needs; corruption, inefficiency and political interference are prevalent in the judiciary; the government convicts individuals on false and politically motivated charges, and executive and local authorities dictate the outcomes of trials; the judiciary branch lacks independence, and trial outcomes are usually predetermined; judges depend on executive-branch officials for housing; and the criminal-justice system is used as an instrument to silence human-rights defenders through politically motivated arrests, detention, lack of due process and closed political trials.[61]

Although Article 25 of the Belarus Constitution prohibits the use of torture, in practice Belarus tortures and mistreats detainees; while Article 26 provides for the presumption of innocence, defendants often must prove their innocence; while Article 25 prohibits arbitrary arrest, detention and imprisonment, Lukashenko's regime conducts arbitrary arrests, detention and imprisonment of individuals for political reasons; while Article 210(1) of the Criminal Procedure Code provides that a search warrant must be obtained before any searches, in practice authorities search residences and offices for political reasons; while Article 43 of the Criminal Procedure Code gives defendants the right to attend proceedings, confront witnesses, and present evidence on their own behalf, in practice these rights are disregarded. Prosecutors are not independent, and that lack of independence renders due-process protections meaningless; prosecutor authority over the accused is "excessive and imbalanced".[62][61]

"Arbitrary arrests, detentions, and imprisonment of citizens for political reasons, criticizing officials, or for participating in demonstrations also continued. Some court trials were conducted behind closed doors without the presence of independent observers. The judiciary branch lacked independence and trial outcomes usually were predetermined".[61]

The section of the Report entitled "Arbitrary Arrest or Detention" noted that although "the [Belarusian] law limits arbitrary detention ...the government did not respect these limits in practice [and] authorities continued to arrest individuals for political reasons". It further notes that during 2008 "Impunity remained a serious problem"; "Police frequently detained and arrested individuals without a warrant"; "authorities arbitrarily detained or arrested scores of individuals, including opposition figures and members of the independent media, for reasons that were widely considered to be politically motivated".

The section titled "Denial of Fair Public Trial" noted: "The constitution provides for an independent judiciary; however, the government did not respect judicial independence in practice. Corruption, inefficiency, and political interference were prevalent in the judiciary. There was evidence that prosecutors and courts convicted individuals on false and politically motivated charges, and that executive and local authorities dictated the outcomes of trials".

"[Belarusian] judges depended on executive branch officials for personal housing".
"A 2006 report by the UN special rapporteur on Belarus described the authority of prosecutors as "excessive and imbalanced" and noted "an imbalance of power between the prosecution and the defense".
"defense lawyers cannot examine investigation files, be present during investigations, or examine evidence against defendants until a prosecutor formally brought the case to court";
"lawyers found it difficult to call some evidence into question because technical expertise was under the control of the prosecutor's office";

These imbalances of power intensified at the beginning of the year "especially in relation to politically motivated criminal and administrative cases".

"[b]y presidential decree all lawyers are subordinate to the Ministry of Justice [and] the law prohibits attorneys from private practice".
"[t]he law provides for the presumption of innocence; however, in practice defendants frequently had to prove their innocence;
” the law also provides for public trials; in practice, this was frequently disregarded; "defendants have the right to attend proceedings, confront witnesses, and present evidence on their own behalf; however, in practice these rights were not always respected";
"courts often allowed information obtained from forced interrogations to be used against defendants".

International documents reflect that the Belarusian courts that are subject to an authoritarian executive apparatus, routinely disregard the rule of law and exist to rubber-stamp decisions made outside the courtroom; this is tantamount to the de facto non-existence of courts as impartial judicial forums. The "law" in Belarus is not mandatory, but optional and subject to discretion. Nominal "law" which, in practice, is not binding is tantamount to the non-existence of law.

Dealing with demonstrators and planned construction of concentration camps edit

See also: Human rights issues related to the suppression of the 2020 Belarusian protests

Several violations of human rights were reported after the beginning of 2020 Belarusian protests. According to Amnesty International, human rights experts of the United Nations documented 450 evidences of torture, cruel treatment, humiliation, sexual abuse, restricted access to water, food, medical aid and hygiene products. Ban of contacts with lawyers and relatives became a common practice for the arrested.[63] Belarusian authorities acknowledged the receipt of nearly 900 complaints, but no criminal cases were initiated.[63] The authorities instead increased the pressure on human rights activists.[64]

In January 2021, an audio recording was released in which the commander of internal troops and deputy interior minister of Belarus Mikalai Karpiankou tells security forces that they can cripple, maim and kill protesters in order to make them understand their actions. This, he says, is justified because anyone who takes to the streets is participating in a kind of guerrilla warfare. In addition, he discussed the establishment of camps, surrounded by barbed wire, where protesters will be detained until the situation calms down. A spokeswoman for the Interior Ministry stamped the audio file as a fake.[65][66] However, a phonoscopic examination of the audio recording confirmed that the voice on the recording belongs to Karpiankou.[67] The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe expressed its concern about the remarks.[68] According to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, such a camp was indeed used near the town of Slutsk in the days from August 13 to 15, 2020. Many of those detained there are said to have been brought from the Okrestina prison in Minsk.[69]

Belarusian authorities published a number of videos with detained people confessing and repenting on camera; these video were presumably made under duress.[70] Roman Protasevich looked battered on his confession video and had cuts or bruisings on his wrists.[71][72] It was assumed that Roman's girlfriend Sofia Sapega was arrested only to put pressure on him.[73] Amnesty International's Eastern Europe and Central Asia Director Marie Struthers condemned the forced confession of Protasevich and claimed that it was the result of ill-treatment.[74] It was reported that pro-Lukashenko journalist of state-owned Sovetskaya Belorussiya – Belarus' Segodnya newspaper Lyudmila Gladkaya interrogated the arrested people together with police officers in several confession videos.[75]

In 2020, Belarusian KGB started to put Belarusian citizens on the list of terrorists (without court's decision). The first two were Nexta Telegram channel founders Stepan Putilo [ru] and Roman Protasevich. As of May 2021, the number of Belarusian people in the list was 37, including a Belarusian-American Yuras Zyankovich.[76] Terrorism can be punishable by death penalty in Belarus,[77] but at least some of the people in the list weren't accused of the appropriate Criminal Code article.[78]

On 1 October 2021, general and member of the lower chamber of the Belarusian parliament Oleg Belokonev called to murder 20–100 opposition activists as a revenge for deaths of state security officials.[79]

Pressure on lawyers edit

After the start of 2020 Belarusian protests, a number of lawyers (advocates) who defended opposition activists were disbarred (deprived of the advocate status) by the commission of the Ministry of justice: Alexander Pylchenko (lawyer of Viktar Babaryka and Maria Kalesnikava), Yuliya Levanchuk,[80] Lyudmila Kazak (lawyer of Maria Kalesnikava),[81] Sergey Zikracki (lawyer of Katsyaryna Andreeva).[82] At least three other lawyers were disbarred after arrests during protests or comments in the social networks.[83] This practice was criticized as violation of independence of the legal profession.[84] Official reasons of disbarment included "low level of knowledge" and "lack of qualification".[85] Opposition activists and lawyers Maxim Znak and Illia Salei (the latter was a former lawyer of Maria Kalesnikava) were arrested in September 2020 and recognized as prisoners of conscience by the Amnesty International.[86] Head of Belarusian Republican Bar Association and member of the Belarusian parliament Viktar Čajčyc fully supported the authorities and called lawyers "not to go to politics".[87][88][89] On 2 March 2021, the American Bar Association expressed "deep concern about the escalating attacks on the rule of law and the independence of the legal profession in Belarus".[90] In May 2021, ABA's Center for human rights analysed 4 cases of disbarment in Belarus and concluded that these acts represented intimidation, hindrance, harassment, improper interference with lawyers' functions and undermined the rule of law in Belarus.[91]

In May 2021, Belarusian parliament amended the laws on the legal profession (law 113-Z issued on 27 May 2021 signed by Lukashenko on 28 May and came into effect on 30 May).[92] The amendments banned individual advocates and law firms (bureaus), making the state-regulated judicial consultations the only form of provision of advocate services.[93] Ministry of justice was given the right to approve the candidates to presidiums of local bar associations and their heads.[93] It was also noted that one of the amendments could abolish free ("for 1 rubel") legal help to the arrested protesters.[93] The amendments were highly criticized by independent lawyers, human rights activists and legal experts.[93][94][95][88] Jurist Sergey Gasoyan claimed that the amendments "question the existence of advocacy as an institution that defends laws, rights and interests of citizens".[95] The amendments were compared with the abolishment of independent advocacy.[88][96] The law wasn't put up for public discussion, but at least 4,000 people signed the petition against the amendments.[88]

Lawyers of opposition figures reported several violations of law that prevented them to perform their duties. In December 2020, a lawyer was prohibited to be present at a search in his client's home.[97] Lawyer of Roman Protasevich couldn't see her client for 4 days after his detention in Minsk airport and later reported that she couldn't see him for a week.[98] Former investigator Yevgeny Yushkevich also wasn't allowed to meet his lawyer for the first 4 days after detention.[99] On 28 April 2021, state-owned ONT TV published a part of private conversation between Sergei Tikhanovsky and his lawyer Natallia Mackevich who later filed a complaint with the Attorney General about the violation of attorney privilege.[100]

Pressure on NGOs edit

On 14 July 2021, Belarusian authorities launched an attack on Belarus-based non-governmental organizations (NGOs) which resulted in dissolution of nearly 40 of them by the Ministry of justice and detention of several activists.[101] This campaign was described as "a total purge on civil society".[102] It was noticed that an attack on NGOs was launched immediately after meeting of Lukashenko and Vladimir Putin.[101]

Dissolved NGOs included "Imena" social and healthcare crowdfunding platform, several human rights activists groups (Center for legal transformation, Human Constanta, Youth Labor Rights, Gender Answer and others), journalists organizations (Belarusian Association of Journalists and Press Club Belarus), several cultural organizations including "Mova Nanova" Belarusian language courses and "Vedanta vada" organization promoting Indian culture and religion, Belarusian branch of writers' PEN center, IPM business school[103][25][102] Belarusian PEN center headed by the Nobel Prize laureate Svetlana Alexievich was dissolved by order of Supreme Court of Belarus on 9 August 2021.[104]

On 23 July 2021, Belarusian Helsinki Committee, Barys Zvozskau [ru] Belarusian Human Rights House, Viasna Human Rights Centre and 3 other human rights activists organizations issued a statement to "stop demolition of Belarus's civil society", claiming violations of the international obligations of Belarus in the field of freedom of association and expression.[105] On 24 September 2021, Supreme Court of Belarus liquidated the World Association of Belarusians which worked with the Belarusian diaspora organizations.[106]

The authorities also dissolved the major union of entrepreneurs "Perspektiva"[107] and eliminated the Union of Belarusian Writers which was thought to be a revenge of Lukashenko for the writers' independent position.[108][109]

On 1 October 2021, the Belarusian Helsinki Committee was forcibly liquidated by the Supreme Court. The court used materials of some unspecified criminal case (probably with no verdict passed so far) to dissolute the BHC. BHC was the pre-last registered human rights group in Belarus (the last one is Pravovaya iniciativa — The Legal Initiative, which is under of liquidation too).[110]

In December 2021, the Belarus Solidarity Foundation (BYSOL), a non-profit organization aimed at raising funds to provide financial aid to victims of repression in Belarus, was declared to be "extremist".[111]

Labour relations edit

The situation for trade unions and their members in the region has been criticized by Amnesty UK,[112] with allegations that authorities have interfered in trade-union elections and that independent trade-union leaders have been dismissed from their positions.

In 2021, International Trade Union Confederation listed Belarus among top 10 worst countries for working people in the world (Global Rights Index).[113] Reasons for worsening of the situation included state repression of independent union activity, arbitrary arrests, severe cases of no or restricted access to justice.[114] Belarus have already been among top 10 worst countries in Global Rights Index in 2015 and 2016.[114]

In June 2021, the International Labour Organization criticized the "blatant violation of international labour standards in Belarus" during the annual International Labour Conference.[115]

In recent years, trades unions in the country have been subject to a variety of restrictions, including:[116]

Unregistered union ban

Beginning in 1999, all previously registered trade unions had to re-register and provide the official address of the headquarters (which often includes a business address). A letter from the management is also required, confirming the address (making the fate of the trade union dependent on the management). Any organization which fails to do so is banned and dissolved.

In 2021, International Trade Union Confederation claimed that the government "continued to deny registration to independent unions".[114]

High minimum-membership requirement

In a measure which has also reportedly been used against Jewish human-rights organizations, the government announced that any new trade union must contain a minimum of 500 members for it to be recognized. This makes it difficult for new unions to be established.

Systematic interference

The International Labour Organization's governing body issued a report in March 2001 complaining of systematic interference in trade union activities, including harassment and attacks on union assets. Workers who are members of independent trade unions in Belarus have, according to Unison, been arrested for distributing pamphlets and other literature and have faced losing their jobs.

Belarusian workers are systematically intimidated to leave independent trade unions, members of student independent unions are expelled from universities.[115] In 2021, the leader of the independent REP trade union was forced to leave Belarus after the office was raided by the police.[115]

In 2014 Lukashenko announced the introduction of new law that will prohibit kolkhoz workers (around 9% of total work force) from leaving their jobs at will – change of job and living location will require permission from governors. The law was compared with serfdom by Lukashenko himself.[117][118] Similar regulations were introduced for the forest industry in 2012.[119]

During 2020 Belarusian protests, several companies attempted to start a strike, but was met with brutal repression.[114] In 2021, three employees of Byelorussian Steel Works were imprisoned for attempting to organize a strike.[120]

On 28 May 2021 a law 114-Z was published that changed the Belarusian Labour code. It enabled to fire employees who served an arrest and who called to strike.[121] A number of reasons for temporarily suspension from work including "calling to stop performing other employees' duties without good reason" were also added.[121] Companies having any "hazardous production facilities" became completely prohibited to strike.[121] Political slogans during strikes became banned entirely.[122] WSWS characterized these amendments as making firing employees much easier.[122]

During 2020 Belarusian protests, offices of trade unions were raided by the police which forced unions to transfer personal information of the union members to the police.[114] Cases of abduction of union representatives on their way to work were reported.[114] In 2021, International Trade Union Confederation claimed that new government regulations can be seen as a "de facto ban on all public assemblies and strikes for [trade] unions".[114]

In September 2021, several workers of Grodno Azot, Belarusian Railway and Byelorussian Steel Works were detained. Their detention was connected with the threat of Alexander Lukashenko that workers who reveal the ways of bypassing the sanctions would be put in jail for a long time.[123] According to Nasha Niva, at least two of the detained persons were charged with high treason (article 356 of the Criminal Code of Belarus).[123]

Equality edit

Women's rights edit

Main article: women in Belarus

On 28 September 2021, during the government-led attack on NGOs (see #Pressure on NGOs), the Supreme Court of Belarus forcibly liquidated the "Gender Perspectives" NGO (Russian: Гендерные перспективы) which promoted the women rights in Belarus by withstanding gender discrimination and domestic violence. GP collaborated with the government on legal issues concerning women and hosted the national hot line for victims of domestic violence which took c. 15,000 calls in 10 years. After the court liquidated this organization, its team claimed that the government "doesn't care about the needs of a huge number of women experiencing domestic violence or gender discrimination".[124]

In 2023, female Canadian football player Patricia Lamanna terminated her contract with Belarusian football team FC Minsk over She left after 3 months over unpaid wages, a lack of provision for accommodation and an inability for her to use her Canadian credit card for transactoons in Belarus due to restrictions.[125]

Sexual orientation edit

Main article: LGBT rights in Belarus

Belarus legalized homosexuality in 1994; however, homosexuals face widespread discrimination.

