Crimes against humanity committed in Belarus through systematic arbitrary detention and torture by the authorities - UN expert group

RIGA - Crimes against humanity have been committed in Belarus as a result of widespread and systematic arbitrary detention and torture by the authorities, according to the UN Group of Independent Experts.

As LETA was informed by the Foreign Ministry, the UN Independent Expert Group on the Situation of Human Rights in Belarus investigates the causes and violations of human rights in Belarus after the presidential "elections" on May 1, 2020.

In the aftermath, 13,500 people were detained in over 100 localities over six days, while over 37,000 people were detained over a year.

After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Belarussian dictator Alexander Lukashenko further reinforced his power by depriving members of the opposition of the right to take part in elections. Any dissent was suppressed through various restrictions, surveillance, intimidation, arbitrary arrest and detention, torture, and forced exile, the expert group points out.

A conclusion by the group of experts is that there are reasonable grounds to believe that detentions perpetrated by Belarusian authorities amount to a crime against humanity in that they were a part of a widespread and systematic attack against a specific segment of society, and the perpetrators were aware of the illegitimate nature of their action.

The Group of Experts was established in 2024, replacing an earlier mechanism on Belarus under the auspices of the UN High Commissioner on Human Rights, while being given a stronger mandate with greater powers. This coming autumn, the Group of Experts will also present its first report to the UN General Assembly. The Group of Experts is mandated to investigate, collect and document evidence of the violations of international law perpetrated by Belarusian authorities, as well as to identify those responsible with the aim of holding them accountable.

The experts also examined the historical causes of restrictions to fundamental freedoms and of State-sanctioned violence. After assuming power, Alexander Lukashenko restricted democratic structures in the country, seizing control over the legislative and judicial powers, curtailing civic and political rights, persecuting and intimidating human rights defenders. Already before the presidential "elections" of May 2020, the regime quelled peaceful protests against possible electoral fraud in the upcoming election with brutal repression.

The violent response by Belarusian authorities to mass protests following the 2020 presidential "election" was the latest manifestation of a long-standing pattern of a repressive policy. The wide-scale violations of human rights were possible due to absence of genuinely democratic institutions, the lack of an independent judiciary, perception of civil society as a threat by the ruling regime, the expert group emphasizes.

At the conclusion of its report, the group of experts sets out a number of recommendations to Belarus: among other things, to immediately release all political prisoners, re-engage with UN human rights mechanisms, cease using laws to silence dissent, end the use of torture and sexual violence, bring conditions in detention facilities into line with international standards, and properly investigate violations of human rights.

The group of experts recommends that the member states of the United Nations keep the situation of Belarusian political prisoners high on the international agenda, work towards the accountability of alleged perpetrators, facilitate international protection of Belarusian refugees, and continue supporting Belarusian human rights organizations in exile.

The discussion with the group of experts on the said report will include statements by EU Member States, the Baltic states and Nordic countries (NB8), and the European countries. In all those formats, Latvia will strongly condemn the violations of human rights committed by Belarus on a long-standing basis.

At the conclusion of its 58th session in early April, the UN Human Rights Council is expected to adopt a resolution sponsored by EU Member States to extend the mandates of the Group of Experts and the UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Belarus for another year.

Since 2024, the post of the UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Belarus has been held by Nils Muiznieks, and he intends to present his first report at the 59th session of the UN Human Rights Council this coming June.