Human rights in Belarus
Encyclopedia
Since the election of the country's first president, Aleksandr Lukashenko in July 1994, Lukashenko has steadily consolidated his power through authoritarian means. Government restrictions on freedom of speech and the press, peaceful assembly, and religion remain in place. Belarus, “republic in name, although in fact a dictatorship” is viewed as a rogue state by the United States and European democracies, i.e. the one whose conduct is out of line with international norms of behaviour and whose regime is considered to grossly violate human rights.
Some of the most notable recent examples were the harassment of the Union of Poles in Belarus
which represents ethnic Poles
in the region; and abduction, unlawful detainment and torture of a prominent American lawyer Emanuel Zeltser and his assistant and free-lance journalist Vladlena Funk
during the US - Belarus hostage crisis in 2008-2009.
Religious, political and journalistic activity is tightly controlled. Other alleged human rights violations have included the digging up of a Jewish cemetery in order to build a sports stadium. Concerns have also been raised by the UCSJ, among others, of Lukashenko’s alleged use of Neo-Nazi thugs in intimidating opposition supporters during general elections. There have also been accusations of widespread spying on ordinary people and minority groups, in what commentators have called a manner reminiscent of the Soviet Union
.
The US Department of State repeatedly criticised Lukashenka’s totalitarian regime, describing it as “a brutal, authoritarian dictatorship that blatantly ignores human rights and fundamental freedoms.” Numerous assessments of the United Nations, United States and European and Euro-Atlantic organisations demonstrate Belarus’s disregard for human rights, lack of independent judiciary, subservience of Belarusian courts to Lukashenka’s administration and members of Lukashenka’s corrupt inner-circle; routine use of Belarusian judiciary as an artifice for accomplishing improper political objectives and accommodating the private interests of the powers that be.
United Nations Human Rights Council noted that Belarusian political system is “incompatible with the concept of human rights”, Belarus has been dabbed “the last true remaining dictatorship in the heart of Europe” by the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
.
Belarus is subject of US sanctions for “undermining democratic process and constitut[ing] an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States.” It is also subject of the sanctions imposed by the European Union for egregious human rights violations.
Belarus has been repeatedly determined to be a habitual violator of international laws of human rights and universally accepted norms of international behaviour by the UN, 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.”
State Department Spokesman P.J. Crowley said this week US sanctions against Belarus, in place since a disputed 2004 referendum that allowed Mr Lukashenko a third term in office, will remain.
The Joint letter of Foreign Ministers of Germany, Sweden, Poland and Czech Republic states:
On 31 January 2011 European Union
and the United States announced continuation of the previous sanctions and imposition of new sanctions against Lukashenko and his inner circle. Resolution of the EU Parliament provides that EU Parliamentary Assembly “is dismayed by the unprecedented wave of violence, intimidation, mass arrests and prosecution of political opponents, human rights defenders, media workers, students and citizens of Belarus that followed the announcement of the results of the presidential election that took place in Belarus on 19 December 2010, and further provides:
US Department of State issued the statement:
Mr Zeltser’s and Ms Funk’s seizure, torture and unlawful detention sparked international outrage and significant press coverage, apparently unexpected by the Belarusian authorities.
The US Department of State and members of the US Congress repeatedly demanded the release of the hostages. World leaders, the European Parliament and international human rights organisations joined in the US call for immediate release of Ms Funk and Mr Zeltser. Amnesty International has repeatedly issued emergency alerts respecting “torture and other ill-treatment” of Mr Zeltser. Ihar Rynkevich, a prominent 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". A strongly worded letter from the New York City Bar Association to Lukashenko condemned KGB abuse of Mr Zeltser and Ms. Funk and demanded their immediate release. The Bar Association letter expressed “great concerned about the arrests and detention of Mr Zeltser and Ms Funk and the reports of physical mistreatment of Mr Zeltser” and noted that this conduct is 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). Bar Association letter noted that the charge, which the KGB claimed to have brought against Mr Zeltser and Ms 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.”
Neither Ms Funk nor Mr Zeltser had been lawfully "arrested", "charged", "indicted", "tried" or "convicted" within the meaning of Belarusian or international law. Both had been unlawfully seized and held hostage - - in blatant violation of the laws of nations and of Belarus’ own law. During their unlawful confinement, Ms Funk and Mr Zeltser had been subjected to torture and cruel, inhuman or undignified treatment in blatant violation of the Article 25 of the Belarus Constitution; the US law and numerous international Treaties, including The International Convention Against the Taking of Hostages (The Hostage Convention); the United Nation’s Convention against Torture;) The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) the law of nations and universally accepted norms of the international law of human rights The International Convention Against the Taking of Hostages; the United Nation’s Convention against Torture (The Torture Convention);) The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Mr Zeltser’s and Ms Funk’s abduction, detention and mistreatment in the KGB captivity was undertaken to coerce the United States to lift sanctions against Lukashenka and other members of the Belarusian government, and against Belarusian petrochemical concern Belneftekhim, owned by these individuals. As such, Belarus’s actions were and remain 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.
Yielding to demands of international community, Belarusian dictator Lukashenka had finally released Ms. Funk on 20 March 2009, and Mr Zeltser on 30 June 2009, when a delegation of the members of the US Congress travelled to Belarus to meet with Lukashenka regarding the hostage crisis. US 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."
Although US Department of State repeatedly said that it does not use its citizens as “bargaining chips”, many in Belarus still believe that US cut a deal with Lukashenko, inducing him to release 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 by providing Lukashenka the IMF credits, pure and simple; in essence, this is hostage-taking, the practice, which is wide-spread in Belarus elevated to international level, where Lukashenko is not only sending a political message but demands monetary compensation for human freedom.”
Although the Belarus Constitution prohibits the use of torture (Article 25,) in practice Belarus uses torture and mistreatment of detainees; while Belarus Constitution provides for the presumption of innocence (Art. 26,) in practice defendants often have to prove their innocence; while the Belarus Constitution prohibits arbitrary arrests, detention and imprisonment (Art. 25,) Lukashenko’s regime disregards the law and practices arbitrary arrests, detentions, and imprisonment of individuals for political reasons; while the Criminal Procedure Code of Republic of Belarus provides that search warrant must be obtained before any searches (Art. 210[1]), in practice the authorities search residences and offices for clearly political reasons; while the Belarus Crim. Proc. Code (Art. 43) provides that the defendants have the right to attend proceedings, confront witnesses, and present evidence on their own behalf; in practice these rights are disrespected . Prosecutors are not independent and that lack of independence renders due process protections meaningless; prosecutors’ authority vis-a-vis the accused is “excessive and imbalanced.” (See: US State Department Report, supra, and the UN Special Rapporteur Report, supra.)
The section of the Report titled “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 the 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.” (Id.)
The section titled “Denial of Fair Public Trial” notes: “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.”
These imbalances of power had intensified at the beginning of the year “especially in relation to politically motivated criminal and administrative cases.”
In sum, relevant international documents reflect that the Belarusian courts that are wholly subservient to authoritarian executive apparatus, routinely disregard the law of the land and exist merely to rubberstamp decisions dictated from the outside the four corners of the courtroom This is tantamount to de facto non-existence of courts as impartial judicial forums, save for in name only. Similarly the “law” in Belarus is not something that is mandatory and not optional or subject to discretion. Nominal “law” which in practice is not binding is tantamount to non-existence of law.