In recent years, gay pride parades have been held in Minsk. One notable parade was staged in 2001, when presidential elections were held. However, according to OutRage! (a gay rights organization based in Britain), a gay-rights conference in 2004 was canceled after authorities threatened to arrest those taking part. The country's only gay club, Oscar, was closed in 2000 and in April 1999, the Belarus Lambda League's efforts to gain official registration was blocked by the Ministry of Justice. On 31 January 2005, the Belarusian national anti-pornography and violence commission announced that it would block two gay websites, www.gaily.ru and www.qguis.ru; they were said to contain obscene language and "indications of pornography".

In 1999, in an extraordinary conference entitled "The Pernicious Consequences of International Projects of Sexual Education", members of the Belarusian Orthodox Church reportedly accused UNESCO, the United Nations, and the World Health Organization of encouraging "perversion", "satanic" practices (such as the use of condoms) and abortion. One priest reportedly called for all homosexuals to be "executed on the electric chair".[citation needed]

In August 2004 the International Lesbian and Gay Association reported that the Belarusian authorities forced a gay cultural festival, Moonbow, to be canceled amid threats of violence; foreigners who participated in any related activities would be expelled from the country. In addition, neo-Nazi groups allegedly put pressure on the authorities to cancel the event. Bill Schiller, coordinator of the ILGCN, described the situation:

While the rest of Europe is moving forwards, this last dictatorship in Europe is trying to push its homosexual community into a 1930s Nazi style concentration camp", says Schiller. "Sweden and other democratic governments of Europe must react to the harassment, persecution and international isolation of human beings.

Several times the LGBT community were forbidden to hold pride parades in Belarus.[42] Several activists were detained in 2010 while trying to hold a gay pride after its prohibition.[42] In 2011 and 2013, the ministry refused to register LGBT organizations; therefore Belarus had no LGBT associations.[42] Cases of police raids on gay parties were reported, and LGBT activists were often interrogated in connection with different crimes.[42] One of the activists was beaten in the police station, but the prosecutor's office refused to start an investigation of this case.[42]

Ethnic discrimination edit

Antisemitism edit

In 2004, Charter'97 reported that on some government-job applications Belarusians are required to state their nationality.[126] This has been cited as evidence of state antisemitism in the region, as similar practices were allegedly used to discriminate[citation needed] against Jews in the USSR. They are also required to state information about their family and close relatives; this is alleged to be a breach of the constitution. Other countries (such as the United Kingdom) also ask applicants to state their ethnicity on application forms in many cases, although this information is usually used only for statistical purposes.

Belarus has been criticized by the Union of Councils for Jews in the Former Soviet Union, many American senators and human-rights groups for building a football stadium in Grodno on the site of a historic Jewish cemetery. A website, www.stopthedigging.org (since shut down), was set up to oppose the desecration of the cemetery. The Lukashenko administration also faced criticism on this issue from members of the National Assembly and Jewish organizations in Belarus.

In January 2004, Forum 18 reported that Yakov Gutman (president of the World Association of Belarusian Jewry) accused Lukashenko of "personal responsibility for the destruction of Jewish holy sites in Belarus", accusing authorities of permitting the destruction of a synagogue to build a housing complex, demolishing a former shul in order to build a multi-story car park and destroying two Jewish cemeteries. According to the report, he was detained by police and taken to a hospital after apparently suffering a heart attack.

In March 2004 Gutman announced that he was leaving Belarus for the U.S. in protest of state anti-Semitism. His view was echoed by a July 2005 report by UCSJ that a personal aide of the President (a former Communist Party ideologue, Eduard Skobelev) had published anti-Semitic books and promoted guns to solve what he termed the "Jewish problem". In 1997, Skobelev was given the title "Honored Figure of Culture" by Lukashenko and put in charge of the journal Neman.

The UCSJ's representative in Belarus, Yakov Basin, wrote a report detailing the authorities' alleged anti-Semitism.[127] Also, Yakov Basin said that the authorities were "pretending not to notice anti-Semitic tendencies among bureaucrats, ideologues and leaders of the Orthodox Church". He also reported about openly anti-Semitic books published by the Church.[128]

The only Jewish higher-education institute in Belarus (the International Humanities Institute of Belarusian State University) was closed in February 2004,[129] in what many local Jews believe is a deliberate act of antisemitism to undermine their educational rights and position in society. However, it is not the only educational institution to face closure in Belarus; the last independent university in the nation, the European Humanities University (a secular institution, which received funding from the European Union),[130] was closed in July 2004. Commentators have implied that this may be part of a wider move by Lukashenko to crush internal dissent.

Jewish observers cite antisemitic statements by legislators and other members of government and the failure of authorities in Belarus to punish perpetrators of antisemitic crime (including violent crime) as indicators of a policy of antisemitism in the state.[citation needed]

In 2007, Belarus president Lukashenko made an anti-Semitic comment about the Jewish community of Babrujsk:

"This is a Jewish city, and the Jews are not concerned for the place they live in. They have turned Babrujsk into a pigsty. Look at Israel - I was there."[131][132]

The comment provoked active criticism from Jewish leaders and in Israel; Lukashenko subsequently sent a delegation to Israel.

In 2015, Lukashenko made another comment during a three-hours-long TV address, criticizing the governor of the Minsk Region for not keeping Belarus's Jewish population "under control." He also called the Jews "white boned," meaning they do not enjoy menial work.[133]

In 2021, Alexander Lukashenko claimed that "the Jews have succeeded in making the whole world bow down to them" which was criticized by the foreign ministry of Israel.[134] In the same 2021, Belarusian government newspaper Belarus' Segodnya accused groups of Belarusian Jews of attempts to destabilize the situation in the country with the help of Jews abroad.[134]

Anti-Polonism edit

On 3 August 2005, an activist working for the Union of Poles (representing the Polish minority community) was arrested and given a 15-day jail sentence and Lukashenko accused the Polish minority of plotting to overthrow him. The former head of the Union of Poles, Tadeusz Gawin, was later given a second sentence for allegedly beating one of his cell-mates (a claim he denies).

The offices of the Union of Poles were raided on 27 July 2005 in a crisis which came to the surface the previous day, when Andrzej Olborski (a Polish diplomat working in Minsk) was expelled from the country—the third such expulsion in three months. Poland had accused Belarus of persecuting the 400,000 Poles who have been a part of Belarus since her borders were moved westward after the Second World War.

Antiziganism edit

Former police officer reported that Belarusian militsiya has informal rules for Romani people which include arbitrary check of documents, phone examination, house inspection without reason.[135] 80% of Romani people in Belarus claim that they faced antiziganism (antigypsyism) by the police which include arbitrary detention, multiple fingerprint registration, confiscation of vehicles.[135]

On 16 May 2019, GAI road police officer was found dead near Mahilioŭ. Immediately after that, massive raids on local Romani people was organized.[136] Up to 40 Romani people were detained.[137] Women were released after night at the police station, but men remained at the police station.[136] One of the released Romani woman said she was told that "men were going to be in jail until we [police] found the criminals."[136] It was later established that the GAI road police officer whose death led to these roundups committed suicide.[138] Minister of interior Igor Shunevich refused to apologize to the Romani community for this incident.[139] International Federation for Human Rights called for investigation of mass roundups of Roma people in Mahilioŭ.[138]

Discrimination of Belarusian speakers edit

Members of the Belarusian-speaking minority of Belarus has been complaining about discrimination of the Belarusian language in Belarus, the lack of Belarusian language education and consumer information in Belarusian, all that despite the official status of Belarusian language as a state language besides Russian.[140][141]

In its 2016 country human rights on Belarus report, the US State Department also stated that there was "discrimination against ... those who sought to use the Belarusian language."[142] "Because the government viewed many proponents of the Belarusian language as political opponents, authorities continued to harass and intimidate academic and cultural groups that sought to promote Belarusian and routinely rejected proposals to widen use of the language," the report said.[142]

Belarus has two official languages, but cases of trials in Russian despite defendants' petitions to use Belarusian language were reported.[143][144][145]

On 23 July 2021, Mova Nanova Belarusian language courses was forcibly disbanded.[146] In July 2021, the authorities conducted a search in the office of the Belarusian Language Society, and in August the Ministry of Justice applied for liquidation of this society in the Supreme Court of Belarus.[147]

Government-sponsored hostage-taking edit

One of the more notable examples of the Belarusian government's violation of human rights and international norms was the abduction, unlawful detainment and torture of American attorney Emanuel Zeltser[148] and his assistant, Vladlena Funk.[149] On 11 March 2008, Zeltser and Funk were abducted in London by Belarusian KGB agents. Both were drugged and flown to Belarus on a private jet belonging to Boris Berezovsky, a Russian oligarch and friend of Lukashenko who was wanted by Interpol for fraud, money-laundering, participation in organized crime and international financial crimes.[150] After landing in Minsk Zeltser and Funk were detained by Lukashenko's guard, according to the U.S. State Department.[151] They were transported to Amerikanka (the Stalin-era Belarusian KGB detention facility), where they were tortured, denied medication and told they would remain imprisoned indefinitely unless the U.S. lifted sanctions against Lukashenko. Zeltser and Funk were held hostage for 473 days and 373 days, respectively. Their seizure, torture and detention sparked international outrage and significant press coverage (apparently unexpected by Belarusian authorities).[152][153]

The U.S. Department of State and members of the U.S. Congress repeatedly demanded the release of the hostages. World leaders, the European Parliament and international human-rights organizations joined the U.S. call for the immediate release of Funk and Zeltser. Amnesty International issued emergency alerts on the "torture and other ill-treatment" of Zeltser.[154] Ihar Rynkevich, a Belarusian legal expert and Press Secretary of the Belarus Helsinki Commission, said in an interview: "This is yet another shameful case for the Belarusian judiciary for which more than one generation of Belarusian legal experts will blush."[155] A strongly worded letter from the New York City Bar Association to Lukashenko condemned KGB abuse of Zeltser and Funk and demanding their immediate release. The bar-association letter expressed "great concerned [sic] about the arrests and detention of Mr Zeltser and Ms Funk and the reports of physical mistreatment of Mr Zeltser" and stated that this was inconsistent with Belarus' obligations under international agreements, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Convention Against Torture and Other Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT). The letter also noted that the charges the KGB brought against Zeltser and Funk "appears to have no basis to it", lacks "any explanation or detail" and "concerns have thus been reported that this is a fabricated charge, created to justify their unlawful detention".[156]

Neither Funk nor Zeltser had been lawfully "arrested", "charged", "indicted", "tried" or "convicted" under Belarusian or international law. They were unlawfully seized and held hostage, in violation of international law and Belarusian law. During their detention Funk and Zeltser were subjected to torture and cruel, inhuman or undignified treatment, in violation of Article 25 of the Belarus Constitution;[157] U.S. law and international treaties, including the International Convention Against the Taking of Hostages (the Hostage Convention);[158] the United Nations Convention Against Torture;[159] the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR);[160] the United Nations Convention Against Torture (the Torture Convention);[161] and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).[160] Zeltser's and Funk's abduction, detention and mistreatment in KGB captivity was an attempt to coerce the United States to lift sanctions against Lukashenko (and other members of the Belarusian government) and against the Belarusian petrochemical company Belneftekhim (which they owned). Belarus's actions were gross violations of the law of nations and universally accepted norms of the international law of human rights, including laws prohibiting hostage-taking and state-sponsored terrorism.[162]

Yielding to the demands of the international community, Lukashenko released Funk on 20 March 2009 and Zeltser on 30 June (when a delegation from the U.S. Congress traveled to Belarus to meet with Lukashenko regarding the hostage crisis).[163] U.S. chargé d'affaires in Belarus Jonathan Moore commented after their release: "At no time have the Belarusian authorities ever provided any indication that the charges against Mr Zeltser and Ms Funk were legitimate. As a result, I can only conclude that the charges in this case are thoroughly without merit; and are the result of extra-legal motivation."[164]

Although the U.S. Department of State repeatedly said that it does not use its citizens as "bargaining chips", many in Belarus still believe that the U.S. made a deal with Lukashenko (inducing him to release the hostages in exchange for IMF credits to Belarus). Appearing on Russian TV network NTV, Anatoly Lebedko (Chairman of the Belarusian United Popular Party) said: "Washington was forced to pay ransom for its citizen [sic] by providing Lukashenko the IMF credits, pure and simple; in essence, this is hostage-taking, the practice, which is widespread in Belarus elevated to international level, where Lukashenko is not only sending a political message but demands monetary compensation for human freedom."[165]

Forced disappearances edit

 
Demonstration in Warsaw, reminding about the disappearances of oppositionals in Belarus

In 1999 opposition leaders Yury Zacharanka and Viktar Hanchar together with his business associate Anatol Krasouski disappeared. Hanchar and Krasouski disappeared the same day of a broadcast on state television in which President Alexander Lukashenko ordered the chiefs of his security services to crack down on "opposition scum". Although the State Security Committee of the Republic of Belarus (KGB) had them under constant surveillance, the official investigation announced that the case could not be solved. The investigation of the disappearance of journalist Dzmitry Zavadski in 2000 has also yielded no results. Copies of a report by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, which linked senior Belarusian officials to the cases of disappearances, were confiscated.[166]

In September 2004, the European Union and the United States issued travel bans for five Belarusian officials suspected in being involved in the kidnapping of Zacharanka: Interior Affairs Minister Vladimir Naumov, Prosecutor General Viktor Sheiman, Minister for Sports and Tourism Yuri Sivakov, and Colonel Dmitry Pavlichenko from the Belarus Interior Ministry.[167]

In December 2019, Deutsche Welle published a documentary film in which Yury Garavski, a former member of a special unit of the Belarusian Ministry of Internal Affairs, confirmed that it was his unit which had arrested, taken away and murdered Zecharanka and that they later did the same with Viktar Hanchar and Anatol Krassouski.[168]

Ranking by human rights organizations edit

Major human rights organizations have been criticizing Belarus and its human rights situation. For most of Lukashenko's tenure, he has been reckoned as leading one of the most repressive regimes in the world.

Belarus in major freedom indices
2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003
Freedom in the World[169][170] 5 Not free (aggregate score: 11/100) 5 Not free (aggregate score: 19/100) 5 Not free (aggregate score: 19/100) 5 Not free (aggregate score: 21/100) 5 Not free (aggregate score: 20/100) 5 Not free (aggregate score: 17/100) 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free
Index of Economic Freedom Repressed (58.1, world rank 108) Repressed Mostly unfree Repressed Repressed Repressed
Press Freedom Index[171] (Global rank: 158)
50.82 		(Global rank: 153)
49.75 		(Global rank: 153)
 (Global rank: 155)
52.59 		(Global rank: 153)
52.43 		(Global rank: 157)
54.32 		(Global rank: 157)
47.98 		(Global rank: 157)
47.81 		(Global rank: 157)
48.35 		(Global rank: 168)
99.00 		(Global rank: 154)
57.00 		(Global rank: 151)
59.50 		(Global rank: 154)
58.33 		(Global rank: 151)
63.63 		(Global rank: 151)
57.00 		(Global rank: 152)
61.33 		(Global rank: 144)
54.10 		(Global rank: 151)
52.00 		(Global rank: 124)
52.17
Democracy Index 3.13 Authoritarian 3.13 Authoritarian 3.13 Authoritarian 3.13 Authoritarian 3.54 Authoritarian 3.62 Authoritarian 3.69 Authoritarian 3.04 Authoritarian 3.04 Authoritarian 3.16 Authoritarian 3.34 Authoritarian 3.34 Authoritarian 3.34 Authoritarian
Freedom of the Press (report) 83 (Not Free) 91 (Not Free) 93 (Not Free) 93 (Not Free) Not Free Not Free Not Free Not Free Not Free Not Free Not Free Not Free Not Free Not Free Not Free
Polity data series Autocracy Autocracy
World Index of Moral Freedom 45,7 points (Rank 88, Insufficient Moral Freedom) Insufficient Moral Freedom

Belarus' human rights friendly rhetoric was not supported by genuine human rights improvements in 2016. The death penalty remains in use. Officials continue to prosecute human rights activists and critical journalists on spurious charges. Legislative amendments further restricted freedom of expression by expanding the definition of "extremism" and by banning dissemination of certain types of information among children under the false pretense of protecting them. International observers recognized some progress during the September parliamentary elections, but called for additional reforms.

