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The “cleansing of Belarus, reminiscent of the practices of totalitarian regimes,” warned the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus, Anais Marin.
Speaking at the UN Human Rights Council, he drew attention to the May 23 incident, when a Ryanair passenger plane flying from Athens to Vilnius was forced to land in Minsk. At that time, Belarusian officials detained Raman Pratasevich, a Belarusian opposition blogger who had been on the line, and his friend, Sofia Sapega, a Russian citizen studying in Vilnius.
“This incident, which has shocked the international community, demonstrates the government’s willingness to put an end to any manifestation of disobedience by eliminating elements of society that it considers undesirable,” Marín said in the report’s text.
“I deliberately chose to use the term ‘sweep,'” he said, noting that people in Belarus who currently do not support the policy of the Minsk regime have little to choose from.
They are left with silence or resistance and the danger of being arrested or trying to escape their country.
“Systematic torture”
In his latest report to the Human Rights Council, Marin condemned the “already catastrophic situation” in Belarus, noting that the situation had worsened since September last year, when his previous document was presented to the UN body.
At the time, Belarus was still plagued by unprecedented anti-government protests, sparked by the August elections, which were declared the winners by Lukashenko, who had ruled the country with an iron fist since 1994. His opponents say the election was rigged. .
Although the demonstrations were eventually suppressed, the government continues to deal with independent journalists and activists and send them to jails.
Marin emphasized that three of Lukashenko’s rivals who intended to fight him during the presidential elections were still incarcerated, along with 530 others who were being held as political prisoners in the country.
According to the Special Rapporteur, in recent years in Belarus more than 35 thousand. People have been unjustifiably detained for exercising their right to peaceful assembly or for showing solidarity with victims of human rights abuses.
Thousands more have experienced violence, humiliation and intimidation from law enforcement officials, Marin said. He claimed that he had received information that the detainees had been “systematically” tortured by the services.
“These extremely serious violations have not led to any lawsuits in Belarus,” Marin emphasized, condemning the “continued impunity” of Minsk regime officials.
Human rights activists and journalists in Belarus have been persecuted for decades, but Marin warned that the regime’s attack now appears to be directed against all sectors of civil society.
“The current wave of repression affects absolutely the entire society, without excluding any generation or socio-professional category,” he said.
In addition, the services are taking measures against the parents, children, neighbors and collaborators of opposition activists and activists if they fail to catch them, Marín emphasized.
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