Belarus has come under fierce attack from Amnesty International
for its treatment of political prisoner
s, including those from the youth wing of the Belarusian Popular Front, a pro-democracy party. In a report dated 26 April 2005, Amnesty again criticised Belarus for its treatment of dissidents, including a woman imprisoned for publishing a satirical poem. Another political prisoner who has been in jail since 1999 is Yury Bandazhevsky, a scientist who was jailed for publishing his findings about illnesses caused by the Chernobyl
disaster.
Belarus and Uzbekistan
are the only two countries in the former Soviet Union
which officially retain the death penalty, although according to a 4 October 2005 press release by Amnesty International, the number of executions has decreased since 1999.
The United States Department of State
issued a report on 14 April 2005, expressing concern about the disappearance and possible summary execution of three political activists in 1999 and a journalist in 2000, as well as continuing cases of arbitrary 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. The activists were detained on 24 August, along with Uladimir Kobets from Zubr, a Belarusian opposition movement. According to the report, he was released after two hours, being told that the police operation was directed at "persons from the Caucasus
."
The 2008 US Department of State Background Note: Belarus. notes:
In mid-March 2008, responding to the Belarusian government’s raiding offices of independent media and wholesale arrests of “undesirable” journalists, the US State Department spokesman Sean McCormack issued a statement condemning the crackdown: “The regime of Alexander Lukashenko has again shown itself as a brutal, authoritarian dictatorship that blatantly ignores human rights and fundamental freedoms.”
The 2008 US State Dept. Belarus Report” notes grave and habitual abuses of Belarusian government of human rights and disregard for freedom of speech, press, religion and association. It points out to striking inconsistencies between the Belarusian “official” law and actual courts’ practices which wholly disregard the “law.” Critically the 2008 US State Department Report exposes the subservience of Belarusian courts to the Lukashenka administration and private interests of the Lukashenka’s inner-circle, to such an extent, that it makes clear that the “courts” in Belarus exist in name only. The following are the salient points:
"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.”
The section of the State Department Report titled “Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence” notes 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 unauthorised searches... without warrants” with “numerous instances in which authorities searched residences and offices for clearly political reasons”. The State Department Report notes that “[t]he lack of independence of the prosecutor's office rendered due process protections meaningless.”
The section of the State Department report titled “Respect for Civil Liberties” notes that “the constitution provides for freedom of speech and of the press; however, the government did not respect these rights in practice...”; “limit[ed] free speech”; “continued to harass and arrest journalists”; “censored the media”; “fined, or jailed members of the media who publicly criticised the government”; “continued to use its virtual monopoly on television and radio broadcasting to disseminate its version of events and to minimise opposing points of view”, and “took numerous other actions during the year to limit the independent press, including limiting access to newsprint and printing presses”; “restricted access to the Internet, and monitored e-mail and Internet chat rooms”; educational institutions were required “to teach an official state ideology that combined reverence for the achievements of the former Soviet Union and the country under the leadership of Lukashenka”; “authorities used intimidation and threats to discourage persons from participating in demonstrations ... and issued heavy fines or jail sentences on participants of unsanctioned demonstrations”; “police and other security officials beat and detained demonstrators” ; “the law provides for freedom of association; however, the government severely restricted it in practice”; ”the law provides for freedom of religion; however, the government restricted this right in practice”; “the law allows citizens to speak freely about their religious beliefs; however, authorities continued to prevent, interfere with, or punish persons who proselytised for any religious group other than the Belarusian Orthodox Church.”
On 12 June 2009, Administration of Barack Obama 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.”
Remarkably, 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 democratisation of the political regime and a change in the political behaviour 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:
The UN Special Rapporteur stressed that “present trading relations with Belarus do not grant a better quality of life to Belarusian citizens, but allow President Lukashenka’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 specifically 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 organisations, 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: provides: “...[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...”
[The General Assembly] expresses deep concern:
On 10 April 2006, the Council decided to adopt restrictive measures against President Lukashenko, the Belarusian leadership and officials responsible for the violations of international electoral standards and international human rights law, as well as for the crackdown on civil society and democratic opposition. These individuals should be subjected to a visa ban and possible further targeted measures. Common Position 2006/362/CFSP provides that the funds and economic resources of President Lukashenko and certain officials of Belarus that have been identified for this purpose should be frozen.
In its subsequent 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.” And in its 2009 Conclusions the Council stated: “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...”
of 2003 and Ukraine's Orange Revolution
of 2004 and suggest that concern about Belarus is motivated by geo-political factors rather than any desire for change in the country. However, groups such as Union of Councils for Soviet Jews
and Amnesty International
– not related to the US government, the EU, or George Soros
– have also repeatedly expressed concern about the situation in the country.
ranked Belarus 152nd out of 167 countries in its global press freedom listing. The higher the score means the worse the press freedom. Freedom House rates Belarus as "Not Free" according to its 2004 global survey "Freedom in the World". The Lukashenka government systematically curtails press freedom, the organisation says. State media are subordinated to the president, and harassment and censorship of independent media are routine, the organisation claims.
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, even though they were members of legally registered religions. The Christian Post reported in an 21 April 2005 article that non-denominational, charismatic churches were worse affected by the law, since none of these churches have been able to own buildings. Protestant organisations have also complained of censorship, because of the ban on importing literature without it first being examined and approved by government officials.
According to Forum 18
, textbooks widely used in Belarusian schools as of 2002 contain anti-religious views similar to those taught under the communist USSR:
The organisation has also reported that charismatic Protestant churches such as Full Gospel
, as well as Greek Catholic and independent Orthodox churches - as in those not affiliated to the Russian Orthodox Church
- have found difficulty in registering churches in recent years.
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 committing human sacrifice
. Charter 97
reported in July 2004 that Baptists who had celebrated Easter
with patients at a hospital in Mazyr
had been fined and threatened with the confiscation of their property.
Only 4,000 Muslims live in Belarus, mostly ethnic Tatars
who are the descendants of immigrants and prisoners in the eleventh and twelfth centuries. The administration for Muslims in the country, abolished in 1939, was re-established in 1994.
However, Ahmadiyya
Muslims, commonly regarded to be a non-violent sect of Islam
, are banned from practising their faith openly in Belarus, and given a similar status to groups such as Scientology
and Aum Shinrikyo
. There have been no major reports of religious persecution of the Muslim community, but because of the situation in Chechnya
and neighbouring Russia
, concerns have been expressed by Muslims in the country that they may become increasingly vulnerable.
These fears have been heightened by the fact that on 16 September 2005, a bomb was let off outside a bus stop in the country, injuring two people. On 23 September, a bomb was set off outside a restaurant, wounding nearly 40 people. Muslims are not suspected in the attack, which has been labelled as "hooliganism".
In recent years, trades unions in the country have been subject to a variety of restrictions, including:
The banning of unregistered trade unions
As of 1999, all previously registered trade unions have 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 entirely dependent on the management. Any organisation which fails to do so is banned and its membership dissolved.