— Human Rights Watch World Report 2017[172]

Severe restrictions on the rights to freedom of expression, of association and of peaceful assembly remained in place. The government continued to refuse co-operation with the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Belarus. At least four people were executed and four people were sentenced to death.

— Amnesty International 2016/2017 Report[173]

President Alyaksandr Lukashenka secured a fifth term in the October 2015 presidential election, which failed to meet international standards, according to observers from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). (...) The government was rewarded for the steps it had taken to improve its still-repressive human rights situation when the European Union and the United States granted the country temporary relief from sanctions.

— Freedom House Freedom in the World 2016 Report[169]

International criticism of human rights in Belarus edit

United Nations edit

The UN Human Rights Council 2007 Report[61] notes that "the Special Rapporteur has encountered, for the third consecutive year, an absolute refusal to cooperate on the part of the Government of Belarus ... all efforts made to engage in constructive dialogue were fruitless"; "the situation of human rights in Belarus constantly deteriorated"; "The Government of Belarus did not consider any of the recommendations made by the Special Rapporteur" and treaty bodies (such as the Human Rights Committee).

The UN Special Rapporteur noted that "the political system of Belarus seems to be incompatible with the concept of human rights" and that "the Human Rights Council should either call for the democratization of the political regime and a change in the political behavior of the Government [of Belarus] or admit that Belarus' human rights record cannot be improved because the human rights violations are consistent with the political nature of the regime." The UN Special Rapporteur states that "Belarus does not respect its obligations under the international human rights instruments to which it has adhered" and reiterates his recommendation "that the Security Council should adopt appropriate measures to ensure the respect by the Republic of Belarus of its legal obligations, including:

  • "to immediately establish a group of legal experts to investigate whether senior officials of the Government of Belarus are responsible for the disappearance and murders of several politicians and journalists and make concrete proposals for their prosecution, in order to bring to an end the impunity enjoyed by those involved in such crimes;
  • to "finance ... assistance to the human rights defenders who have been politically harassed, oppressed or prosecuted";
  • "to investigate the apparent involvement of senior government officials in international organized crime and illegal arms sales, monitor the international financial cash flows of Belarus and, if necessary, freeze foreign bank accounts of those involved in illicit trafficking, and prosecute criminals."

The Special Rapporteur stressed that "present trading relations with Belarus do not grant a better quality of life to Belarusian citizens, but allow President Lukashenko's regime to remain in power by systematically violating human rights and threatening international security" and recommended that "the European Union and the United States of America should maintain travel restrictions for Belarusian officials" and all other member states should adopt similar measures. The UN Special Rapporteur noted that "the opinions and assessments of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus were confirmed and fully shared by the most important European or Euro-Atlantic organizations, namely the OSCE, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, the Council of Europe, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, the European Council, the European Parliament, the European Commission and the NATO Parliamentary Assembly", adding: "It is impossible to believe that all these people are wrong or biased."

The Resolution of the UN General Assembly[174] stated: "[t]he situation of human rights in Belarus in 2007 continued to significantly deteriorate, as documented in the reports of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus, which found that systematic violations of human rights continue to take place in Belarus ..."

and expressed deep concern:

(a) About the continued use of [Belarus's] criminal justice system to silence political opposition and human rights defenders, including through arbitrary detention, lack of due process and closed political trials of leading opposition figures and human rights defenders;
(b) About the failure of the Government of Belarus to cooperate fully with all the mechanisms of the Human Rights Council, in particular with the Special Rapporteurs on the situation of human rights in Belarus, while noting the serious concern relating to the continued and systematic violations of human rights in Belarus ...

On September 17, 2020, Amnesty International urged the United Nations Human Rights Council to take strong action for conducting an investigation into the escalating human rights crisis in Belarus.[175]

On 18 September 2020, United Nations’ top Human Rights council passed a resolution that intensified the scrutiny of the human rights abuses committed in Belarus during the peaceful protests. More than 10000 people were arrested during the protest as confirmed by the UN's Special Rapporteur on Belarus.[176]

On 29 June 2022, Anaïs Marin, Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Belarus, warned that the deterioration of human rights in Belarus continues to engulf the country in a climate of fear and arbitrary rule. While presenting her annual report to the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, she pointed to Government policies that have systematically tightened legislation and restricted civil and political rights.[177]

European Union edit

In March 2006 the European Council imposed sanctions on Lukashenko and other members of the Belarusian government, having "deplored the failure of the Belarus authorities to meet OSCE commitments to democratic elections ... and condemned the action of the Belarus authorities ... in arresting peaceful demonstrators exercising their legitimate right of free assembly to protest at the conduct of the Presidential elections ..."

On 10 April 2006, the Council adopted restrictive measures against Lukashenko, the Belarusian leadership and the officials responsible for the violations of international electoral standards and international human-rights law for the crackdown on civil society and democratic opposition, proposing a visa ban and possible further measures. Common Position 2006/362/CFSP provided that the economic resources of Lukashenko and key Belarusian officials identified for this purpose should be frozen.[178]

In its 8 November 2006 Declaration the Council stated that the European Union is "deeply concerned" about imprisonment of political leaders which show the "Belarusian authorities' repeated unwillingness to respect international human rights standards, especially the right to a fair trial. The European Union also expresses its concern about the denial of access of observers to the trial",[179] and in its 2009 Conclusions[180] it stated: "the Council deeply regrets the recent lack of significant progress in addressing its concerns in the area of human rights and fundamental freedoms, including as regards the crackdown on peaceful political actions ..."

United Kingdom edit

The UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office June 2008 Release on Belarus Human rights stated:

Belarus's human rights record since President Lukashenka came to power in 1994 has been poor. A September 2006 report ... by the UN Special Rapporteur ... on Human Rights, was highly critical of the situation. This is one of many reports to cite numerous human rights violations ... The situation continues to deteriorate, while the Belarusian authorities continue to ignore concerns raised by the EU and others ... Politically motivated arrests and detentions continue ... The UK and EU continue to raise human rights issues with the Belarusian government by way of regular EU statements, demarches by EU heads of mission in Minsk, and through international organizations including the UN and OSCE.[181]

United States edit

According to the United States Department of State, as of 2016 the main human rights problems of Belarus continued to be the following:

"citizens were unable to choose their government through elections; in a system bereft of checks and balances, authorities committed abuses; and former political prisoners' political rights remained largely restricted while the government failed to account for longstanding cases of politically motivated disappearances."

Besides that, the US State Department pointed out abuses by the security forces, poor prison conditions, politically-motivated arrests, political interference in the work of the judiciary, restrictions of civil liberties and many other issues.[142]

The United States is pursuing a "selective engagement" policy with the government of Belarus, limiting access by the government to U.S. government officials at the assistant-secretary level and below and restricting U.S. assistance to the Belarus government.[182] On 19 June 2006, President George W. Bush declared a national emergency in connection with the actions of members of the Belarusian government (including Lukashenko), ordering sanctions against Lukashenko, other members of the Belarusian government and Belneftekhim for "undermining democratic process and constituting an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States".[183]

The US Department of State repeatedly criticized the Lukashenko regime, describing it as "a brutal, authoritarian dictatorship that blatantly ignores human rights and fundamental freedoms".[184] Assessments by the United Nations, the United States and European and Euro-Atlantic organizations demonstrate Belarus's disregard for human rights, the subservience of Belarusian courts to Lukashenko's administration and members of Lukashenko's inner circle, and the use of the Belarusian judiciary as a tool for accomplishing improper political objectives and accommodating the interests of the regime. The United Nations Human Rights Council noted that the Belarusian political system is "incompatible with the concept of human rights".[185] Belarus has been called "the last true remaining dictatorship in the heart of Europe" by the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.[186]

Belarus is subject to US sanctions for "undermining democratic process and constituting an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States".[187] It is also subject to sanctions imposed by the European Union for human rights violations.[62] Belarus has been determined to be a habitual violator of international human rights laws and accepted norms of international behavior by the UN, the US, the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, the Council of Europe, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, the European Council, the European Parliament, the European Commission, and the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. As stated by the UN Special Rapporteur on Belarus, "it is impossible to believe that all these people are wrong or biased".[184]

The 2008 U.S. Department of State Background Note: Belarus states:

[B]ilateral relations cooled following the election of President Lukashenka in July 1994. After the internationally unrecognized November 1996 constitutional referendum, which resulted in the dissolution of Belarus' legitimate parliament and the centralization of power in the executive branch, Lukashenko provoked a diplomatic crisis by ... confiscating diplomatic residences [of] the US, German, British, French, Italian, and IMF residences away from those missions ... In addition, Lukashenko used his newly centralized power to repress human rights throughout the country *** Since his election in July 1994 ... Lukashenka has consolidated power steadily in the executive branch through authoritarian means and has dominated all branches of government. He used a non-democratic referendum in November 1996 to amend the 1994 constitution to broaden his powers and illegally extend his term in office. *** In 2004, he engineered a fraudulent referendum that removed term limits on the presidency. *** In 2006, Lukashenka "won" another term in an undemocratic election. In January 2007, he further consolidated his rule through local elections that failed to meet international standards.

— U.S. State Department Background Note: Belarus

The 2008 State Department Belarus Report[188] noted grave, habitual abuses by the Belarusian government of human rights and disregard for the freedoms of speech, press, religion and association. It points out inconsistencies between Belarusian law and court rulings. The 2008 State Department report demonstrated the subservience of the Belarusian courts to the Lukashenko administration and the private interests of his inner circle, to such an extent that the "courts" in Belarus exist in name only.

Salient points are:

According to its constitution, Belarus is a republic ... In practice, however, power is concentrated in the presidency. Since his election in 1994 as president, Alexander Lukashenka has consolidated his power over all institutions and undermined the rule of law through authoritarian means, manipulated elections, and arbitrary decrees. Subsequent presidential elections have not been free or fair, and the 28 September, [2008] parliamentary election failed to meet international standards. [Members of] security forces ... continued to commit numerous human rights abuses. The government's human rights record remained very poor as government authorities continued to commit frequent serious abuses. ... The government failed to account for past politically motivated disappearances [of human beings]. Prison conditions remained extremely poor, and reports of abuse of prisoners and detainees continued.

The government further restricted civil liberties, including freedoms of press, speech, assembly, association, and religion ... Corruption continued to be a problem ... Religious leaders were fined, imprisoned or deported for performing services ...

In the section titled: "Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment" the 2008 US State Dept. Belarus Report noted that while Belarusian law prohibits such practices; Belarusian KGB and other special forces disregard the law with impunity, detainees and demonstrators are subjected to beating. The State Department references the 2 September 2008 Report of the International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH) on Conditions of Detention in Belarus which noted "substantial evidence" of the use of torture and mistreatment of suspects during criminal and administrative investigations.[189]

The section of the report entitled "Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence" noted that "the [Belarusian] law prohibits such actions; however, the government did not respect these prohibitions in practice"; while "the law requires a warrant for searches" the KGB "conducted unauthorized searches ... without warrants" with "numerous instances in which authorities searched residences and offices for clearly political reasons". It notes that "[t]he lack of independence of the prosecutor's office rendered due process protections meaningless".

On 12 June 2009 the Obama administration continued the sanctions against Belarus, pursuant to the "Notice on Continuation of the National Emergency With Respect to the Actions and Policies of Certain Members of the Government of Belarus and Other Persons That Undermine Democratic Processes or Institutions in Belarus".[190]

Historical situation edit

The following chart shows Belarus's ratings since 1991 in the Freedom in the World reports, published annually by Freedom House. A rating of 1 is "free"; 7, "not free".[191]1

See also edit

Notes edit

1.^ Note that the "Year" signifies the "Year covered". Therefore the information for the year marked 2008 is from the report published in 2009, and so on.
2.^ As of January 1.

References edit

  1. ^ "Essential Background – Belarus". Human Rights Watch. 2005. Retrieved 26 March 2006.
  2. ^ . Amnesty International Report 2007. Amnesty International. 2007. Archived from the original on 12 December 2007. Retrieved 22 December 2007.
  3. ^ (PDF). 18 January 2005. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 March 2006. Retrieved 26 March 2006.
  4. ^ "At-a-glance: 'Outposts of tyranny'". BBC News. 19 January 2005. Retrieved 26 March 2006.
  5. ^ a b Political prisoners in Belarus
  6. ^ a b BELARUS: “YOU ARE NOT HUMAN BEINGS”
  7. ^ Belarus Authorities ‘Purge’ Human Rights Defenders
  8. ^ "Profile: Alexander Lukashenko". BBC News. 20 March 2006. from the original on 27 April 2006. Retrieved 26 March 2006.
  9. ^ Mulvey, Stephen (10 September 2001). "Profile: Europe's last dictator?". BBC News. British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 21 December 2007.
  10. ^ . Press Service of the Council of Europe. 17 January 1997. Archived from the original on 26 April 2006. Retrieved 26 March 2006.
  11. ^ "Protesters try to storm government HQ in Belarus". BBC News. 20 December 2010. from the original on 20 December 2010. Retrieved 22 December 2010.
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External links edit

  • UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus
  • Amnesty International's Key Human Rights Concerns In Belarus

Sources edit

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Human rights in Belarus.
Freedom of press
  • [1] Belarus ranked 16th worst ranked country on RSF Press Freedom index
  • [2] Freedom House ranks Belarus as "Not Free"
Gays and lesbians
  • [3] Gay Times country profile
  • [4] Asylum seeker wins, but still detained
  • [5] Belarus gays parade in election fever
  • [6] Gay and lesbian websites blocked in Belarus
  • [7] Orthodox Church organises homophobes
  • ILGA – threats from Belarusian regime force organisers to cancel festival
  • [9] Failure of Gay Pride 2000
  • Global Gayz – Belarus News and Reports, 2004–05
Polish minority crisis
  • n:Poland accuses Belarus of human rights violations Poland accuses Belarus of human rights violations
  • [11] Polish chief jailed again
  • [12] Belarus-Poland row escalates
Anti-Semitism
  • [13] Protests over Belarus Jewish graves.
  • [14] Belarus digs up Jewish graves
  • [15] President Lukashenko: in quotes
  • [16] Belarus lawmakers protest destruction of Jewish sites
  • [17] Forum 18 article
  • [18] Jews get by in Belarus, but they feel the authorities' watchful eyes
  • [19] Lukashenko aide continues anti-semitic publishing
  • [20] Belarus aide leaves country in protest at state anti-semitism
Neo-Nazi allegations
  • [21] Neo-Nazis continue attacking Belarusian oppositionists
  • [22] Minsk Neo-Nazis March To Commemorate Fallen Comrade

