Belarus presidential election: “Neither free nor fair,
despite lack of violence” – UN rights expert
GENEVA (13 October, 2015) – The United Nations Special
Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus, Miklós Haraszti, today
commended that protests against the perceived flaws of last Sunday’s
presidential election in the country were not met with violence as in previous
cases, but regretted that no progress was made in serving the Belarusians’
right to free and fair election.
“The election process was orchestrated, and the result
was pre-ordained,” Mr. Haraszti said. “It could not be otherwise, given the 20
years of continuous suppression of the rights to freedom of expression,
assembly, and association, which are the preconditions for any credible
competition.”
The expert noted that none of the independent election
monitors, both international and local, could verify the officially reported 86
% turnout or 84% endorsement of the incumbent.
“Such high scores have never been claimed in elections in
Europe since the end of the Soviet Union,” he stressed. “The observers’
documentations highlighted that not even the four days of coerced participation
of prison inmates, army conscripts, and public servants under the label of
‘early voting’, can give up the stated numbers.”
The Special Rapporteur also pointed to the high number of
allegations of election-day fraud, such as undocumented handling of voter lists
and ballots, voting on behalf of others, carrousel voting, ballot stuffing,
voting without proper documents, and mobile voting abuses.
“In my 2013 report* to the UN General Assembly on human
rights in electoral processes, I had made a number of recommendations, yet none
of these have been followed,” he said. “No independent election commissions
with a pluralistic composition had been created; no debates between the
candidates were provided in the television media which is largely owned and
controlled by the State.”
Mr. Haraszti called attention to the intimidating
environment of the electoral campaign. Calls for boycott of the elections were
criminalized since the last elections. Political opponents, including an
incarcerated 2010 presidential candidate, were released on the eve of the
present presidential elections, but none of them have been reinstated in their
political and civil rights.
“Actually, at this very moment, criminal proceedings are
ongoing against another 2010 presidential candidate,” the expert noted.
The Special Rapporteur welcomed the fact that the
elections took place without violence, unlike during the presidential elections
in 2010 when a massive crackdown had taken place. “However,” he said, “I will
closely follow what happens to the demonstrators in the aftermath of the
elections, given that massive arbitrary short-term detentions and
administrative discrimination are the order of day in Belarus.”
Mr. Haraszti commented on the temporary four-month
lifting of the European Union sanctions against Belarus, beginning in January,
as signaled by the foreign affairs ministers of the EU on 12 October, in
response to the release of six political prisoners on the eve of the elections.
He described the move as “a great opportunity for human rights reforms, in
harmony with both the country's international commitments and the needs of its
ordinary citizens.”
Listing possible immediate steps, the rights expert said
Belarus could eliminate the oppressive, permission-based regime of public life;
repeal article 193.1 of the Criminal Code that criminalizes public activities
without official permission; implement the long overdue electoral and media
reform that allows for true competition and informed choice; secure the
independence of the judiciary; and introduce a moratorium on the death penalty
as a transition toward its abolishment.
“Modernisation processes which are not shouldered by
democratisation and the respect for fundamental rights and freedoms are neither
sustainable nor meaningful”, the Special Rapporteur stated, reiterating his
readiness to cooperate with the Government on the starting steps of a reform.
(*) Read the Special Rapporteur’s 2013 report to the UN
General Assembly (A/68/276): http://ap.ohchr.org/documents/dpage_e.aspx?m=140
ENDS
Mr. Miklós Haraszti (Hungary) was designated as Special
Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus by the UN Human Rights
Council in 2012. In the 70s, Mr. Haraszti was a founder of Hungary’s human
rights and free press movement, and in the 1990s he was a Member of the
Hungarian Parliament. From 2004 to 2010, he served as the OSCE Representative
on Freedom of the Media. Since 2010, he has been a Professor at several
universities teaching media democratisation. Learn more, log on to: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/SP/CountriesMandates/BY/Pages/SRBelarus.aspx
The Special Rapporteurs are part of what is known as the
Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest
body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name
of the Council’s independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that
address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of
the world. Special Procedures’ experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not
UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from
any government or organization and serve in their individual capacity.
UN Human Rights, country page – Belarus:
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/countries/ENACARegion/Pages/BYIndex.aspx
For more information and media requests please contact
Ms. Alexandra Swetzer (+41 22 917 9401 / aswetzer@ohchr.org) or write to
sr-belarus@ohchr.org.
For media inquiries related to other UN independent
experts:
Xabier Celaya, UN Human Rights – Media Unit (+ 41 22 917
9383 / xcelaya@ohchr.org)
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