High minimum membership requirements
In a measure which has also reportedly been used against Jewish human rights organisations, the Belarusian government has announced that any new trade union has to contain a minimum of five hundred members for it to be recognised, making it extremely difficult for new unions to be founded.
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.
in 1994. However, homosexuals face widespread discrimination in Belarus. In recent years gay pride
parades have been held in Minsk
. One notable parade was staged in 2001, when presidential elections were held in the country. However, according to OutRage!
, a gay rights organisation based in Britain, a gay-rights conference in 2004 had to be called off 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 as they were said to contain obscene language and "indications of pornography".
However, Russian gay and lesbian organisations have alleged that the failure of a gay pride parade in 2000 was not down to state-sponsored homophobia but down to the Lambda League themselves, who organised the parade, claiming that the organisation was trying to seek publicity abroad rather than promote the human rights of homosexuals in the country.
In 1999, in an extraordinary conference called "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 Organisation of encouraging "perversion", as well as "satan
ic" practices such as the use of condoms and abortion. One priest reportedly called for all homosexuals to be "executed on the electric chair
".
In August 2004, the International Lesbian and Gay Association
reported that the Belarusian authorities had forced a gay cultural festival, Moonbow
, to be cancelled, 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 as follows:
, which represents the Polish minority community, was arrested and given a 15-day jail sentence. Lukashenko also 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 cellmates, a claim he denies.
The offices of the Union of Poles were raided on 27 July 2005, in a crisis which had come 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.
provoked outrage when he praised Hitler
in a Russia
n NTV interview in 1995, saying that:
In 2004, Charter 97 reported that for some government job applications Belarusians are required to state their nationality. This has been cited as evidence of state anti-semitism
in the region, as similar practices were used to discriminate against Jews in the USSR. They are also required to state information about their family and close relatives, and this is said to be in breach of the constitution. However, it must be remembered that some more developed countries, such as the United Kingdom
, also ask applicants to state their ethnicity on application forms in many cases, although this information is usually only used for statistical purposes.
Belarus has been criticised by the Union of Councils for Jews in the Former Soviet Union
, as well as many American senators
and human rights groups, for building a football stadium in the town of Grodno which was on the site of a historic Jewish cemetery. A website called www.stopthedigging.org was set up to oppose the desecration of the cemetery, however this site has since been shut down. The Lukashenko administration has also faced criticism on this issue from members of parliament, as well as from Jewish organisations 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 the authorities of permitting the destruction of a synagogue to build a housing complex, demolishing a former shul in order to build a multi-storey car park
, and the destruction of two Jewish cemeteries. According to the report, he was subsequently detained by police and taken into hospital, apparently suffering from a heart attack.
In March 2004, Gutman announced that he was leaving Belarus for the USA, in protest at the authorities' state anti-Semitism, an opinion backed up by a July 2005 report by UCSJ that a personal aide of the President, a former Communist Party
ideologue called Eduard Skobelev, had been publishing anti-Semitic books, and had even promoted the use of guns to solve what he termed the "Jewish problem". In 1997, Skobelev was given the title of "Honored Figure of Culture" by Lukashenko, and was put in charge of the journal "Neman".
UCSJ's representative in Belarus, Yakov Basin, wrote a report detailing the authorities' alleged anti-Semitism. The only Jewish higher education institution in Belarus, the International Humanities Institute of Belarusian State University
was closed in February 2004, in what many local Jews believe is a deliberate act of anti-semitism in order 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, a secular institution which received funding from the European Union
, the European Humanities University
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 also cite anti-Semitic statements by legislators and members of the government, as well as the apparently consistent failure of the authorities in Belarus to punish perpetrators of anti-Semitic crime, including violent crime, as pointing to a wider policy of anti-Semitism within the state.
Praise of President Alexander Lukashenko
has appeared on several neo-Nazi websites, including the virulently anti-Semitic website Vanguard News Network. A 2005 article openly gloated about the situation in the country as regards Jews and made favourable comparisons with 1930s Germany. One neo-Nazi group, Support88, reportedly describes Lukashenko as being "the only bulwark against the empire of the New World Order
", and describes opponents of the leader as "Zionists
".
Gays and lesbians
Polish minority crisis
Anti-Semitism
Neo-Nazi allegations
Some of the most notable recent examples were the harassment of the Union of Poles in Belarus
Union of Poles in Belarus
The Union of Poles in Belarus is an organization located in the Eastern European country of Belarus. The group, which has a membership of 20,000 people, represents the Polish minority in Belarus, numbering about 400,000, as per official data .Lately, the group has received international attention...
which represents ethnic Poles
Poles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
in the region; and abduction, unlawful detainment and torture of a prominent American lawyer Emanuel Zeltser and his assistant and free-lance journalist Vladlena Funk
Vladlena Funk
Vladlena Funk is a Russian- American free-lance reporter, who was held captive by the Belarusian KGB for over a year in a high-profile US-Belarus hostage crisis, together with a well-known American lawyer , who heads American Russian Law Institute, a non-for-profit non-governmental public policy...
during the US - Belarus hostage crisis in 2008-2009.
Religious, political and journalistic activity is tightly controlled. Other alleged human rights violations have included the digging up of a Jewish cemetery in order to build a sports stadium. Concerns have also been raised by the UCSJ, among others, of Lukashenko’s alleged use of Neo-Nazi thugs in intimidating opposition supporters during general elections. There have also been accusations of widespread spying on ordinary people and minority groups, in what commentators have called a manner reminiscent of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
.
The US Department of State repeatedly criticised Lukashenka’s totalitarian regime, describing it as “a brutal, authoritarian dictatorship that blatantly ignores human rights and fundamental freedoms.” Numerous assessments of the United Nations, United States and European and Euro-Atlantic organisations demonstrate Belarus’s disregard for human rights, lack of independent judiciary, subservience of Belarusian courts to Lukashenka’s administration and members of Lukashenka’s corrupt inner-circle; routine use of Belarusian judiciary as an artifice for accomplishing improper political objectives and accommodating the private interests of the powers that be.
United Nations Human Rights Council noted that Belarusian political system is “incompatible with the concept of human rights”, Belarus has been dabbed “the last true remaining dictatorship in the heart of Europe” by the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice is an American political scientist and diplomat. She served as the 66th United States Secretary of State, and was the second person to hold that office in the administration of President George W. Bush...
.
Belarus is subject of US sanctions for “undermining democratic process and constitut[ing] an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States.” It is also subject of the sanctions imposed by the European Union for egregious human rights violations.
Belarus has been repeatedly determined to be a habitual violator of international laws of human rights and universally accepted norms of international behaviour by the UN, 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.”
December 2010 election crackdown
Lukashenko’s regime's recent violent break-up of peaceful demonstration of tens of thousands of people, following fraudulent December 2010 election has stunned people around the world. The strongly worded Joint US-EU Statement on Post-Presidential Elections' Situation in Belarus by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and European Union chief diplomat Catherine Ashton states:-
- "The United States and the European Union reiterate their call for the immediate release of the presidential candidates and the over 600 demonstrators who have been taken into custody in the wake of the presidential elections in Belarus. We strongly condemn all violence, especially the disproportionate use of force against presidential candidates, political activists, representatives of civil society and journalists. Taken together, the elections and their aftermath represent an unfortunate step backwards in the development of democratic governance and respect for human rights in Belarus. The people of Belarus deserve better."