January 01, 1970
human, rights, belarus, government, belarus, criticized, human, rights, violations, persecution, governmental, organisations, independent, journalists, national, minorities, opposition, politicians, testimony, united, states, senate, committee, foreign, relati. The government of Belarus is criticized for its human rights violations and persecution of non governmental organisations independent journalists national minorities and opposition politicians 1 2 In a testimony to the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations former United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice labeled Belarus as one of the world s six outposts of tyranny 3 In response the Belarusian government called the assessment quite far from reality 4 During 2020 Belarusian presidential election and protests the number of political prisoners recognized by Viasna Human Rights Centre rose dramatically to 1062 as of 16 February 2022 5 Several people died after the use of unlawful and abusive force including firearms by law enforcement officials during 2020 protests 6 According to Amnesty International the authorities didn t investigate violations during protests but instead harassed those who challenged their version of events 6 In July 2021 the authorities launched a campaign against the remaining non governmental organizations liquidating at least 270 of them by October including all previously registered human rights organizations in the country 7 The national flag of 1918 and 1991 1995 has become a symbol of the opposition to the regime of president Alexander Lukashenko President Alexander Lukashenko has described himself as having an authoritarian ruling style 8 Western countries have described Belarus under Lukashenko as Europe s last dictatorship the government has accused the same Western powers of attempting a regime change 9 The Council of Europe has barred Belarus from membership since 1997 for undemocratic voting and election irregularities in the November 1996 constitutional referendum and parliament by elections 10 Dozens of Belarusian government officials responsible for political repressions forced disappearances propaganda and electoral fraud have been subject to personal sanctions by the United States of America and the European Union Contents 1 Electoral process 1 1 December 2010 election 1 2 August 2020 election 2 Freedoms 2 1 Freedom of the press 2 2 Freedom of religion 2 3 Freedom of association 3 Judicial system 3 1 Capital punishment 3 2 Political dissidents and prisoners 3 3 Extrajudicial use of judiciary 3 4 Dealing with demonstrators and planned construction of concentration camps 3 5 Pressure on lawyers 3 6 Pressure on NGOs 4 Labour relations 5 Equality 5 1 Women s rights 5 2 Sexual orientation 6 Ethnic discrimination 6 1 Antisemitism 6 2 Anti Polonism 6 3 Antiziganism 6 4 Discrimination of Belarusian speakers 7 Government sponsored hostage taking 8 Forced disappearances 9 Ranking by human rights organizations 10 International criticism of human rights in Belarus 10 1 United Nations 10 2 European Union 10 3 United Kingdom 10 4 United States 11 Historical situation 12 See also 13 Notes 14 References 15 External links 16 SourcesElectoral process edit nbsp The new Flag of Belarus introduced by Alexander Lukashenko following a controversial referendum in 1995 On 10 July 1994 Alexander Lukashenko was elected President of Belarus He won 80 3 of the vote As of 2017 no other presidential or parliamentary election or referendum held in Belarus since then has been accepted as free and fair by the OSCE the United Nations the European Union or the United States Senior officials responsible for the organization of elections including the head of the Central Elections Commission Lydia Yermoshina were subject to international sanctions for electoral fraud Lukashenko s official election results at presidential elections 9 September 2001 19 March 2006 19 December 2010 75 6 83 79 6 December 2010 election edit Main article 2010 Belarusian presidential election The presidential elections of 2010 were followed by opposition protest and its violent crackdown by the police A group of protesters tried to storm a principal government building smashing windows and doors before riot police pushed them back 11 After attack of principal building protesters were violently suppressed Several hundreds of activists including several presidential candidates were arrested beaten and tortured by the police and the KGB Lukashenko criticized the protesters accusing them of banditry 12 Police violence during the protests and the overall conduction of the election caused a wave of harsh criticism from the U S and the EU More than 200 propagandists state security officers central election committee staff and other officials were included in sanctions lists of the European Union they were banned from entering the EU and their assets in the EU if any were to be frozen August 2020 election edit nbsp 2020 Belarusian protests Main article 2020 Belarusian presidential election In June 2020 the Amnesty International documented clampdown on human rights including the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly and association ahead of presidential elections scheduled for 9 August 2020 The organization reported politically motivated prosecutions intimidation harassment and reprisals against opposition candidates and their supporters The Belarusian authorities targeted and intimidated civil society activists and independent media Two politicians Syarhei Tsikhanouski and Viktar Babaryka were jailed and faced politically motivated criminal proceedings Hundreds of peaceful protesters including their supporters were arbitrarily arrested and heavily fined or held in administrative detention 13 14 On 14 August 2020 the European Union imposed sanctions on individual Belarusian officials after reports of the systematic abuse and torture of Belarusians in a violent crackdown on protesters The Belarusian security forces beat and detained peaceful protesters who participated in demonstrations against the official election outcome 15 Freedoms editFreedom of the press edit See also Censorship in Belarus Since the 2000s Reporters Without Borders have been ranking Belarus below all other European countries in its Press Freedom Index 16 Freedom House has rated Belarus as not free in all of its global surveys since 1998 Freedom in the World 17 18 the Lukashenko government curtails press freedom the organization says State media are subordinate to the president Harassment and censorship of independent media are routine Under the authoritarian president Alexander Lukashenko journalists like Iryna Khalip Natalya Radina and Pavel Sheremet have been arrested for their work Independent printed media like Nasha Niva have been excluded from state distribution networks In February 2021 two Belsat TV journalists Katsyaryna Andreeva and Darya Chultsova were imprisoned for two years for streaming during anti Lukashenko protests in Minsk 19 In May 2021 top news site tut by which was read by circa 40 of internet users in Belarus was blocked and several its journalists were detained 20 In July 2021 Nasha Niva news site was blocked with simultaneous detention of the editors took place 21 Editorial office of Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty in Minsk was searched with doors being broke homes of several its journalists were also searched 22 Coverage of these attacks on independent media by state run TV channels is considered to be an attempt to intimidate people According to Current Time TV state run media made false accusations about the activities of journalists and invented fake evidences of their guilt without any trial 23 Amnesty International condemned attack on NGOs by Belarusian authorities 24 In July 2021 registrations of Belarusian Association of Journalists Press Club Belarus and Belarusian branch of writers PEN center were revoked as a part of attack on NGOs see Pressure on NGOs section 25 Freedom of religion edit Main article Freedom of religion in Belarus Jews are not the only minority who are alleged to have had their human rights violated in Belarus On 25 March 2004 the Associated Press reported that a ban exists on home worship in the country and that members of four Protestant churches had recently asked the government to repeal a 2002 law which forbade them worshipping from their own homes although they were members of legally registered religions 26 The Christian Post reported in a 21 April 2005 article 27 that non denominational charismatic churches were greatly affected by the law since none of these churches own buildings Protestant organizations have also complained of censorship because of the ban on importing literature without approval by government officials According to Forum 18 textbooks widely used in Belarusian schools as of 2002 contain anti religious views similar to those taught in the USSR Religion does not teach a believer to strive to lead a dignified life to fight for his freedom or against evil and oppression This is all supposed to be performed for him by supernatural forces above all god All that is left for the believer to do is to be his pathetic petitioner to behave as a pauper or slave Religion s promises to give a person everything that he seeks in it are but illusion and deception The organization also reported that charismatic Protestant churches such as Full Gospel and Greek Catholic and independent Orthodox churches such as those unaffiliated with the Russian Orthodox Church have encountered difficulty in registering churches 28 In 2003 Protestant groups accused the government of Belarus of waging a smear campaign against them telling Poland s Catholic information agency KAI that they had been accused of being Western spies and conducting human sacrifice 29 Charter 97 reported in July 2004 that Baptists who celebrated Easter with patients at a hospital in Mazyr were fined and threatened with confiscation of their property 30 Only 4 000 Muslims live in Belarus mostly ethnic Lipka Tatars who are the descendants of immigrants and prisoners in the 11th and 12th centuries 31 The administration for Muslims in the country abolished in 1939 was re established in 1994 However Ahmadiyya Muslims commonly regarded as a non violent sect are banned from practicing their faith openly in Belarus and have a similar status to groups like Scientology and Aum Shinrikyo 32 There have been no major reports of religious persecution of the Muslim community however because of the situation in Chechnya and neighboring Russia concerns have been expressed by Belarusian Muslims that they may become increasingly vulnerable These fears were heightened on 16 September 2005 when a bomb was detonated outside a bus stop injuring two people On 23 September a bomb was exploded outside a restaurant wounding nearly 40 people Muslims are not suspected in the latter attack which was labeled hooliganism 33 In 2020 the government pressed on major religious groups after they condemned violence during the mass protests On 26 August 2020 Belarusian riot police OMON blocked protesters and random believers in a Roman Catholic church in Minsk for several hours 34 The leader of the Belarusian Orthodox Church Metropolitan Paul was forced to resign after criticism of the police and authorities his changer Veniamin was considered to be a much more comfortable figure for Lukashenko 35 36 The leader of the Roman Catholic church in Belarus Tadevus Kandrusievic was banned from returning to Belarus from Poland for several months and was forced to resign soon after the return 37 38 34 In 2021 the authorities organized the All Belarus prayer convincing all confessions to make a prayer Alexander Lukashenko tried to stop the performance of the religious song The Almighty God Belarusian Magutny Bozha warning Catholic priests not to perform it 39 In 2021 an official newspaper of Minsk Region published a cartoon depicting Roman Catholic priests as Nazis wearing swastika instead of crosses 40 34 In 2023 Freedom House rated Belarus religious freedom as 1 out of 4 41 Freedom of association edit The constitutional right of freedom of associations is not always implemented in practice In 2013 Amnesty International characterized Belarusian legislation on registration of NGOs as over prescriptive 42 Ministry of Justice of Belarus who is responsible for the registration of new organizations uses double standards for commercial and other non governmental organizations including political parties 43 The former need only a declaration to start operations the latter have to get a permission 43 Political associations including parties however had difficulties to get a permission The last new party was registered in Belarus in 2000 because later the ministry denied to register new parties for different reasons 44 Belarusian Christian Democracy made 7 attempts to register Party of freedom and progress 4 attempts People s Hramada party was also prevented from registration 44 The ministry justified all these cases by the reasons that are thought to be artificial and flimsy For example the ministry refused to register a local branch of BPF Party in Hrodna Region because of incorrect line spacing in the documents 43 44 During another attempt to register this branch the ministry requested the additional documents that are not mentioned in the law 45 One of the refusals got by the Belarusian Christian Democracy cited lack of home or work phones information for some of the party founders 44 Another refusal was based on a statement in the party s charter that its members should be supporters of a Christian worldview 42 Amnesty International reported cases of pressure to withdraw signatures needed to register a political party by the local authorities and managers in state organizations 42 Several activists including Zmitser Dashkevich were imprisoned for the activity of unregistered associations 42 According to the Centre for Legal Transformation the ministry is also actively refusing to register non governmental organizations 45 In 2009 the ministry declared that the registration process was simplified but the legal experts of political parties doubted this statement claiming that only insignificant issues were affected 43 In 2012 the ministry started the procedure of suspension of an NGO citing the wrong capital letter on a stamp Dobraya Volya instead of Dobraya volya as one of the reasons the NGO was soon suspended 42 In 2011 and 2013 the ministry refused to register LGBT organizations therefore Belarus had no LGBT associations 42 Human rights organizations also fail to register so the long established Belarusian Helsinki Committee is the only registered organization in this area on the national level 42 In July and August 2021 Belarusian Ministry of justice started the procedure of closure of several major NGOs including Belarusian Popular Front the oldest continuously operating organization in Belarus founded in 1988 registered in 1991 46 Belarusian Association of Journalists 47 Belarusian PEN centre 48 The liquidation of the oldest green group in Belarus Ecohome Executive Director Marina Dubina was condemned by 46 members of Aarhus Convention and by the European ECO Forum The remaining members of the convention voted to give the Belarusian government a chance to cancel the liquidation before 1 December 2021 threatening to suspend its membership otherwise 49 Judicial system editBelarusian judicial system is characterized by the high conviction rate in 2020 99 7 of criminal cases resulted in conviction and only 0 3 in acquittance This rate is stable for several years 50 The judicial system is especially severe to people expressing their views among prosecuted people are journalists civil activists people who make political comments and jokes on social networks and put emojis there 51 Among the most controversial crimes are white socks with a red stripe white and red hair 70 people arrested in Brest for dancing some of them were sentenced to 2 years of prison 52 53 Opposition leader also experience harsh treatment in the courthouses which is sometimes compared with the Stalinist trials 51 Capital punishment edit Main article Capital punishment in Belarus nbsp Europe holds the greatest concentration of abolitionist states blue Map current as of 2017 Abolished for all crimes Retains death penalty Belarus is the only European country that continues to use capital punishment The U S and Belarus were the only two of the 56 member states of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe to have carried out executions during 2011 54 Political dissidents and prisoners edit In December 2010 Belarusian special security forces attacked demonstrators beat and injured many activists with batons and arrested more than 600 people after a rally in central Minsk to protest the outcome of elections widely seen by Western observers as fraudulent In their joint statement Hillary Clinton and Baroness Ashton called for the immediate release of the protesters including at least seven opposition presidential candidates and strongly condemned what they termed the disproportionate use of force against demonstrators Belarus has come under attack from Amnesty International for its treatment of political prisoners 55 including those from the youth wing of the Belarusian Popular Front a pro democracy party In a report dated 26 April 2005 Amnesty criticised Belarus for its treatment of dissidents including a woman imprisoned for publishing a satirical poem 55 Another political prisoner who has been in jail for four years June 2001 August 2005 is Yury Bandazhevsky a scientist who was jailed on accusations on taking bribes from students parents although Amnesty International has stated on their website His conviction was widely believed to be related to his scientific research into the Chernobyl catastrophe and his open criticism of the official response to the Chernobyl nuclear reactor disaster on people living in the region of Gomel 56 The United States Department of State issued a report on 14 April 2005 expressing concern about the disappearance and possible execution of the political activists Yury Zacharanka Viktar Hanchar and Anatol Krasouski in 1999 and the journalist Dzmitry Zavadski in 2000 and continuing incidents of arrest and detention without trial The State Department has also appealed to Belarus to provide information publicly about individuals who were executed A report dated 31 August 2005 from Amnesty USA claimed that in addition to the Polish minority crisis earlier that year three Georgians from the youth movement Kmara were detained while visiting Belarus 57 The activists were detained on 24 August with Uladimir Kobets from Zubr a Belarusian opposition movement According to the report he was released after two hours after being told that the police operation was directed at persons from the Caucasus The following activists and political leaders have been declared political prisoners at different times Ales Bialiatski Vice President of International Federation for Human Rights and head of Viasna Human Rights Centre 58 Mikola Statkevich Uladzimir Nyaklyayew Andrei Sannikov Paval Sieviaryniets Zmicier Dashkievich Andrei Kim Natalya Radina Iryna Khalip Alyaksandr Kazulin