Belarus state intimidation continues abroad, UN experts find
Belarus remains in the focus of international attention in connection with gross and systematic human rights violations. Now the state has begun persecuting oppositionists abroad, a UN committee has found.
Geneva (dpa) - Belarus is increasingly terrorizing its citizens abroad, including by forcing people with expired passports to renew their documents in their home country where many face arrest, according to a group of independent UN experts.
The three-person expert panel appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2024 presented its report on the situation in Belarus to the council on Tuesday.
Released opposition figures also continue to be targeted, said Monika Płatek, a member of the expert group. Some were deported abroad without documents, while their families back home were subjected to surveillance and persecution.
"Releases are important for those who regain their freedom, but they cannot be mistaken for an end to repression," Płatek said, according to a press statement.
The experts also found that there appeared to be a fixed number of prison inmates. As soon as one group was released, citizens were arbitrarily picked up and arrested on the streets, Płatek said.
"The international community must not look away," said Susan Bazilli, another member of the expert group. "Those responsible for serious human rights violations must know that impunity is not a permanent shield, and victims must know that their rights have not been forgotten."
The group's report is based on interviews conducted with people released from detention and human rights organizations.
According to the group's chair, Karinna Moskalenko, the government in Belarus refuses all cooperation and has ignored every request made to it.