State Department Spokesman P.J. Crowley said this week US sanctions against Belarus, in place since a disputed 2004 referendum that allowed Mr Lukashenko a third term in office, will remain.
-
- "Belarus and - President Lukashenko may well be a country that never misses an opportunity to miss an opportunity. Our sanctions will continue in place, and it's tragic what Belarus - what has happened in Belarus", said Crowley. "Respect for the democratic process and human rights of its citizens is at the center of our relationship and our aspirations for Belarus."
The Joint letter of Foreign Ministers of Germany, Sweden, Poland and Czech Republic states:
-
- “Europe has not seen anything like this in years... Summary trials produced sentences without any basis in facts. Political prisoners have become the new reality. Repression is the stated policy. The combination of vote-rigging and outright repression makes what Milosevic tried to do in Serbia in 2000 pale in comparison.”
On 31 January 2011 European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
and the United States announced continuation of the previous sanctions and imposition of new sanctions against Lukashenko and his inner circle. Resolution of the EU Parliament provides that EU Parliamentary Assembly “is dismayed by the unprecedented wave of violence, intimidation, mass arrests and prosecution of political opponents, human rights defenders, media workers, students and citizens of Belarus that followed the announcement of the results of the presidential election that took place in Belarus on 19 December 2010, and further provides:
-
- ”Over 600 people were arrested, including presidential candidates, whereas assaults and searches were carried out in the homes of opposition leaders, human rights defenders and journalists as well as on the premises of several non-governmental organisations and media outlets. In the month that followed the election, the crackdown continued in a more targeted way and today still shows no signs of relenting. Such a violent repression of the political protests and targeted crackdown on political opponents, human rights defenders and media workers constitutes not only a disproportionate response to the action of the protesters but also an outright disregard for the core values upheld by the Council of Europe ... the Assembly in particular condemns the detention by security forces since 19 December 2010 of Irina Khalip, internationally recognised journalist with the Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta, and the brutally wounded presidential candidate Andrei Sannikov, as well as the authorities' threat to put their 3-year-old son into a state orphanage. The Assembly also condemns the continued detention of Natalya Radina, editor of the website Charter 97, who was detained when the office of this website was raided by security forces in Minsk on 20 December 2010. (Id.)
US Department of State issued the statement:
-
- The United States announces today measures to respond to the brutal crackdown by President Lukashenka and the Government of Belarus in the wake of the presidential election of 19 December 2010. The disproportionate use of force and initial detentions of hundreds of demonstrators; charging of five opposition presidential candidates; ongoing raids against civil society, media and political parties; the closure of the OSCE’s office in Minsk; and a flawed vote count all represent major steps backwards for the country. These actions oblige the United States and others in the international community to act. As Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton said in their joint statement of 23 December, “the people of Belarus deserve better.”
Government Sponsored Hostage Taking
One of the more notable recent examples of Belarusian government’s violation of human rights and international norms is abduction, unlawful detainment and torture of a prominent American lawyer Emanuel Zeltser and his assistant and free-lance journalist Vladlena Funk. As was widely reported, on 11 March 2008, Mr Zeltser and Ms. Funk had been abducted in London UK by the Belarusian KGB operatives. Both were drugged and secretly and renditioned across international borders to Belarus aboard a private jet belonging to Boris Berezovsky, a notorious Russian “oligarch” and close friend of Lukashenka - - wanted by the Interpol for fraud, money laundering, participation in organised crime and transnational financial crimes. Upon landing in Minsk Belarus, Mr Zeltser and Ms Funk had been detained by the personal guard of Alexandr Lukashenka, Belarusian illegally elected president, according to the US Department of State. Mr Zeltser and Ms Funk were transported to “Amerikanka”, the Belarusian dreaded KGB detention facility of the Stalin era. There both had been repeatedly tortured, denied critical medications and told that they would remain in captivity indefinitely unless the United States lifts sanctions against Mr Lukashenka and Belneftekhim. Mr Zeltser and Ms Funk had been held hostage by the Belarusian KGB for 473 days and 373 days respectively.Mr Zeltser’s and Ms Funk’s seizure, torture and unlawful detention sparked international outrage and significant press coverage, apparently unexpected by the Belarusian authorities.
The US Department of State and members of the US Congress repeatedly demanded the release of the hostages. World leaders, the European Parliament and international human rights organisations joined in the US call for immediate release of Ms Funk and Mr Zeltser. Amnesty International has repeatedly issued emergency alerts respecting “torture and other ill-treatment” of Mr Zeltser. Ihar Rynkevich, a prominent 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". A strongly worded letter from the New York City Bar Association to Lukashenko condemned KGB abuse of Mr Zeltser and Ms. Funk and demanded their immediate release. The Bar Association letter expressed “great concerned about the arrests and detention of Mr Zeltser and Ms Funk and the reports of physical mistreatment of Mr Zeltser” and noted that this conduct is 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). Bar Association letter noted that the charge, which the KGB claimed to have brought against Mr Zeltser and Ms 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.”
Neither Ms Funk nor Mr Zeltser had been lawfully "arrested", "charged", "indicted", "tried" or "convicted" within the meaning of Belarusian or international law. Both had been unlawfully seized and held hostage - - in blatant violation of the laws of nations and of Belarus’ own law. During their unlawful confinement, Ms Funk and Mr Zeltser had been subjected to torture and cruel, inhuman or undignified treatment in blatant violation of the Article 25 of the Belarus Constitution; the US law and numerous international Treaties, including The International Convention Against the Taking of Hostages (The Hostage Convention); the United Nation’s Convention against Torture;) The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) the law of nations and universally accepted norms of the international law of human rights The International Convention Against the Taking of Hostages; the United Nation’s Convention against Torture (The Torture Convention);) The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Mr Zeltser’s and Ms Funk’s abduction, detention and mistreatment in the KGB captivity was undertaken to coerce the United States to lift sanctions against Lukashenka and other members of the Belarusian government, and against Belarusian petrochemical concern Belneftekhim, owned by these individuals. As such, Belarus’s actions were and remain 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.
Yielding to demands of international community, Belarusian dictator Lukashenka had finally released Ms. Funk on 20 March 2009, and Mr Zeltser on 30 June 2009, when a delegation of the members of the US Congress travelled to Belarus to meet with Lukashenka regarding the hostage crisis. US 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."
Although US Department of State repeatedly said that it does not use its citizens as “bargaining chips”, many in Belarus still believe that US cut a deal with Lukashenko, inducing him to release 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 by providing Lukashenka the IMF credits, pure and simple; in essence, this is hostage-taking, the practice, which is wide-spread in Belarus elevated to international level, where Lukashenko is not only sending a political message but demands monetary compensation for human freedom.”