Mikalay Autukhovich Tsimafei Dranchuk Syarhei Parsyukevich Eduard Palcys In 2017 the Viasna Human Rights Centre listed two political prisoners detained in Belarus down from 11 in 2016 59 As of 3 July 2021 number of political prisoners recognized by Viasna rose to 529 as of 22 February to 1078 5 Extrajudicial use of judiciary edit As noted in the 2008 U S Department of State Report while the Belarus Constitution 60 provides for the separation of powers an independent judiciary and impartial courts Articles 6 and 60 the government ignores these provisions when it suits its immediate needs corruption inefficiency and political interference are prevalent in the judiciary the government convicts individuals on false and politically motivated charges and executive and local authorities dictate the outcomes of trials the judiciary branch lacks independence and trial outcomes are usually predetermined judges depend on executive branch officials for housing and the criminal justice system is used as an instrument to silence human rights defenders through politically motivated arrests detention lack of due process and closed political trials 61 Although Article 25 of the Belarus Constitution prohibits the use of torture in practice Belarus tortures and mistreats detainees while Article 26 provides for the presumption of innocence defendants often must prove their innocence while Article 25 prohibits arbitrary arrest detention and imprisonment Lukashenko s regime conducts arbitrary arrests detention and imprisonment of individuals for political reasons while Article 210 1 of the Criminal Procedure Code provides that a search warrant must be obtained before any searches in practice authorities search residences and offices for political reasons while Article 43 of the Criminal Procedure Code gives defendants the right to attend proceedings confront witnesses and present evidence on their own behalf in practice these rights are disregarded Prosecutors are not independent and that lack of independence renders due process protections meaningless prosecutor authority over the accused is excessive and imbalanced 62 61 Arbitrary arrests detentions and imprisonment of citizens for political reasons criticizing officials or for participating in demonstrations also continued Some court trials were conducted behind closed doors without the presence of independent observers The judiciary branch lacked independence and trial outcomes usually were predetermined 61 dd The section of the Report entitled Arbitrary Arrest or Detention noted that although the Belarusian law limits arbitrary detention the government did not respect these limits in practice and authorities continued to arrest individuals for political reasons It further notes that during 2008 Impunity remained a serious problem Police frequently detained and arrested individuals without a warrant authorities arbitrarily detained or arrested scores of individuals including opposition figures and members of the independent media for reasons that were widely considered to be politically motivated The section titled Denial of Fair Public Trial noted The constitution provides for an independent judiciary however the government did not respect judicial independence in practice Corruption inefficiency and political interference were prevalent in the judiciary There was evidence that prosecutors and courts convicted individuals on false and politically motivated charges and that executive and local authorities dictated the outcomes of trials Belarusian judges depended on executive branch officials for personal housing dd A 2006 report by the UN special rapporteur on Belarus described the authority of prosecutors as excessive and imbalanced and noted an imbalance of power between the prosecution and the defense dd defense lawyers cannot examine investigation files be present during investigations or examine evidence against defendants until a prosecutor formally brought the case to court dd lawyers found it difficult to call some evidence into question because technical expertise was under the control of the prosecutor s office dd These imbalances of power intensified at the beginning of the year especially in relation to politically motivated criminal and administrative cases b y presidential decree all lawyers are subordinate to the Ministry of Justice and the law prohibits attorneys from private practice dd t he law provides for the presumption of innocence however in practice defendants frequently had to prove their innocence dd the law also provides for public trials in practice this was frequently disregarded defendants have the right to attend proceedings confront witnesses and present evidence on their own behalf however in practice these rights were not always respected dd courts often allowed information obtained from forced interrogations to be used against defendants dd International documents reflect that the Belarusian courts that are subject to an authoritarian executive apparatus routinely disregard the rule of law and exist to rubber stamp decisions made outside the courtroom this is tantamount to the de facto non existence of courts as impartial judicial forums The law in Belarus is not mandatory but optional and subject to discretion Nominal law which in practice is not binding is tantamount to the non existence of law Dealing with demonstrators and planned construction of concentration camps edit See also Human rights issues related to the suppression of the 2020 Belarusian protests Several violations of human rights were reported after the beginning of 2020 Belarusian protests According to Amnesty International human rights experts of the United Nations documented 450 evidences of torture cruel treatment humiliation sexual abuse restricted access to water food medical aid and hygiene products Ban of contacts with lawyers and relatives became a common practice for the arrested 63 Belarusian authorities acknowledged the receipt of nearly 900 complaints but no criminal cases were initiated 63 The authorities instead increased the pressure on human rights activists 64 In January 2021 an audio recording was released in which the commander of internal troops and deputy interior minister of Belarus Mikalai Karpiankou tells security forces that they can cripple maim and kill protesters in order to make them understand their actions This he says is justified because anyone who takes to the streets is participating in a kind of guerrilla warfare In addition he discussed the establishment of camps surrounded by barbed wire where protesters will be detained until the situation calms down A spokeswoman for the Interior Ministry stamped the audio file as a fake 65 66 However a phonoscopic examination of the audio recording confirmed that the voice on the recording belongs to Karpiankou 67 The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe expressed its concern about the remarks 68 According to Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty such a camp was indeed used near the town of Slutsk in the days from August 13 to 15 2020 Many of those detained there are said to have been brought from the Okrestina prison in Minsk 69 Belarusian authorities published a number of videos with detained people confessing and repenting on camera these video were presumably made under duress 70 Roman Protasevich looked battered on his confession video and had cuts or bruisings on his wrists 71 72 It was assumed that Roman s girlfriend Sofia Sapega was arrested only to put pressure on him 73 Amnesty International s Eastern Europe and Central Asia Director Marie Struthers condemned the forced confession of Protasevich and claimed that it was the result of ill treatment 74 It was reported that pro Lukashenko journalist of state owned Sovetskaya Belorussiya Belarus Segodnya newspaper Lyudmila Gladkaya interrogated the arrested people together with police officers in several confession videos 75 In 2020 Belarusian KGB started to put Belarusian citizens on the list of terrorists without court s decision The first two were Nexta Telegram channel founders Stepan Putilo ru and Roman Protasevich As of May 2021 the number of Belarusian people in the list was 37 including a Belarusian American Yuras Zyankovich 76 Terrorism can be punishable by death penalty in Belarus 77 but at least some of the people in the list weren t accused of the appropriate Criminal Code article 78 On 1 October 2021 general and member of the lower chamber of the Belarusian parliament Oleg Belokonev called to murder 20 100 opposition activists as a revenge for deaths of state security officials 79 Pressure on lawyers edit After the start of 2020 Belarusian protests a number of lawyers advocates who defended opposition activists were disbarred deprived of the advocate status by the commission of the Ministry of justice Alexander Pylchenko lawyer of Viktar Babaryka and Maria Kalesnikava Yuliya Levanchuk 80 Lyudmila Kazak lawyer of Maria Kalesnikava 81 Sergey Zikracki lawyer of Katsyaryna Andreeva 82 At least three other lawyers were disbarred after arrests during protests or comments in the social networks 83 This practice was criticized as violation of independence of the legal profession 84 Official reasons of disbarment included low level of knowledge and lack of qualification 85 Opposition activists and lawyers Maxim Znak and Illia Salei the latter was a former lawyer of Maria Kalesnikava were arrested in September 2020 and recognized as prisoners of conscience by the Amnesty International 86 Head of Belarusian Republican Bar Association and member of the Belarusian parliament Viktar Cajcyc fully supported the authorities and called lawyers not to go to politics 87 88 89 On 2 March 2021 the American Bar Association expressed deep concern about the escalating attacks on the rule of law and the independence of the legal profession in Belarus 90 In May 2021 ABA s Center for human rights analysed 4 cases of disbarment in Belarus and concluded that these acts represented intimidation hindrance harassment improper interference with lawyers functions and undermined the rule of law in Belarus 91 In May 2021 Belarusian parliament amended the laws on the legal profession law 113 Z issued on 27 May 2021 signed by Lukashenko on 28 May and came into effect on 30 May 92 The amendments banned individual advocates and law firms bureaus making the state regulated judicial consultations the only form of provision of advocate services 93 Ministry of justice was given the right to approve the candidates to presidiums of local bar associations and their heads 93 It was also noted that one of the amendments could abolish free for 1 rubel legal help to the arrested protesters 93 The amendments were highly criticized by independent lawyers human rights activists and legal experts 93 94 95 88 Jurist Sergey Gasoyan claimed that the amendments question the existence of advocacy as an institution that defends laws rights and interests of citizens 95 The amendments were compared with the abolishment of independent advocacy 88 96 The law wasn t put up for public discussion but at least 4 000 people signed the petition against the amendments 88 Lawyers of opposition figures reported several violations of law that prevented them to perform their duties In December 2020 a lawyer was prohibited to be present at a search in his client s home 97 Lawyer of Roman Protasevich couldn t see her client for 4 days after his detention in Minsk airport and later reported that she couldn t see him for a week 98 Former investigator Yevgeny Yushkevich also wasn t allowed to meet his lawyer for the first 4 days after detention 99 On 28 April 2021 state owned ONT TV published a part of private conversation between Sergei Tikhanovsky and his lawyer Natallia Mackevich who later filed a complaint with the Attorney General about the violation of attorney privilege 100 Pressure on NGOs edit On 14 July 2021 Belarusian authorities launched an attack on Belarus based non governmental organizations NGOs which resulted in dissolution of nearly 40 of them by the Ministry of justice and detention of several activists 101 This campaign was described as a total purge on civil society 102 It was noticed that an attack on NGOs was launched immediately after meeting of Lukashenko and Vladimir Putin 101 Dissolved NGOs included Imena social and healthcare crowdfunding platform several human rights activists groups Center for legal transformation Human Constanta Youth Labor Rights Gender Answer and others journalists organizations Belarusian Association of Journalists and Press Club Belarus several cultural organizations including Mova Nanova Belarusian language courses and Vedanta vada organization promoting Indian culture and religion Belarusian branch of writers PEN center IPM business school 103 25 102 Belarusian PEN center headed by the Nobel Prize laureate Svetlana Alexievich was dissolved by order of Supreme Court of Belarus on 9 August 2021 104 On 23 July 2021 Belarusian Helsinki Committee Barys Zvozskau ru Belarusian Human Rights House Viasna Human Rights Centre and 3 other human rights activists organizations issued a statement to stop demolition of Belarus s civil society claiming violations of the international obligations of Belarus in the field of freedom of association and expression 105 On 24 September 2021 Supreme Court of Belarus liquidated the World Association of Belarusians which worked with the Belarusian diaspora organizations 106 The authorities also dissolved the major union of entrepreneurs Perspektiva 107 and eliminated the Union of Belarusian Writers which was thought to be a revenge of Lukashenko for the writers independent position 108 109 On 1 October 2021 the Belarusian Helsinki Committee was forcibly liquidated by the Supreme Court The court used materials of some unspecified criminal case probably with no verdict passed so far to dissolute the BHC BHC was the pre last registered human rights group in Belarus the last one is Pravovaya iniciativa The Legal Initiative which is under of liquidation too 110 In December 2021 the Belarus Solidarity Foundation BYSOL a non profit organization aimed at raising funds to provide financial aid to victims of repression in Belarus was declared to be extremist 111 Labour relations editThe situation for trade unions and their members in the region has been criticized by Amnesty UK 112 with allegations that authorities have interfered in trade union elections and that independent trade union leaders have been dismissed from their positions In 2021 International Trade Union Confederation listed Belarus among top 10 worst countries for working people in the world Global Rights Index 113 Reasons for worsening of the situation included state repression of independent union activity arbitrary arrests severe cases of no or restricted access to justice 114 Belarus have already been among top 10 worst countries in Global Rights Index in 2015 and 2016 114 In June 2021 the International Labour Organization criticized the blatant violation of international labour standards in Belarus during the annual International Labour Conference 115 In recent years trades unions in the country have been subject to a variety of restrictions including 116 Unregistered union ban Beginning in 1999 all previously registered trade unions had to re register and provide the official address of the headquarters which often includes a business address A letter from the management is also required confirming the address making the fate of the trade union dependent on the management Any organization which fails to do so is banned and dissolved In 2021 International Trade Union Confederation claimed that the government continued to deny registration to independent unions 114 High minimum membership requirement In a measure which has also reportedly been used against Jewish human rights organizations the government announced that any new trade union must contain a minimum of 500 members for it to be recognized This makes it difficult for new unions to be established Systematic interference The International Labour Organization s governing body issued a report in March 2001 complaining of systematic interference in trade union activities including harassment and attacks on union assets Workers who are members of independent trade unions in Belarus have according to Unison been arrested for distributing pamphlets and other literature and have faced losing their jobs Belarusian workers are systematically intimidated to leave independent trade unions members of student independent unions are expelled from universities 115 In 2021 the leader of the independent REP trade union was forced to leave Belarus after the office was raided by the police 115 In 2014 Lukashenko announced the introduction of new law that will prohibit kolkhoz workers around 9 of total work force from leaving their jobs at will change of job and living location will require permission from governors The law was compared with serfdom by Lukashenko himself 117 118 Similar regulations were introduced for the forest industry in 2012 119 During 2020 Belarusian protests several companies attempted to start a strike but was met with brutal repression 114 In 2021 three employees of Byelorussian Steel Works were imprisoned for attempting to organize a strike 120 On 28 May 2021 a law 114 Z was published that changed the Belarusian Labour code It enabled to fire employees who served an arrest and who called to strike 121 A number of reasons for temporarily suspension from work including calling to stop performing other employees duties without good reason were also added 121 Companies having any hazardous production facilities became completely prohibited to strike 121 Political slogans during strikes became banned entirely 122 WSWS characterized these amendments as making firing employees much easier 122 During 2020 Belarusian protests offices of trade unions were raided by the police which forced unions to transfer personal information of the union members to the police 114 Cases of abduction of union representatives on their way to work were reported 114 In 2021 International Trade Union Confederation claimed that new government regulations can be seen as a de facto ban on all public assemblies and strikes for trade unions 114 In September 2021 several workers of Grodno Azot Belarusian Railway and Byelorussian Steel Works were detained Their detention was connected with the threat of Alexander Lukashenko that workers who reveal the ways of bypassing the sanctions would be put in jail for a long time 123 According to Nasha Niva at least two of the detained persons were charged with high treason article 356 of the Criminal Code of Belarus 123 Equality editWomen s rights edit Main article women in Belarus On 28 September 2021 during the government led attack on NGOs see Pressure on NGOs the Supreme Court of Belarus forcibly liquidated the Gender Perspectives NGO Russian Gendernye perspektivy which promoted the women rights in Belarus by withstanding gender discrimination and domestic violence GP collaborated with the government on legal issues concerning women and hosted the national hot line for victims of domestic violence which took c 15 000 calls in 10 years After the court liquidated this organization its