On October 7 this year, Vladzimir Astapenka, a representative of the National's Anti-Crisis Management, spoke at the closing session of the OSCE Human Dimension Conference in Warsaw. This is the largest regional forum on human rights issues, which is attended by government delegations from OSCE participating States, as well as representatives of various civil society structures. For 10 days, more than 1,000 participants in the Conference discussed the most pressing problems related to the effective protection of human rights, the development of democratic institutions, and ensuring the priority of law. All this time the chair behind the sign "Belarus" remained empty, which is the best illustration of the Lukashenka regime's attitude to human rights in Belarus and to the fulfillment of international legal obligations in this sphere.
The main theses of Vladimir Astapenko's report:
— OSCE was the first international organization to respond to the acute political crisis in Belarus in 2020 and published one of Professor V. Benedek's first expert reports, which noted that "there is undeniable evidence that the August 9 presidential election was rigged and that there were massive and systematic human rights violations by law enforcement in response to peaceful demonstrations."
— Since then, the legal situation in Belarus has continued to deteriorate: the number of political prisoners has increased more than tenfold (from 121 to 1,347) in the two years since the election, the list of crimes of the Lukashenko regime has expanded and now includes not only systematic human rights violations, but also:
crimes against humanity, including torture;
the act of air piracy;
facilitation of illegal migration;
actions to eliminate civil society and independent media;
facilitation of armed aggression against Ukraine and creating a real threat to the sovereignty of the Republic of Belarus.
— The position of the United Transitional Cabinet founded by Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya is the voice of the new Belarus that must be heard on the world stage. The Council of Europe has already stopped all contacts with Lukashenko's regime and has developed mechanisms of interaction with democratic forces in Belarus. This is a good precedent to ensure that in the foreseeable future legitimate representatives of the Belarusian people will occupy the seats behind the "Belarus" sign.
— The awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to human rights defender Ales Bialiatski is an important gesture of recognition of the contribution of Belarusian civil society to the struggle for a democratic course and respect for human rights. The international community should consolidate its efforts to ensure that the Nobel laureate and all other political prisoners in Belarus are finally released.
Download a PDF version of the speech here.
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