Use of Judiciary for Political and Personal Reasons
As noted in the 2008 US Department of State Report, while the Belarus Constitution provides for separation of powers, independent judiciary and impartial courts (Arts. 6 and 60); the government ignores these provisions where it suits its immediate needs, corruption, inefficiency and political interference are prevalent in the judiciary; 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 personal housing; the criminal justice system is used as an instrument to silence human rights defenders, through politically motivated arrests, arbitrary detention, lack of due process and closed political trials.Although the Belarus Constitution prohibits the use of torture (Article 25,) in practice Belarus uses torture and mistreatment of detainees; while Belarus Constitution provides for the presumption of innocence (Art. 26,) in practice defendants often have to prove their innocence; while the Belarus Constitution prohibits arbitrary arrests, detention and imprisonment (Art. 25,) Lukashenko’s regime disregards the law and practices arbitrary arrests, detentions, and imprisonment of individuals for political reasons; while the Criminal Procedure Code of Republic of Belarus provides that search warrant must be obtained before any searches (Art. 210[1]), in practice the authorities search residences and offices for clearly political reasons; while the Belarus Crim. Proc. Code (Art. 43) provides that the defendants have the right to attend proceedings, confront witnesses, and present evidence on their own behalf; in practice these rights are disrespected . Prosecutors are not independent and that lack of independence renders due process protections meaningless; prosecutors’ authority vis-a-vis the accused is “excessive and imbalanced.” (See: US State Department Report, supra, and the UN Special Rapporteur Report, supra.)
-
- “Arbitrary arrests, detentions, and imprisonment of citizens for political reasons, criticising 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.” (See: US State Department Report, supra)
The section of the Report titled “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 the 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.” (Id.)
The section titled “Denial of Fair Public Trial” notes: “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.”
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- “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 defence.”
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- “defense lawyers cannot examine investigation files, be present during investigations, or examine evidence against defendants until a prosecutor formally brought the case to court”;
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- “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 had 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”;
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- “courts often allowed information obtained from forced interrogations to be used against defendants.”
In sum, relevant international documents reflect that the Belarusian courts that are wholly subservient to authoritarian executive apparatus, routinely disregard the law of the land and exist merely to rubberstamp decisions dictated from the outside the four corners of the courtroom This is tantamount to de facto non-existence of courts as impartial judicial forums, save for in name only. Similarly the “law” in Belarus is not something that is mandatory and not optional or subject to discretion. Nominal “law” which in practice is not binding is tantamount to non-existence of law.
Political dissidents and prisoners
In December 2010, Belarusian special security forces attacked the demonstrators, severely beaten and injured many activists with batons and arrested more than 600 people, after a massive rally gathered in central Minsk to protest an outcome of elections widely seen by Western observers as fraudulent. In their joint statement, Clinton and 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 fierce attack from Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
for its treatment of political prisoner
Political prisoner
According to the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, a political prisoner is ‘someone who is in prison because they have opposed or criticized the government of their own country’....
s, including those from the youth wing of the Belarusian Popular Front, a pro-democracy party. In a report dated 26 April 2005, Amnesty again criticised Belarus for its treatment of dissidents, including a woman imprisoned for publishing a satirical poem. Another political prisoner who has been in jail since 1999 is Yury Bandazhevsky, a scientist who was jailed for publishing his findings about illnesses caused by the Chernobyl
Chernobyl
Chernobyl or Chornobyl is an abandoned city in northern Ukraine, in Kiev Oblast, near the border with Belarus. The city had been the administrative centre of the Chernobyl Raion since 1932....
disaster.
Belarus and Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
are the only two countries in the former Soviet Union
Post-Soviet states
The post-Soviet states, also commonly known as the Former Soviet Union or former Soviet republics, are the 15 independent states that split off from the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics in its dissolution in December 1991...
which officially retain the death penalty, although according to a 4 October 2005 press release by Amnesty International, the number of executions has decreased since 1999.
The United States Department of State
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
issued a report on 14 April 2005, expressing concern about the disappearance and possible summary execution of three political activists in 1999 and a journalist in 2000, as well as continuing cases of arbitrary 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
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
from the youth movement Kmara
Kmara
Kmara is a civic resistance movement in the republic of Georgia which undermined the government of Eduard Shevardnadze. After international observers condemned his government's conduct of the November 2003 parliamentary elections, Kmara led the protests which precipitated his downfall in what...
were detained while visiting Belarus. The activists were detained on 24 August, along with Uladimir Kobets from Zubr, a Belarusian opposition movement. According to the report, he was released after two hours, being told that the police operation was directed at "persons from the Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
."
US policy
The United States is pursuing a “selective engagement” policy with the Government of Belarus, limiting access for the government to US Government officials at the Assistant Secretary level and below, and restricting US assistance to the Belarus Government. On 19 June 2006, President George W. Bush declared a national emergency in connection with the actions of corrupt members of Belarusian government, including Aleksandr Lukashenka, directing sanctions against Lukashenka and other members of the Belarusian government and also against Belarusian petrochemical concern Belneftekhim, for “undermining democratic process and constitut[ing] an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States”.The 2008 US Department of State Background Note: Belarus. notes:
- [B]ilateral relations cooled following the election of President Lukashenka in July 1994. After the internationally unrecognised November 1996 constitutional referendum, which resulted in the dissolution of Belarus’ legitimate parliament and the centralisation 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 centralised 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.
In mid-March 2008, responding to the Belarusian government’s raiding offices of independent media and wholesale arrests of “undesirable” journalists, the US State Department spokesman Sean McCormack issued a statement condemning the crackdown: “The regime of Alexander Lukashenko has again shown itself as a brutal, authoritarian dictatorship that blatantly ignores human rights and fundamental freedoms.”
The 2008 US State Dept. Belarus Report” notes grave and habitual abuses of Belarusian government of human rights and disregard for freedom of speech, press, religion and association. It points out to striking inconsistencies between the Belarusian “official” law and actual courts’ practices which wholly disregard the “law.” Critically the 2008 US State Department Report exposes the subservience of Belarusian courts to the Lukashenka administration and private interests of the Lukashenka’s inner-circle, to such an extent, that it makes clear that the “courts” in Belarus exist in name only. The following are the salient points:
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- 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.”
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- "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.”
The section of the State Department Report titled “Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence” notes 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 unauthorised searches... without warrants” with “numerous instances in which authorities searched residences and offices for clearly political reasons”. The State Department Report notes that “[t]he lack of independence of the prosecutor's office rendered due process protections meaningless.”
The section of the State Department report titled “Respect for Civil Liberties” notes that “the constitution provides for freedom of speech and of the press; however, the government did not respect these rights in practice...”; “limit[ed] free speech”; “continued to harass and arrest journalists”; “censored the media”; “fined, or jailed members of the media who publicly criticised the government”; “continued to use its virtual monopoly on television and radio broadcasting to disseminate its version of events and to minimise opposing points of view”, and “took numerous other actions during the year to limit the independent press, including limiting access to newsprint and printing presses”; “restricted access to the Internet, and monitored e-mail and Internet chat rooms”; educational institutions were required “to teach an official state ideology that combined reverence for the achievements of the former Soviet Union and the country under the leadership of Lukashenka”; “authorities used intimidation and threats to discourage persons from participating in demonstrations ... and issued heavy fines or jail sentences on participants of unsanctioned demonstrations”; “police and other security officials beat and detained demonstrators” ; “the law provides for freedom of association; however, the government severely restricted it in practice”; ”the law provides for freedom of religion; however, the government restricted this right in practice”; “the law allows citizens to speak freely about their religious beliefs; however, authorities continued to prevent, interfere with, or punish persons who proselytised for any religious group other than the Belarusian Orthodox Church.”