team claimed that the government doesn t care about the needs of a huge number of women experiencing domestic violence or gender discrimination 124 In 2023 female Canadian football player Patricia Lamanna terminated her contract with Belarusian football team FC Minsk over She left after 3 months over unpaid wages a lack of provision for accommodation and an inability for her to use her Canadian credit card for transactoons in Belarus due to restrictions 125 Sexual orientation edit Main article LGBT rights in Belarus Belarus legalized homosexuality in 1994 however homosexuals face widespread discrimination In recent years gay pride parades have been held in Minsk One notable parade was staged in 2001 when presidential elections were held However according to OutRage a gay rights organization based in Britain a gay rights conference in 2004 was canceled after authorities threatened to arrest those taking part The country s only gay club Oscar was closed in 2000 and in April 1999 the Belarus Lambda League s efforts to gain official registration was blocked by the Ministry of Justice On 31 January 2005 the Belarusian national anti pornography and violence commission announced that it would block two gay websites www gaily ru and www qguis ru they were said to contain obscene language and indications of pornography In 1999 in an extraordinary conference entitled The Pernicious Consequences of International Projects of Sexual Education members of the Belarusian Orthodox Church reportedly accused UNESCO the United Nations and the World Health Organization of encouraging perversion satanic practices such as the use of condoms and abortion One priest reportedly called for all homosexuals to be executed on the electric chair citation needed In August 2004 the International Lesbian and Gay Association reported that the Belarusian authorities forced a gay cultural festival Moonbow to be canceled amid threats of violence foreigners who participated in any related activities would be expelled from the country In addition neo Nazi groups allegedly put pressure on the authorities to cancel the event Bill Schiller coordinator of the ILGCN described the situation While the rest of Europe is moving forwards this last dictatorship in Europe is trying to push its homosexual community into a 1930s Nazi style concentration camp says Schiller Sweden and other democratic governments of Europe must react to the harassment persecution and international isolation of human beings Several times the LGBT community were forbidden to hold pride parades in Belarus 42 Several activists were detained in 2010 while trying to hold a gay pride after its prohibition 42 In 2011 and 2013 the ministry refused to register LGBT organizations therefore Belarus had no LGBT associations 42 Cases of police raids on gay parties were reported and LGBT activists were often interrogated in connection with different crimes 42 One of the activists was beaten in the police station but the prosecutor s office refused to start an investigation of this case 42 Ethnic discrimination editAntisemitism edit In 2004 Charter 97 reported that on some government job applications Belarusians are required to state their nationality 126 This has been cited as evidence of state antisemitism in the region as similar practices were allegedly used to discriminate citation needed against Jews in the USSR They are also required to state information about their family and close relatives this is alleged to be a breach of the constitution Other countries such as the United Kingdom also ask applicants to state their ethnicity on application forms in many cases although this information is usually used only for statistical purposes Belarus has been criticized by the Union of Councils for Jews in the Former Soviet Union many American senators and human rights groups for building a football stadium in Grodno on the site of a historic Jewish cemetery A website www stopthedigging org since shut down was set up to oppose the desecration of the cemetery The Lukashenko administration also faced criticism on this issue from members of the National Assembly and Jewish organizations in Belarus In January 2004 Forum 18 reported that Yakov Gutman president of the World Association of Belarusian Jewry accused Lukashenko of personal responsibility for the destruction of Jewish holy sites in Belarus accusing authorities of permitting the destruction of a synagogue to build a housing complex demolishing a former shul in order to build a multi story car park and destroying two Jewish cemeteries According to the report he was detained by police and taken to a hospital after apparently suffering a heart attack In March 2004 Gutman announced that he was leaving Belarus for the U S in protest of state anti Semitism His view was echoed by a July 2005 report by UCSJ that a personal aide of the President a former Communist Party ideologue Eduard Skobelev had published anti Semitic books and promoted guns to solve what he termed the Jewish problem In 1997 Skobelev was given the title Honored Figure of Culture by Lukashenko and put in charge of the journal Neman The UCSJ s representative in Belarus Yakov Basin wrote a report detailing the authorities alleged anti Semitism 127 Also Yakov Basin said that the authorities were pretending not to notice anti Semitic tendencies among bureaucrats ideologues and leaders of the Orthodox Church He also reported about openly anti Semitic books published by the Church 128 The only Jewish higher education institute in Belarus the International Humanities Institute of Belarusian State University was closed in February 2004 129 in what many local Jews believe is a deliberate act of antisemitism to undermine their educational rights and position in society However it is not the only educational institution to face closure in Belarus the last independent university in the nation the European Humanities University a secular institution which received funding from the European Union 130 was closed in July 2004 Commentators have implied that this may be part of a wider move by Lukashenko to crush internal dissent Jewish observers cite antisemitic statements by legislators and other members of government and the failure of authorities in Belarus to punish perpetrators of antisemitic crime including violent crime as indicators of a policy of antisemitism in the state citation needed In 2007 Belarus president Lukashenko made an anti Semitic comment about the Jewish community of Babrujsk This is a Jewish city and the Jews are not concerned for the place they live in They have turned Babrujsk into a pigsty Look at Israel I was there 131 132 The comment provoked active criticism from Jewish leaders and in Israel Lukashenko subsequently sent a delegation to Israel In 2015 Lukashenko made another comment during a three hours long TV address criticizing the governor of the Minsk Region for not keeping Belarus s Jewish population under control He also called the Jews white boned meaning they do not enjoy menial work 133 In 2021 Alexander Lukashenko claimed that the Jews have succeeded in making the whole world bow down to them which was criticized by the foreign ministry of Israel 134 In the same 2021 Belarusian government newspaper Belarus Segodnya accused groups of Belarusian Jews of attempts to destabilize the situation in the country with the help of Jews abroad 134 Anti Polonism edit On 3 August 2005 an activist working for the Union of Poles representing the Polish minority community was arrested and given a 15 day jail sentence and Lukashenko accused the Polish minority of plotting to overthrow him The former head of the Union of Poles Tadeusz Gawin was later given a second sentence for allegedly beating one of his cell mates a claim he denies The offices of the Union of Poles were raided on 27 July 2005 in a crisis which came to the surface the previous day when Andrzej Olborski a Polish diplomat working in Minsk was expelled from the country the third such expulsion in three months Poland had accused Belarus of persecuting the 400 000 Poles who have been a part of Belarus since her borders were moved westward after the Second World War Antiziganism edit Former police officer reported that Belarusian militsiya has informal rules for Romani people which include arbitrary check of documents phone examination house inspection without reason 135 80 of Romani people in Belarus claim that they faced antiziganism antigypsyism by the police which include arbitrary detention multiple fingerprint registration confiscation of vehicles 135 On 16 May 2019 GAI road police officer was found dead near Mahilioŭ Immediately after that massive raids on local Romani people was organized 136 Up to 40 Romani people were detained 137 Women were released after night at the police station but men remained at the police station 136 One of the released Romani woman said she was told that men were going to be in jail until we police found the criminals 136 It was later established that the GAI road police officer whose death led to these roundups committed suicide 138 Minister of interior Igor Shunevich refused to apologize to the Romani community for this incident 139 International Federation for Human Rights called for investigation of mass roundups of Roma people in Mahilioŭ 138 Discrimination of Belarusian speakers edit Members of the Belarusian speaking minority of Belarus has been complaining about discrimination of the Belarusian language in Belarus the lack of Belarusian language education and consumer information in Belarusian all that despite the official status of Belarusian language as a state language besides Russian 140 141 In its 2016 country human rights on Belarus report the US State Department also stated that there was discrimination against those who sought to use the Belarusian language 142 Because the government viewed many proponents of the Belarusian language as political opponents authorities continued to harass and intimidate academic and cultural groups that sought to promote Belarusian and routinely rejected proposals to widen use of the language the report said 142 Belarus has two official languages but cases of trials in Russian despite defendants petitions to use Belarusian language were reported 143 144 145 On 23 July 2021 Mova Nanova Belarusian language courses was forcibly disbanded 146 In July 2021 the authorities conducted a search in the office of the Belarusian Language Society and in August the Ministry of Justice applied for liquidation of this society in the Supreme Court of Belarus 147 Government sponsored hostage taking editOne of the more notable examples of the Belarusian government s violation of human rights and international norms was the abduction unlawful detainment and torture of American attorney Emanuel Zeltser 148 and his assistant Vladlena Funk 149 On 11 March 2008 Zeltser and Funk were abducted in London by Belarusian KGB agents Both were drugged and flown to Belarus on a private jet belonging to Boris Berezovsky a Russian oligarch and friend of Lukashenko who was wanted by Interpol for fraud money laundering participation in organized crime and international financial crimes 150 After landing in Minsk Zeltser and Funk were detained by Lukashenko s guard according to the U S State Department 151 They were transported to Amerikanka the Stalin era Belarusian KGB detention facility where they were tortured denied medication and told they would remain imprisoned indefinitely unless the U S lifted sanctions against Lukashenko Zeltser and Funk were held hostage for 473 days and 373 days respectively Their seizure torture and detention sparked international outrage and significant press coverage apparently unexpected by Belarusian authorities 152 153 The U S Department of State and members of the U S Congress repeatedly demanded the release of the hostages World leaders the European Parliament and international human rights organizations joined the U S call for the immediate release of Funk and Zeltser Amnesty International issued emergency alerts on the torture and other ill treatment of Zeltser 154 Ihar Rynkevich a Belarusian legal expert and Press Secretary of the Belarus Helsinki Commission said in an interview This is yet another shameful case for the Belarusian judiciary for which more than one generation of Belarusian legal experts will blush 155 A strongly worded letter from the New York City Bar Association to Lukashenko condemned KGB abuse of Zeltser and Funk and demanding their immediate release The bar association letter expressed great concerned sic about the arrests and detention of Mr Zeltser and Ms Funk and the reports of physical mistreatment of Mr Zeltser and stated that this was inconsistent with Belarus obligations under international agreements including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ICCPR and the Convention Against Torture and Other Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment CAT The letter also noted that the charges the KGB brought against Zeltser and Funk appears to have no basis to it lacks any explanation or detail and concerns have thus been reported that this is a fabricated charge created to justify their unlawful detention 156 Neither Funk nor Zeltser had been lawfully arrested charged indicted tried or convicted under Belarusian or international law They were unlawfully seized and held hostage in violation of international law and Belarusian law During their detention Funk and Zeltser were subjected to torture and cruel inhuman or undignified treatment in violation of Article 25 of the Belarus Constitution 157 U S law and international treaties including the International Convention Against the Taking of Hostages the Hostage Convention 158 the United Nations Convention Against Torture 159 the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ICCPR 160 the United Nations Convention Against Torture the Torture Convention 161 and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ICCPR 160 Zeltser s and Funk s abduction detention and mistreatment in KGB captivity was an attempt to coerce the United States to lift sanctions against Lukashenko and other members of the Belarusian government and against the Belarusian petrochemical company Belneftekhim which they owned Belarus s actions were gross violations of the law of nations and universally accepted norms of the international law of human rights including laws prohibiting hostage taking and state sponsored terrorism 162 Yielding to the demands of the international community Lukashenko released Funk on 20 March 2009 and Zeltser on 30 June when a delegation from the U S Congress traveled to Belarus to meet with Lukashenko regarding the hostage crisis 163 U S charge d affaires in Belarus Jonathan Moore commented after their release At no time have the Belarusian authorities ever provided any indication that the charges against Mr Zeltser and Ms Funk were legitimate As a result I can only conclude that the charges in this case are thoroughly without merit and are the result of extra legal motivation 164 Although the U S Department of State repeatedly said that it does not use its citizens as bargaining chips many in Belarus still believe that the U S made a deal with Lukashenko inducing him to release the hostages in exchange for IMF credits to Belarus Appearing on Russian TV network NTV Anatoly Lebedko Chairman of the Belarusian United Popular Party said Washington was forced to pay ransom for its citizen sic by providing Lukashenko the IMF credits pure and simple in essence this is hostage taking the practice which is widespread in Belarus elevated to international level where Lukashenko is not only sending a political message but demands monetary compensation for human freedom 165 Forced disappearances edit nbsp Demonstration in Warsaw reminding about the disappearances of oppositionals in Belarus In 1999 opposition leaders Yury Zacharanka and Viktar Hanchar together with his business associate Anatol Krasouski disappeared Hanchar and Krasouski disappeared the same day of a broadcast on state television in which President Alexander Lukashenko ordered the chiefs of his security services to crack down on opposition scum Although the State Security Committee of the Republic of Belarus KGB had them under constant surveillance the official investigation announced that the case could not be solved The investigation of the disappearance of journalist Dzmitry Zavadski in 2000 has also yielded no results Copies of a report by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe which linked senior Belarusian officials to the cases of disappearances were confiscated 166 In September 2004 the European Union and the United States issued travel bans for five Belarusian officials suspected in being involved in the kidnapping of Zacharanka Interior Affairs Minister Vladimir Naumov Prosecutor General Viktor Sheiman Minister for Sports and Tourism Yuri Sivakov and Colonel Dmitry Pavlichenko from the Belarus Interior Ministry 167 In December 2019 Deutsche Welle published a documentary film in which Yury Garavski a former member of a special unit of the Belarusian Ministry of Internal Affairs confirmed that it was his unit which had arrested taken away and murdered Zecharanka and that they later did the same with Viktar Hanchar and Anatol Krassouski 168 Ranking by human rights organizations editMajor human rights organizations have been criticizing Belarus and its human rights situation For most of Lukashenko s tenure he has been reckoned as leading one of the most repressive regimes in the world Belarus in major freedom indices 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 Freedom in the World 169 170 5 Not free aggregate score 11 100 5 Not free aggregate score 19 100 5 Not free aggregate score 19 100 5 Not free aggregate score 21 100 5 Not free aggregate score 20 100 5 Not free aggregate score 17 100 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free 5 Not free Index of Economic Freedom Repressed 58 1 world rank 108 Repressed Mostly unfree Repressed Repressed Repressed Press Freedom Index 171 Global rank 158 50 82 Global rank 153 49 75 Global rank 153 Global rank 155 52 59 Global rank 153 52 43 Global rank 157 54 32 Global rank 157 47 98 Global rank 157 47 81 Global rank 157 48 35 Global rank 168 99 00 Global rank 154 57 00 Global rank 151 59 50 Global rank 154 58 33 Global rank 151 63 63 Global rank 151 57 00 Global rank 152 61 33 Global rank 144 54 10 Global rank 151 52 00 Global rank 124 52 17 Democracy Index 3 13 Authoritarian 3 13 Authoritarian 3 13 Authoritarian 3 13 Authoritarian 3 54 Authoritarian 3 62 Authoritarian 3 69 Authoritarian 3 04 Authoritarian 3 04 Authoritarian 3 16 Authoritarian 3 34 Authoritarian 3 34 Authoritarian 3 34 Authoritarian Freedom of the Press report 83 Not Free 91 Not Free 93 Not Free 93 Not Free Not Free Not Free Not Free Not Free Not Free Not Free Not Free Not Free Not Free Not Free Not Free Polity data series Autocracy Autocracy World Index of Moral Freedom 45 7 points Rank 88 Insufficient Moral Freedom Insufficient Moral Freedom Belarus human rights friendly rhetoric was not supported by genuine human rights improvements in 2016 The death penalty remains in use Officials continue to prosecute human rights activists and critical