United Nations Human Rights Council

57^th Session

Interactive dialogue with the Group of Independent Experts on the situation of human rights in Belarus

23 September 2024

EU Statement

Mr President,

The EU welcomes the independent experts and their first presentation to this Council and reaffirms its full support to their mandate.

The human rights situation in Belarus remains dire, with further shrinking of civic space and repression of independent voices. Systematic impunity continues to allow those responsible for gross human rights violations to evade accountability for their actions.

While taking note of the recent pardoning and release of some political prisoners, the EU is gravely concerned that still more than 1300 political prisoners remain incarcerated, in appalling conditions, many of them held incommunicado. We are particularly alarmed by the reports of deaths in detention, torture and ill-treatment, as well as systematic violations of due process and the right to a fair trial. We urge again the Belarusian authorities to immediately and unconditionally release and effectively rehabilitate all political prisoners, among them Maria Kalesnikava, Viktar Babaryka, and Mikalai Statkevich.

Furthermore, we reiterate our urgent call on Belarus to immediately cease its support to Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine and to ensure the safe return to Ukraine of all unlawfully deported Ukrainian children. We also condemn the instrumentalization of migrants by the Belarusian authorities, in complicity with Russia, for political purposes.

We call on all UN Member States to have regard to the deteriorating human rights situation in Belarus when considering extradition of any Belarusian citizens and opponents to the country.

Independent Experts,

Could you provide more details on the reported denial of due process and the right to a fair trial, including through the persecution of lawyers?

Thank you.

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