On 12 June 2009, Administration of Barack Obama 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.”
UN view
The UN Human Rights Council 2007 Report 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.Remarkably, 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 democratisation of the political regime and a change in the political behaviour 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:
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- ... 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;
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- To “finance ... assistance to the human rights defenders who have been politically harassed, oppressed or prosecuted”;
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- “... to investigate the apparent involvement of senior government officials in international organised 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 UN Special Rapporteur stressed that “present trading relations with Belarus do not grant a better quality of life to Belarusian citizens, but allow President Lukashenka’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 specifically 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 organisations, 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: provides: “...[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...”
[The General Assembly] expresses deep concern:
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- “(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;
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- (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...”
European Union position
In March 2006, the European Council imposed sanctions on Lukashenka and other members of 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 decided to adopt restrictive measures against President Lukashenko, the Belarusian leadership and officials responsible for the violations of international electoral standards and international human rights law, as well as for the crackdown on civil society and democratic opposition. These individuals should be subjected to a visa ban and possible further targeted measures. Common Position 2006/362/CFSP provides that the funds and economic resources of President Lukashenko and certain officials of Belarus that have been identified for this purpose should be frozen.
In its subsequent 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.” And in its 2009 Conclusions the Council stated: “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...”
UK view
The UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office June 2008 Release on Belarus Human rights provides:-
- “Belarus's human rights record since President Lukashenka came to power in 1994 has been poor. A September 2006 report ... by the UNSpecial 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 organisations including the UN and OSCE.”
Opposing views
Critics such as the BHHRG point out that the US was implicated in both Georgia's Rose RevolutionRose Revolution
The "Revolution of Roses" was a change of power in Georgia in November 2003, which took place after having widespread protests over the disputed parliamentary elections...
of 2003 and Ukraine's Orange Revolution
Orange Revolution
The Orange Revolution was a series of protests and political events that took place in Ukraine from late November 2004 to January 2005, in the immediate aftermath of the run-off vote of the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election which was claimed to be marred by massive corruption, voter...
of 2004 and suggest that concern about Belarus is motivated by geo-political factors rather than any desire for change in the country. However, groups such as Union of Councils for Soviet Jews
Union of Councils for Soviet Jews
Union of Councils for Jews in the Former Soviet Union is an umbrella organization of Jewish human rights groups working in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. The UCSJ is based in Washington, D.C...
and Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
– not related to the US government, the EU, or George Soros
George Soros
George Soros is a Hungarian-American business magnate, investor, philosopher, and philanthropist. He is the chairman of Soros Fund Management. Soros supports progressive-liberal causes...
– have also repeatedly expressed concern about the situation in the country.
Freedom of the press
In 2005, Reporters Without BordersReporters Without Borders
Reporters Without Borders is a France-based international non-governmental organization that advocates freedom of the press. It was founded in 1985, by Robert Ménard, Rony Brauman and the journalist Jean-Claude Guillebaud. Jean-François Julliard has served as Secretary General since 2008...
ranked Belarus 152nd out of 167 countries in its global press freedom listing. The higher the score means the worse the press freedom. Freedom House rates Belarus as "Not Free" according to its 2004 global survey "Freedom in the World". The Lukashenka government systematically curtails press freedom, the organisation says. State media are subordinated to the president, and harassment and censorship of independent media are routine, the organisation claims.
Freedom of religion
Jews are not the only minority who are said to have had their human rights violated in Belarus . On 25 March 2004, the Associated PressAssociated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
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, even though they were members of legally registered religions. The Christian Post reported in an 21 April 2005 article that non-denominational, charismatic churches were worse affected by the law, since none of these churches have been able to own buildings. Protestant organisations have also complained of censorship, because of the ban on importing literature without it first being examined and approved by government officials.
According to Forum 18
Forum 18
Forum 18 is a Norwegian human rights organization that promotes religious freedom. The organization's name is based on Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights...
, textbooks widely used in Belarusian schools as of 2002 contain anti-religious views similar to those taught under the communist 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 supernaturalSupernaturalThe supernatural or is that which is not subject to the laws of nature, or more figuratively, that which is said to exist above and beyond nature...
forces, above all, godGodGod is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
. 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 organisation has also reported that charismatic Protestant churches such as Full Gospel
Full Gospel
The term Full Gospel is often used as a synonym for Pentecostalism, a Protestant movement originating in the 19th century. Early Pentecostals saw their teachings on baptism with the Holy Spirit, spiritual gifts, and divine healing as a return to the doctrines and power of the Apostolic Age...
, as well as Greek Catholic and independent Orthodox churches - as in those not affiliated to the Russian Orthodox Church
Russian Orthodox Church
The Russian Orthodox Church or, alternatively, the Moscow Patriarchate The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world; including all the autocephalous churches under its umbrella, its adherents number over 150 million worldwide—about half of the 300 million...
- have found difficulty in registering churches in recent years.
In 2003, Protestant groups accused the government of Belarus
Government of Belarus
The Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus is the executive branch of state power in Belarus, and it is appointed by the President of Belarus...
of waging a smear campaign
Smear campaign
A smear campaign, smear tactic or simply smear is a metaphor for activity that can harm an individual or group's reputation by conflation with a stigmatized group...
against them, telling Poland's Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
information agency KAI
KAI
KAI may refer to:* Communist Workers International in German* Korea Aerospace Industries , a South Korean national aerospace company* KAIS International School in Tokyo, Japan...
that they had been accused of being Western
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
spies
Espionage
Espionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
and committing human sacrifice
Human sacrifice
Human sacrifice is the act of killing one or more human beings as part of a religious ritual . Its typology closely parallels the various practices of ritual slaughter of animals and of religious sacrifice in general. Human sacrifice has been practised in various cultures throughout history...
. Charter 97
Charter 97
Charter 97 is a declaration calling for democracy in Belarus and a human rights group taking its inspiration from the declaration.The document - whose title deliberately echoes the Czechoslovak human rights declaration Charter 77 twenty years earlier - was created on the anniversary of a referendum...
reported in July 2004 that Baptists who had celebrated Easter
Easter
Easter is the central feast in the Christian liturgical year. According to the Canonical gospels, Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion. His resurrection is celebrated on Easter Day or Easter Sunday...
with patients at a hospital in Mazyr
Mazyr
Mazyr, also Mozyr is a city in the Homiel Province of Belarus on the Pripyat River about 210 km east of Pinsk and 100 km northwest of Chernobyl and is located at approximately . The population is 111,770 . The total urban area including Kalinkavičy across the river has a population of...
had been fined and threatened with the confiscation of their property.
Only 4,000 Muslims live in Belarus, mostly ethnic Tatars
Tatars
Tatars are a Turkic speaking ethnic group , numbering roughly 7 million.The majority of Tatars live in the Russian Federation, with a population of around 5.5 million, about 2 million of which in the republic of Tatarstan.Significant minority populations are found in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan,...
who are the descendants of immigrants and prisoners in the eleventh and twelfth centuries. The administration for Muslims in the country, abolished in 1939, was re-established in 1994.