journalists on spurious charges Legislative amendments further restricted freedom of expression by expanding the definition of extremism and by banning dissemination of certain types of information among children under the false pretense of protecting them International observers recognized some progress during the September parliamentary elections but called for additional reforms Human Rights Watch World Report 2017 172 Severe restrictions on the rights to freedom of expression of association and of peaceful assembly remained in place The government continued to refuse co operation with the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Belarus At least four people were executed and four people were sentenced to death Amnesty International 2016 2017 Report 173 President Alyaksandr Lukashenka secured a fifth term in the October 2015 presidential election which failed to meet international standards according to observers from the Organization for Security and Co operation in Europe OSCE The government was rewarded for the steps it had taken to improve its still repressive human rights situation when the European Union and the United States granted the country temporary relief from sanctions Freedom House Freedom in the World 2016 Report 169 International criticism of human rights in Belarus editUnited Nations edit The UN Human Rights Council 2007 Report 61 notes that the Special Rapporteur has encountered for the third consecutive year an absolute refusal to cooperate on the part of the Government of Belarus all efforts made to engage in constructive dialogue were fruitless the situation of human rights in Belarus constantly deteriorated The Government of Belarus did not consider any of the recommendations made by the Special Rapporteur and treaty bodies such as the Human Rights Committee The UN Special Rapporteur noted that the political system of Belarus seems to be incompatible with the concept of human rights and that the Human Rights Council should either call for the democratization of the political regime and a change in the political behavior of the Government of Belarus or admit that Belarus human rights record cannot be improved because the human rights violations are consistent with the political nature of the regime The UN Special Rapporteur states that Belarus does not respect its obligations under the international human rights instruments to which it has adhered and reiterates his recommendation that the Security Council should adopt appropriate measures to ensure the respect by the Republic of Belarus of its legal obligations including to immediately establish a group of legal experts to investigate whether senior officials of the Government of Belarus are responsible for the disappearance and murders of several politicians and journalists and make concrete proposals for their prosecution in order to bring to an end the impunity enjoyed by those involved in such crimes to finance assistance to the human rights defenders who have been politically harassed oppressed or prosecuted to investigate the apparent involvement of senior government officials in international organized crime and illegal arms sales monitor the international financial cash flows of Belarus and if necessary freeze foreign bank accounts of those involved in illicit trafficking and prosecute criminals The Special Rapporteur stressed that present trading relations with Belarus do not grant a better quality of life to Belarusian citizens but allow President Lukashenko s regime to remain in power by systematically violating human rights and threatening international security and recommended that the European Union and the United States of America should maintain travel restrictions for Belarusian officials and all other member states should adopt similar measures The UN Special Rapporteur noted that the opinions and assessments of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus were confirmed and fully shared by the most important European or Euro Atlantic organizations namely the OSCE the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly the Council of Europe the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe the European Council the European Parliament the European Commission and the NATO Parliamentary Assembly adding It is impossible to believe that all these people are wrong or biased The Resolution of the UN General Assembly 174 stated t he situation of human rights in Belarus in 2007 continued to significantly deteriorate as documented in the reports of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus which found that systematic violations of human rights continue to take place in Belarus and expressed deep concern a About the continued use of Belarus s criminal justice system to silence political opposition and human rights defenders including through arbitrary detention lack of due process and closed political trials of leading opposition figures and human rights defenders b About the failure of the Government of Belarus to cooperate fully with all the mechanisms of the Human Rights Council in particular with the Special Rapporteurs on the situation of human rights in Belarus while noting the serious concern relating to the continued and systematic violations of human rights in Belarus On September 17 2020 Amnesty International urged the United Nations Human Rights Council to take strong action for conducting an investigation into the escalating human rights crisis in Belarus 175 On 18 September 2020 United Nations top Human Rights council passed a resolution that intensified the scrutiny of the human rights abuses committed in Belarus during the peaceful protests More than 10000 people were arrested during the protest as confirmed by the UN s Special Rapporteur on Belarus 176 On 29 June 2022 Anais Marin Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Belarus warned that the deterioration of human rights in Belarus continues to engulf the country in a climate of fear and arbitrary rule While presenting her annual report to the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva she pointed to Government policies that have systematically tightened legislation and restricted civil and political rights 177 European Union edit In March 2006 the European Council imposed sanctions on Lukashenko and other members of the Belarusian government having deplored the failure of the Belarus authorities to meet OSCE commitments to democratic elections and condemned the action of the Belarus authorities in arresting peaceful demonstrators exercising their legitimate right of free assembly to protest at the conduct of the Presidential elections On 10 April 2006 the Council adopted restrictive measures against Lukashenko the Belarusian leadership and the officials responsible for the violations of international electoral standards and international human rights law for the crackdown on civil society and democratic opposition proposing a visa ban and possible further measures Common Position 2006 362 CFSP provided that the economic resources of Lukashenko and key Belarusian officials identified for this purpose should be frozen 178 In its 8 November 2006 Declaration the Council stated that the European Union is deeply concerned about imprisonment of political leaders which show the Belarusian authorities repeated unwillingness to respect international human rights standards especially the right to a fair trial The European Union also expresses its concern about the denial of access of observers to the trial 179 and in its 2009 Conclusions 180 it stated the Council deeply regrets the recent lack of significant progress in addressing its concerns in the area of human rights and fundamental freedoms including as regards the crackdown on peaceful political actions United Kingdom edit The UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office June 2008 Release on Belarus Human rights stated Belarus s human rights record since President Lukashenka came to power in 1994 has been poor A September 2006 report by the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights was highly critical of the situation This is one of many reports to cite numerous human rights violations The situation continues to deteriorate while the Belarusian authorities continue to ignore concerns raised by the EU and others Politically motivated arrests and detentions continue The UK and EU continue to raise human rights issues with the Belarusian government by way of regular EU statements demarches by EU heads of mission in Minsk and through international organizations including the UN and OSCE 181 United States edit According to the United States Department of State as of 2016 the main human rights problems of Belarus continued to be the following citizens were unable to choose their government through elections in a system bereft of checks and balances authorities committed abuses and former political prisoners political rights remained largely restricted while the government failed to account for longstanding cases of politically motivated disappearances Besides that the US State Department pointed out abuses by the security forces poor prison conditions politically motivated arrests political interference in the work of the judiciary restrictions of civil liberties and many other issues 142 The United States is pursuing a selective engagement policy with the government of Belarus limiting access by the government to U S government officials at the assistant secretary level and below and restricting U S assistance to the Belarus government 182 On 19 June 2006 President George W Bush declared a national emergency in connection with the actions of members of the Belarusian government including Lukashenko ordering sanctions against Lukashenko other members of the Belarusian government and Belneftekhim for undermining democratic process and constituting an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States 183 The US Department of State repeatedly criticized the Lukashenko regime describing it as a brutal authoritarian dictatorship that blatantly ignores human rights and fundamental freedoms 184 Assessments by the United Nations the United States and European and Euro Atlantic organizations demonstrate Belarus s disregard for human rights the subservience of Belarusian courts to Lukashenko s administration and members of Lukashenko s inner circle and the use of the Belarusian judiciary as a tool for accomplishing improper political objectives and accommodating the interests of the regime The United Nations Human Rights Council noted that the Belarusian political system is incompatible with the concept of human rights 185 Belarus has been called the last true remaining dictatorship in the heart of Europe by the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice 186 Belarus is subject to US sanctions for undermining democratic process and constituting an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States 187 It is also subject to sanctions imposed by the European Union for human rights violations 62 Belarus has been determined to be a habitual violator of international human rights laws and accepted norms of international behavior by the UN the US the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe OSCE the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly the Council of Europe the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe the European Council the European Parliament the European Commission and the NATO Parliamentary Assembly As stated by the UN Special Rapporteur on Belarus it is impossible to believe that all these people are wrong or biased 184 The 2008 U S Department of State Background Note Belarus states B ilateral relations cooled following the election of President Lukashenka in July 1994 After the internationally unrecognized November 1996 constitutional referendum which resulted in the dissolution of Belarus legitimate parliament and the centralization of power in the executive branch Lukashenko provoked a diplomatic crisis by confiscating diplomatic residences of the US German British French Italian and IMF residences away from those missions In addition Lukashenko used his newly centralized power to repress human rights throughout the country Since his election in July 1994 Lukashenka has consolidated power steadily in the executive branch through authoritarian means and has dominated all branches of government He used a non democratic referendum in November 1996 to amend the 1994 constitution to broaden his powers and illegally extend his term in office In 2004 he engineered a fraudulent referendum that removed term limits on the presidency In 2006 Lukashenka won another term in an undemocratic election In January 2007 he further consolidated his rule through local elections that failed to meet international standards U S State Department Background Note Belarus The 2008 State Department Belarus Report 188 noted grave habitual abuses by the Belarusian government of human rights and disregard for the freedoms of speech press religion and association It points out inconsistencies between Belarusian law and court rulings The 2008 State Department report demonstrated the subservience of the Belarusian courts to the Lukashenko administration and the private interests of his inner circle to such an extent that the courts in Belarus exist in name only Salient points are According to its constitution Belarus is a republic In practice however power is concentrated in the presidency Since his election in 1994 as president Alexander Lukashenka has consolidated his power over all institutions and undermined the rule of law through authoritarian means manipulated elections and arbitrary decrees Subsequent presidential elections have not been free or fair and the 28 September 2008 parliamentary election failed to meet international standards Members of security forces continued to commit numerous human rights abuses The government s human rights record remained very poor as government authorities continued to commit frequent serious abuses The government failed to account for past politically motivated disappearances of human beings Prison conditions remained extremely poor and reports of abuse of prisoners and detainees continued The government further restricted civil liberties including freedoms of press speech assembly association and religion Corruption continued to be a problem Religious leaders were fined imprisoned or deported for performing services In the section titled Torture and Other Cruel Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment the 2008 US State Dept Belarus Report noted that while Belarusian law prohibits such practices Belarusian KGB and other special forces disregard the law with impunity detainees and demonstrators are subjected to beating The State Department references the 2 September 2008 Report of the International Federation of Human Rights FIDH on Conditions of Detention in Belarus which noted substantial evidence of the use of torture and mistreatment of suspects during criminal and administrative investigations 189 The section of the report entitled Arbitrary Interference with Privacy Family Home or Correspondence noted that the Belarusian law prohibits such actions however the government did not respect these prohibitions in practice while the law requires a warrant for searches the KGB conducted unauthorized searches without warrants with numerous instances in which authorities searched residences and offices for clearly political reasons It notes that t he lack of independence of the prosecutor s office rendered due process protections meaningless On 12 June 2009 the Obama administration continued the sanctions against Belarus pursuant to the Notice on Continuation of the National Emergency With Respect to the Actions and Policies of Certain Members of the Government of Belarus and Other Persons That Undermine Democratic Processes or Institutions in Belarus 190 Historical situation editThe following chart shows Belarus s ratings since 1991 in the Freedom in the World reports published annually by Freedom House A rating of 1 is free 7 not free 191 1 Historical ratings Year Political Rights Civil Liberties Status President Head of State2 1991 4 4 Partly Free Stanislav Shushkevich 1992 4 3 Partly Free Stanislav Shushkevich 1993 5 4 Partly Free Stanislav Shushkevich 1994 4 4 Partly Free Stanislav Shushkevich 1995 5 5 Partly Free Alexander Lukashenko 1996 6 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 1997 6 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 1998 6 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 1999 6 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2000 6 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2001 6 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2002 6 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2003 6 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2004 7 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2005 7 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2006 7 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2007 7 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2008 7 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2009 7 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2010 7 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2011 7 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2012 7 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2013 7 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2014 7 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2015 7 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2016 7 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2017 6 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2018 7 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2019 7 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2020 7 6 Not Free Alexander Lukashenko 2021 7 7 Not Free Alexander LukashenkoSee also editList of people and organizations sanctioned in relation to human rights violations in Belarus Belarusian human rights organisations Belarusian Helsinki Committee Over Barrier Viasna Human Rights Centre We Remember Foundation Belarusian democracy movement Day of Solidarity with Belarus Jeans RevolutionNotes edit1 Note that the Year signifies the Year covered Therefore the information for the year marked 2008 is from the report published in 2009 and so on 2 As of January 1 References edit Essential Background Belarus Human Rights Watch 2005 Retrieved 26 March 2006 Human rights by country Belarus Amnesty International Report 2007 Amnesty International 2007 Archived from the original on 12 December 2007 Retrieved 22 December 2007 Opening Statement by Dr Condoleezza Rice Senate Foreign Relations Committee PDF 18 January 2005 Archived from the original PDF on 25 March 2006 Retrieved 26 March 2006 At a glance Outposts of tyranny BBC News 19 January 2005 Retrieved 26 March 2006 a b Political prisoners in Belarus a b BELARUS YOU ARE NOT HUMAN BEINGS Belarus Authorities Purge Human Rights Defenders Profile Alexander Lukashenko BBC News 20 March 2006 Archived from the original on 27 April 2006 Retrieved 26 March 2006 Mulvey Stephen 10 September 2001 Profile Europe s last dictator BBC News British Broadcasting Corporation Retrieved 21 December 2007 Belarus suspended from the Council of Europe Press Service of the Council of Europe 17 January 1997 Archived from the original on 26 April 2006 Retrieved 26 March 2006 Protesters try to storm government HQ in Belarus BBC News 20 December 2010 Archived from the original on 20 December 2010 Retrieved 22 December 2010 Belarus jails 600 activists over election unrest BBC News 21 December 2010 Archived from the original on 23 December 2010 Retrieved 23 December 2010 Belarus Full scale attack on human rights ahead of presidential election Amnesty International 29 June 2020 Retrieved 29 June 2020 BELARUS GROWING CRACKDOWN ON HUMAN RIGHTS AHEAD OF PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION PDF Amnesty International 28 June 2020 Retrieved 29 June 2020 EU moves toward Belarus sanctions after crackdown on protests The Guardian 14 August 2020 Retrieved 14 August 2020 Reporters Without Borders Belarus Retrieved 30 November 2017 Belarus Country report Freedom in the World 1998 www freedomhouse org Freedom House 2023 Retrieved 2023 04 25 V Belarusi dvum zhurnalistkam dali realnye sroki v otmestku za ih rabotu Belarus blocks top news site in full scale assault on free press V Belarusi obyski u zhurnalistov izdaniya Nasha Niva RFE RL Raided As Belarusian Police Search Offices And Homes Of Journalists Razgrom Svobody Belorusskie SMI i socmedia ob ocherednoj volne obyskov u zhurnalistov Belarus Sweeping closure of dozens of NGOs as the crackdown on civil society continues a b Za paydnya Minyust likvidavay bolsh za 40 gramadskih arganizacyyay Syarod ih Biznes shkola IPM Press Club Belarus Mova Nanova FSU Monitor Archived from the original on 27 September 2007 Retrieved 20 September 2005 Christian Post Forum 18 News Service Forum 18 Archive BELARUS Religious freedom survey December 2004 16 December 2004 Retrieved 6 March 2015 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint numeric names authors list link John Mark Ministries Belarus jmm org au 2 August 2003 Retrieved 6 March 2015 Belarusian Baptists were fined and their propriety confiscated Charter 97 News 29 07 2004 Archived from the original on 23 September 2015 Retrieved 6 March 2015 globalsecurity org PDF Forum 18 News Service Forum 18 Archive BELARUS Ahmadiyya Muslims among banned religious organisations 4 November 2003 Retrieved 6 March 2015 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint numeric names authors list link Blast wounds 40 in Belarus city BBC News 23 September 2005 a b c Karikatura kotoraya budet dorogo stoit kak belorusskij rezhim delaet iz katolikov vragov Mnenie Vy podnyali ruku na Hrista kak belorusskie pravoslavnye stali chastyu protestov a cerkov net RPC smenila glavu Belorusskoj pravoslavnoj cerkvi prizyvavshego Lukashenko ostanovit nasilie Belarusian Catholic Leader Returns After Forced Exile Pope accepts resignation of Minsk Archbishop and appoints Administrator Smotrite narvetes Lukashenko predostereg ot molitvy pod Magutny Bozha Belarus church denounces anti Catholic cartoon depicting priests as Nazis Freedom House Retrieved 2023 04 25 a b c d e f g h i j k l WHAT IS NOT PERMITTED IS PROHIBITED SILENCING CIVIL SOCIETY IN BELARUS Amnesty International report a b c d Eksperty procedura registracii partij v Belarusi realno ne byla uproshena a b c d Kak vlasti 20 let podryad otkazyvayut v registracii novyh partij Novosti Belarusi euroradio fm in Russian Retrieved 22 November 2021 a b SVOBODA ASSOCIACIJ I PRAVOVOE POLOZhENIE NEKOMMERChESKIH ORGANIZACIJ V BELARUSI PDF Retrieved 22 November 2021 The Ministry of Justice wants to liquidate the NGO BNF belsat eu Retrieved 22 November 2021 Belarus Justice Ministry files lawsuit seeking the closure of the Belarusian Association of Journalists IFEX 22 July 2021 Retrieved 22 November 2021 Belarus Moves to Shut Down PEN Belarus PEN America 22 July 2021 Retrieved 22 November 2021 Belarus gets diplomatic slap on the wrist by falling afoul of UN convention Politico Europe 21 October 2021 Retrieved 6 November 2021 99 7 of verdicts handed down by Belarusian courts in 2020 were guilty a b No the terror in Belarus is not going to stop When Wearing The Wrong Socks Or Dancing Is A Crime In Belarus Minsk police detain girl with white red dyed hair She gets hefty fine for picketing Death sentences and executions in 2011 Amnesty International March 2012 a b Amnesty org 13 November 2000 Bellona no Countries Amnesty International USA Retrieved 6 March 2015 WHY IS ALES BIALIATSKI IN JAIL Belarus Civil society under attack Freeales fidh net Archived from the original on 4 March 2016 Retrieved 24 January 2016 Why Ales Bialiatski is in jail List of political prisoners The Human Rights Center Viasna Spring96 org Retrieved 26 March 2013 Constitution of Belarus PDF a b c d The United Nations Human Rights Council 2007 Report of the Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Belarus Archived 22 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine GE 07 10197 E 190107 a b Council Regulation EC No 765 2006 of 18 May 2006 concerning restrictive measures against President Lukashenko and certain officials of Belarus a b Doklad Amnesty International 2020 21 Prava cheloveka v sovremennom mire Amnesty International 2020 21 report p 79 Repression Rages in Belarus Targeting Ever More Lawyers Too Belarus authorities criticised over tape discussing internment camps for protesters Reuters 25 January 2021 Retrieved 24 February 2021 Use your weapon Leaked recording implicates Lukashenko in authorizing use of lethal force against Belarusian protesters Meduza 25 January 2021 Retrieved 24 February 2021 Kto govoril pro lager dlya ostrokopytnyh na slitoj audiozapisi My poluchili rezultaty ekspertizy TUT BY 25 January 2021 Retrieved 24 February 2021 OSCE demanding release of political prisoners in Belarus Belsat 3 February 2021 Retrieved 24 February 2021 Detained Belarusian Protesters Describe August Stay In Internment Camp Radio Liberty 29 January 2021 Retrieved 24 February 2021 Chelovek byl gotov na vse chtoby eto prekratilos Advokat o razoblachitelnyh video Belarus airs more footage of detained activist as family call it hostage video Belarus TV shows activist Roman Protasevich calling protests useless Sapega i torgi Raman Pratasevich forced televised confession amounts to ill treatment Amnesty International said Zhurnalist sledovatel Korrespondent SB Belarus segodnya Lyudmila Gladkaya doprashivaet zaderzhannyh vmeste s silovikami KGB za polgoda vnes v spisok terroristov uzhe 37 belarusov Kto oni i v chem ih obvinyayut Detained journalist Roman Protasevich From teen activist to Belarusian regime bugbear Vrag rezhima Lukashenko Kto takoj Roman Protasevich i chto izvestno o ego devushke Istorik Generalu Belokonevu nravyatsya metody kotorye ispolzovali nacisty Advokatov Aleksandra Pylchenko i Yuliyu Levanchuk lishayut licenzii Advokata Lyudmilu Kazak lishili licenzii ona zashishala Mariyu Kolesnikovu Advokata Sergeya Zikrackogo lishayut licenzii Eshe treh advokatov lishili licenzii Laevskij V Belarusi advokata mogut v lyuboj moment lishit licenzii za mnenie po pravovym voprosam Eshe dva advokata ne proshli vneocherednuyu attestaciyu Illia Salei is a prisoner of conscience Davlenie i zapugivanie a b c d Belorusskie yuristy nuzhdayutsya v zashite Nezavisimost advokatury pod ugrozoj Statement of Patricia Lee Refo president American Bar Association Re Independence of legal profession in Belarus Belarus Analysis of Arbitrary Disbarments Ekspress byulleten zakonodatelstva Respubliki Belarus za period s 27 maya po 2 iyunya 2021 g a b c d Bolshe kontrolya menshe nezavisimosti zelenyj svet silovikam Chto menyayut popravki v zakon ob advokatskoj deyatelnosti Pavel Sapelko o vozmozhnyh izmeneniyah v zakon ob advokature Eto diskriminaciya chistoj vody a b Sergej Gasoyan Sushestvovanie advokatury kak instituta stavitsya pod somnenie V Belarusi uprazdnyaetsya institut nezavisimoj advokatury Advokata vytolkali iz kvartiry klienta v moment provedeniya obyska Advokat Protasevicha Inessa Olenskaya ne videla klienta uzhe nedelyu Advokata Mariyu Kolesova Gudilinu ne puskayut v SIZO k klientu 4 yj den Advokat Sergeya Tihanovskogo podala zhalobu v Generalnuyu prokuraturu po povodu publikacii zapisi razgovora s klientom a b Without Any Guarantees For Safety Independent Belarusian Media Carry On a b Belarus NGOs condemn government crackdown after black week of raids Ulady Belarusi likvidavali Biznes shkolu IPM Yana ladzila forum u yakim udzelnichali yrad i Nacbank Ulady likvidavali Belaruski PEN centr Stop demolition of Belarus s civil society Belorusskie vlasti likvidirovali Zgurtavanne belarusay svetu Backayshchyna V Belarusi zakryli obedinenie predprinimatelej Perspektiva S kulturoj kak s kolhozom Lukashenko mstit pisatelyam za pismo Rezhim Lukashenko likvidiroval Soyuz belorusskih pisatelej V Belarusi likvidirovali Belorusskij Helsinkskij komitet Eto predposlednyaya zaregistrirovannaya pravozashitnaya organizaciya v strane Fond BYSOL obyavlen v Belarusi ekstremistskoj organizaciej Amnesty UK 2021 ITUC Global Rights Index COVID 19 pandemic puts spotlight on workers rights a b c d e f g 2021 ITUC Global Rights Index a b c The ILO s condemnation of Belarus is unequivocal but so is China and Russia s support for Lukashenko Working internationally What we do UNISON National 3 July 2023 Lukashenka promises serfdom in villages Charter 97 2014 Panszczyzna u Lukaszenki Prezydent Bialorusi chce zakazac kolchoznikom odchodzic z pracy in Polish Gazeta Wyborcza 2014 In chase of upgrade serfdom for woodworkers Belsat 2012 Archived from the original on 26 July 2014 Zhlobinskij sud vynes reshenie po delu o zabastovke na BMZ kogda na zavode ostanovilis pechi a b c V Trudovoj kodeks vnesli izmeneniya razreshili uvolnyat za otbytie administrativki i prizyvy k zabastovke a b Putin and Lukashenko meet as Belarus intensifies crackdown on opposition a b V Belarusi zaderzhivayut rabochih kotorye zayavlyali o zabastovkah na svoih predpriyatiyah Vyasna Verhovnyj sud likvidiroval mezhdunarodnoe OO Gendernye perspektivy Constanta Human 29 September 2023 What is wrong with human rights in sport the case of Belarus Human Constanta Retrieved 13 December 2023 Jewish leader alarmed at nationality clause in Belarus job applications Charter 97 News 11 05 2004 Retrieved 6 March 2015 Problems of Xenophobia and Anti Semitism in Modern Belarus FSU Monitor Archived from the original on 3 August 2004 Retrieved 6 March 2015 Anti Semitism in Belarus is thriving says Jewish leader World Jewish Congress 18 March 2005 BelReview Last independent university shut down in Belarus The Guardian London 28 July 2004 Siegel Matt 22 October 2007 BELARUS JEWS STAY CALM IN FACE OF PRESIDENT S ANTI SEMITIC SLURS The Jerusalem Post Retrieved 27 November 2017 Belarus president anti Semitic BBC 19 October 2007 Retrieved 27 November 2017 Belarus president raps Jewish governor for not keeping Jews under control Times of Israel 30 April 2015 Retrieved 27 November 2017 a b As Lukashenko Ramps Up Antisemitism Will Putin Save the Last Jews of Belarus a b Milicioner rasskazal kak v Mogileve godami otrabatyvayut cyganskie rajony a b c Human rights defenders Crime has no nationality Posle ubijstva milicionera nochyu v Mogileve proshla oblava na cygan a b Belarus Mass Roundups of Roma People Must Be Investigated U ministra net ni povoda ni osnovanij prosit izvineniya u cygan Ponyatno Shunevich obyasnil zaderzhaniya v Mogileve Belarusy suprac dyskryminacyi rodnaj movy na zakanadaychym royni in Belarusian Radio Racyja 2017 Retrieved 27 November 2017 Dyskryminacyya belaruskaj movy pa garadzensku Radio Racyja 2016 Retrieved 27 November 2017 a b c Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2016 US Department of State Bureau of Democracy Human Rights and Labor 2017 Retrieved 27 November 2017 Garadzenku sudzyac za abrazu milicejskaga nachalnika Ale toe zh znyavazhlivae slova chasta vykarystoyvae sam Lukashenka Shto skazha sud Mogilevchanin Volodar Curpanov Stalkivaeshsya s tem chto tvoe belorusskoyazychie vosprinimaetsya kak vrazhdebnost V Minske sudyat Belyackogo sudya otklonil dva hodatajstva Vlasti likvidirovali kursy belorusskogo yazyka Mova nanova TBM cherez nedelyu mogut likvidirovat a vmeste s nim gazety Novy chas i Nasha slova Emanuel Zeltser American Russian Law Institute Retrieved 6 March 2015 VLADLENA BRUSKOVA www moscowtelegraph com Boris Berezovsky Backgrounder Retrieved 6 March 2015 Lukashenka illegally extended his presidential term by a fraudulent referendum that removed term limits on the presidency The 2009 US Department of State Background Note Belarus Belarusian Authorities Hold American Lawyer Hostage MSNBC 9 September 2008 PDF cfcartwright 12 January 2009 Belarusian authorities hold American lawyer Emanuel Zeltser captive Archived from the original on 15 December 2021 via YouTube Amnesty International alerts PDF Archived from the original PDF on 14 March 2012 Rynkevich Interview Belapan 1 August 2008 PDF Bar Association Letter PDF Constitution of the Republic of Belarus of 1994 Archived 6 June 2009 at the Wayback Machine as amended on 24 November 1996 and 17 October 2004 Multilateral International Convention Against the Taking of Hostages adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 17 December 1979 GA res 34 146 XXXIV 34 UN GAOR Supp No 46 at 245 UN Doc A 34 46 1979 1316 UNTS 205 TIAS No 11081 18 ILM 1456 1979 Conclusion Date 17 December 1979 Entry into Force Date 3 June 1983 The United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment adopted by the General Assembly on 9 December 1975 resolution 3452 XXX a b The United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Archived 5 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine G A res 2200A XXI 21 UN GAOR Supp No 16 at 52 UN Doc A 6316 1966 999 UNTS 171 entered into force 23 March 1976 The United Nation s Convention against Torture and Other Cruel Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment adopted by the General Assembly on 9 December 1975 resolution 3452 XXX Dubbed terrorists arms depot by the International League for Human Rights Belarus has a history of close cooperation with and arms sales to rogue states sponsors of terrorism See also Washington Post Belarus s Terrorist Ties 12 June 2004 ABC News US Lawyer Imprisoned in Belarus on Widely Denounced Charges Freed Retrieved 6 March 2015 Jonathan Moore Letter PDF Emanuel Zeltser NTV Krestnyj Batka Lukashenko God Daddy Lukashenko Retrieved 6 March 2015 16 Years of Silence Enforced Disappearances in Belarus Must Be Investigated Amnesty International 18 September 2015 USA EU declare Belarus officials personas non grata Pravda 28 September 2008 Retrieved 3 March 2015 Belarus How death squads targeted opposition politicians a b Freedom in the World 2017 Belarus Freedom House Retrieved 27 November 2017 Freedom in the World 2021 Belarus Belarus Events of 2016 World Report 2017 Belarus Events of 2016 Human Rights Watch 12 January 2017 Retrieved 27 November 2017 Amnesty International BELARUS 2016 2017 Amnesty International 2017 Retrieved 27 November 2017 The Resolution of the UN General Assembly on Situation of human rights in Belarus adopted by the General Assembly 20 March 2008 A RES 62 169 Belarus UN Human Rights Council must take strong action on escalating human rights crisis in the country Amnesty International 17 September 2020 Retrieved 17 September 2020 UN approves motion on enhanced scrutiny of alleged human rights violations in Belarus Euro News 18 September 2020 Retrieved 18 September 2020 Belarus engulfed in fear Human Rights Council hears United Nations 29 June 2022 Retrieved 29 June 2022 Council Regulation Concerning Restrictive Measures Against President Lukashenko and Certain Officials of Belarus EC No 765 2006 of 18 May 2006 Declaration by the Presidency on behalf of the European Union 14890 06 Presse 307 P 129 OR en Brussels 8 November 2006 European Council conclusions on Belarus 2974th External Relations Council meeting Brussels 17 November 2009 UK Foreign Office 27 June 2008 Release on Belarus Human rights The 2008 US Department of State Background Note PDF Executive Order 13405 PDF a b The UN Rapporteur Belarus Reports PDF Archived from the original PDF on 22 July 2011 The United Nations Human Rights Council Reports of the Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Belarus Archived 22 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine of 2006 E CN 4 2006 36 of 16 January 2006 and 2007 GE 07 10197 E 190107 Rice Russia s future linked to democracy CNN 20 April 2005 Emergency Executive Order 13405 2008 Human Rights Report Belarus U S Department of State Archived from the original on 26 February 2009 Retrieved 6 March 2015 FIDH headquartered in Paris is a federation of 155 human rights organizations in nearly 100 countries FIDH coordinates and supports the activities of its member organizations at the local regional and international levels and has a consultative status before the United Nations UNESCO and the Council of Europe and observer status before the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights the Organization Internationale de la Francophonie and the International Labour Organization FIDH works closely with the European Union Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Organization of American States United Nations Development Program World Trade Organization International Monetary Fund World Bank and Organization for Economic Co operation and Development Notice on Continuation of the National Emergency PDF Freedom House 2022 Country and Territory Ratings and Statuses FIW 1973 2022 XLS Retrieved 8 March 2022 External links editUN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus FIDH website to inform about political prisoners in Belarus Amnesty International s Key Human Rights Concerns In BelarusSources edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Human rights in Belarus Freedom of press 1 Belarus ranked 16th worst ranked country on RSF Press Freedom index 2 Freedom House ranks Belarus as Not Free Gays and lesbians 3 Gay Times country profile 4 Asylum seeker wins but still detained 5 Belarus gays parade in election fever 6 Gay and lesbian websites blocked in Belarus 7 Orthodox Church organises homophobes 8 ILGA threats from Belarusian regime force organisers to cancel festival 9 Failure of Gay Pride 2000 10 Global Gayz Belarus News and Reports 2004 05 Polish minority crisis n Poland accuses Belarus of human rights violations Poland accuses Belarus of human rights violations 11 Polish chief jailed again 12 Belarus Poland row escalates Anti Semitism 13 Protests over Belarus Jewish graves 14 Belarus digs up Jewish graves 15 President Lukashenko in quotes 16 Belarus lawmakers protest destruction of Jewish sites 17 Forum 18 article 18 Jews get by in Belarus but they feel the authorities watchful eyes 19 Lukashenko aide continues anti semitic publishing 20 Belarus aide leaves country in protest at state anti semitism Neo Nazi allegations 21 Neo Nazis continue attacking Belarusian oppositionists 22 Minsk Neo Nazis March To Commemorate Fallen Comrade Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Human rights in Belarus amp oldid 1221543869, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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