However, Ahmadiyya
Ahmadiyya
Ahmadiyya is an Islamic religious revivalist movement founded in India near the end of the 19th century, originating with the life and teachings of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad , who claimed to have fulfilled the prophecies about the world reformer of the end times, who was to herald the Eschaton as...
Muslims, commonly regarded to be a non-violent sect of Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
, are banned from practising their faith openly in Belarus, and given a similar status to groups such as Scientology
Scientology
Scientology is a body of beliefs and related practices created by science fiction and fantasy author L. Ron Hubbard , starting in 1952, as a successor to his earlier self-help system, Dianetics...
and Aum Shinrikyo
Aum Shinrikyo
Aum Shinrikyo was a Japanese new religious movement. The group was founded by Shoko Asahara in 1984. The group gained international notoriety in 1995, when it carried out the Sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway....
. There have been no major reports of religious persecution of the Muslim community, but because of the situation in Chechnya
Chechnya
The Chechen Republic , commonly referred to as Chechnya , also spelled Chechnia or Chechenia, sometimes referred to as Ichkeria , is a federal subject of Russia . It is located in the southeastern part of Europe in the Northern Caucasus mountains. The capital of the republic is the city of Grozny...
and neighbouring Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, concerns have been expressed by Muslims in the country that they may become increasingly vulnerable.
These fears have been heightened by the fact that on 16 September 2005, a bomb was let off outside a bus stop in the country, injuring two people. On 23 September, a bomb was set off outside a restaurant, wounding nearly 40 people. Muslims are not suspected in the attack, which has been labelled as "hooliganism".
Industrial relations
The situation of trade unions and their members in the region has also been criticised by Amnesty UK, with allegations that authorities have interfered in trade union elections and that independent trade union leaders have been dismissed from their positions.In recent years, trades unions in the country have been subject to a variety of restrictions, including:
The banning of unregistered trade unions
As of 1999, all previously registered trade unions have 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 entirely dependent on the management. Any organisation which fails to do so is banned and its membership dissolved.
High minimum membership requirements
In a measure which has also reportedly been used against Jewish human rights organisations, the Belarusian government has announced that any new trade union has to contain a minimum of five hundred members for it to be recognised, making it extremely difficult for new unions to be founded.
Systematic interference
The International Labour Organization
International Labour Organization
The International Labour Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that deals with labour issues pertaining to international labour standards. Its headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland. Its secretariat — the people who are employed by it throughout the world — is known as the...
'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
Unison
In music, the word unison can be applied in more than one way. In general terms, it may refer to two notes sounding the same pitch, often but not always at the same time; or to the same musical voice being sounded by several voices or instruments together, either at the same pitch or at a distance...
, been arrested for distributing pamphlets and other literature, and have faced losing their jobs.
Gay rights
Belarus legalised homosexualityHomosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
in 1994. However, homosexuals face widespread discrimination in Belarus. In recent years gay pride
Gay pride
LGBT pride or gay pride is the concept that lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people should be proud of their sexual orientation and gender identity...
parades have been held in Minsk
Minsk
- Ecological situation :The ecological situation is monitored by Republican Center of Radioactive and Environmental Control .During 2003–2008 the overall weight of contaminants increased from 186,000 to 247,400 tons. The change of gas as industrial fuel to mazut for financial reasons has worsened...
. One notable parade was staged in 2001, when presidential elections were held in the country. However, according to OutRage!
OutRage!
OutRage! is a British LGBT rights group that was formed to fight for equal rights of lesbian, gay, and bisexual people in comparison to heterosexual people. It is a group which has at times been criticised for outing individuals who wanted to keep their homosexuality secret and for being...
, a gay rights organisation based in Britain, a gay-rights conference in 2004 had to be called off 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 as they were said to contain obscene language and "indications of pornography".
However, Russian gay and lesbian organisations have alleged that the failure of a gay pride parade in 2000 was not down to state-sponsored homophobia but down to the Lambda League themselves, who organised the parade, claiming that the organisation was trying to seek publicity abroad rather than promote the human rights of homosexuals in the country.
In 1999, in an extraordinary conference called "The Pernicious Consequences of International Projects of Sexual Education", members of the Belarusian Orthodox Church
Belarusian Orthodox Church
Belarusian Orthodox Church is the official name of the Belarusian Exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church in Belarus. It represents the union of Russian orthodox eparchies on the territory of Belarus and is the largest religious organization in the country, uniting the predominant majority of...
reportedly accused UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
, the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
, and the World Health Organisation of encouraging "perversion", as well as "satan
Satan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
ic" practices such as the use of condoms and abortion. One priest reportedly called for all homosexuals to be "executed on the electric chair
Electric chair
Execution by electrocution, usually performed using an electric chair, is an execution method originating in the United States in which the condemned person is strapped to a specially built wooden chair and electrocuted through electrodes placed on the body...
".
In August 2004, the International Lesbian and Gay Association
International Lesbian and Gay Association
The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association is an international organization bringing together more than 750 LGBTI groups from around the world. It continues to be active in campaigning for LGBT rights on the international human rights and civil rights scene and...
reported that the Belarusian authorities had forced a gay cultural festival, Moonbow
Moonbow
A moonbow is a rainbow produced by light reflected off the surface of the moon rather than from direct sunlight. Moonbows are relatively faint, due to the smaller amount of light reflected from the surface of the moon...
, to be cancelled, 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 as follows:
While the rest of EuropeEuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
is moving forwards, this last dictatorship in Europe is trying to push its homosexual community into a 1930s Nazi style concentration camp", says Schiller. "SwedenSwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and other democratic governments of Europe must react to the harassment, persecution and international isolation of human beings.
Polish minority crisis
On 3 August 2005, an activist working for the Union of PolesUnion of Poles in Belarus
The Union of Poles in Belarus is an organization located in the Eastern European country of Belarus. The group, which has a membership of 20,000 people, represents the Polish minority in Belarus, numbering about 400,000, as per official data .Lately, the group has received international attention...
, which represents the Polish minority community, was arrested and given a 15-day jail sentence. Lukashenko also accused the Polish minority of plotting to overthrow him. The former head of the Union of Poles, Tadeusz Gawin
Tadeusz Gawin
Tadeusz Gawin is a Belarusian Polish journalist and activist. He is co-founder and first President of the Union of Poles in Belarus from 1990 to 2000, now Honorary President of the UPB and activist of the democratic opposition in Belarus.-References:...
, was later given a second sentence for allegedly beating one of his cellmates, a claim he denies.
The offices of the Union of Poles were raided on 27 July 2005, in a crisis which had come to the surface the previous day when Andrzej Olborski, a Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
diplomat working in Minsk
Minsk
- Ecological situation :The ecological situation is monitored by Republican Center of Radioactive and Environmental Control .During 2003–2008 the overall weight of contaminants increased from 186,000 to 247,400 tons. The change of gas as industrial fuel to mazut for financial reasons has worsened...
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.
Anti-semitism
President Alexander LukashenkoAlexander Lukashenko
Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko has been serving as the President of Belarus since 20 July 1994. Before his career as a politician, Lukashenko worked as director of a state-owned agricultural farm. Under Lukashenko's rule, Belarus has come to be viewed as a state whose conduct is out of line...
provoked outrage when he praised Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
in a Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n NTV interview in 1995, saying that:
The history of GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
is a copy of the history of Belarus. Germany was raised from the ruins thanks to firm authority, and not everything connected with that well known figure, Adolf Hitler, was bad. German order evolved over the centuries and under Hitler it attained its peak.
In 2004, Charter 97 reported that for some government job applications Belarusians are required to state their nationality. This has been cited as evidence of state anti-semitism
Anti-Semitism
Antisemitism is suspicion of, hatred toward, or discrimination against Jews for reasons connected to their Jewish heritage. According to a 2005 U.S...
in the region, as similar practices were used to discriminate against Jews in the USSR. They are also required to state information about their family and close relatives, and this is said to be in breach of the constitution. However, it must be remembered that some more developed countries, such as the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, also ask applicants to state their ethnicity on application forms in many cases, although this information is usually only used for statistical purposes.
Belarus has been criticised by the Union of Councils for Jews in the Former Soviet Union
Union of Councils for Soviet Jews
Union of Councils for Jews in the Former Soviet Union is an umbrella organization of Jewish human rights groups working in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. The UCSJ is based in Washington, D.C...
, as well as many American senators
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
and human rights groups, for building a football stadium in the town of Grodno which was on the site of a historic Jewish cemetery. A website called www.stopthedigging.org was set up to oppose the desecration of the cemetery, however this site has since been shut down. The Lukashenko administration has also faced criticism on this issue from members of parliament, as well as from Jewish organisations in Belarus.
In January 2004, Forum 18
Forum 18
Forum 18 is a Norwegian human rights organization that promotes religious freedom. The organization's name is based on Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights...
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 the authorities of permitting the destruction of a synagogue to build a housing complex, demolishing a former shul in order to build a multi-storey car park
Multi-storey car park
A multi-storey car-park is a building designed specifically to be for car parking and where there are a number of floors or levels on which parking takes place...
, and the destruction of two Jewish cemeteries. According to the report, he was subsequently detained by police and taken into hospital, apparently suffering from a heart attack.
In March 2004, Gutman announced that he was leaving Belarus for the USA, in protest at the authorities' state anti-Semitism, an opinion backed up by a July 2005 report by UCSJ that a personal aide of the President, a former Communist Party
Communist Party of Belarus
The Communist Party of Belarus is a political party in Belarus, that supports the government of president Alexander Lukashenko. It was created in 1996. The leader of the party is Tatsyana Holubeva....
ideologue called Eduard Skobelev, had been publishing anti-Semitic books, and had even promoted the use of guns to solve what he termed the "Jewish problem". In 1997, Skobelev was given the title of "Honored Figure of Culture" by Lukashenko, and was put in charge of the journal "Neman".
UCSJ's representative in Belarus, Yakov Basin, wrote a report detailing the authorities' alleged anti-Semitism. The only Jewish higher education institution in Belarus, the International Humanities Institute of Belarusian State University
Belarusian State University
Belarusian State University , Minsk, Belarus, was founded on October 30, 1921. The BSU is a higher education establishment in the Republic of Belarus.-History:...
was closed in February 2004, in what many local Jews believe is a deliberate act of anti-semitism in order 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, a secular institution which received funding from the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
, the European Humanities University
European Humanities University
EHU, the European Humanities University ) is a Belarusian university in Lithuania.From 1992 to 2004 EHU was a non-state establishment of undergraduate and post-graduate education in Belarus. In 2004, due to government opposition, EHU was forced to terminate its activities in Belarus...
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 also cite anti-Semitic statements by legislators and members of the government, as well as the apparently consistent failure of the authorities in Belarus to punish perpetrators of anti-Semitic crime, including violent crime, as pointing to a wider policy of anti-Semitism within the state.
Praise of President Alexander Lukashenko
Alexander Lukashenko
Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko has been serving as the President of Belarus since 20 July 1994. Before his career as a politician, Lukashenko worked as director of a state-owned agricultural farm. Under Lukashenko's rule, Belarus has come to be viewed as a state whose conduct is out of line...
has appeared on several neo-Nazi websites, including the virulently anti-Semitic website Vanguard News Network. A 2005 article openly gloated about the situation in the country as regards Jews and made favourable comparisons with 1930s Germany. One neo-Nazi group, Support88, reportedly describes Lukashenko as being "the only bulwark against the empire of the New World Order
New World Order (conspiracy)
In conspiracy theory, the term New World Order or NWO refers to the emergence of a totalitarian one-world government.The common theme in conspiracy theories about a New World Order is that a secretive power elite with a globalist agenda is conspiring to eventually rule the world through an...
", and describes opponents of the leader as "Zionists
Zionism
Zionism is a Jewish political movement that, in its broadest sense, has supported the self-determination of the Jewish people in a sovereign Jewish national homeland. Since the establishment of the State of Israel, the Zionist movement continues primarily to advocate on behalf of the Jewish state...
".
Sources
Freedom of press- http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=15335 Belarus ranked 16th worst ranked country on RSF Press Freedom index
- http://www.freedomhouse.org/template.cfm?page=22&year=2005&country=6694 Freedom House ranks Belarus as "Not Free"
Gays and lesbians
- http://www.gaytimes.co.uk/gt/default.asp?topic=country&country=176 Gay Times country profile
- http://www.sodomylaws.org/world/united_kingdom/uknews084.htm Asylum seeker wins, but still detained
- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/monitoring/media_reports/1532386.stm Belarus gays parade in election fever
- http://www.e-belarus.org/news/200501311.html Gay and lesbian websites blocked in Belarus
- http://gaytoday.badpuppy.com/garchive/world/040299wo.htm Orthodox Church organises homophobes
- http://www.ilga.org/news_results.asp?LanguageID=1&FileCategory=4&ZoneID=4&FileID=300 ILGA - threats from Belarusian regime force organisers to cancel festival
- http://www.gay.ru/english/communty/politics/belpride.htm Failure of Gay Pride 2000
- http://www.globalgayz.com/belarus-news.html 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
- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4147666.stm Polish chief jailed again
- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4724013.stm Belarus-Poland row escalates
Anti-Semitism
- http://www.ucpb.org/eng/show1prel.shtml?prelID=08-08-2003a2 Protests over Belarus Jewish graves.
- http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3005286.stm Belarus digs up Jewish graves
- http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3881341.stm President Lukashenko: in quotes
- http://www.isjm.org/news/article5.htm Belarus lawmakers protest destruction of Jewish sites
- http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=239 Forum 18 article
- http://www.ncsj.org/AuxPages/061505JTA_Belarus.shtml Jews get by in Belarus, but they feel the authorities' watchful eyes
- http://www.fsumonitor.com/stories/072205Belarus.shtml Lukashenko aide continues anti-semitic publishing
- http://www.fsumonitor.com/stories/031004Belarus2.shtml Belarus aide leaves country in protest at state anti-semitism
Neo-Nazi allegations
- http://www.fsumonitor.com/stories/061102Belarus.shtml Neo-Nazis continue attacking Belarusian oppositionists
- http://www.fsumonitor.com/stories/032205Belarus2.shtml Minsk Neo-Nazis March To Commemorate Fallen Comrade