UN experts accuse Belarus institutions of systematic repression
Independent UN experts say courts, police, prosecutors, security services and prisons have coordinated efforts to silence critics of President Alexander Lukashenko since 2020.
Independent United Nations experts have accused Belarusian state institutions of systematically using the justice system to repress real or perceived opponents of President Alexander Lukashenko.
A report due to be presented to the UN Human Rights Council this week alleges abuses from arrest through detention, conviction and post-release supervision. The experts cite arbitrary arrests, torture, closed trials, denial of legal safeguards and continued harassment of former detainees.
The report says courts, police, security services, prosecutors and prison authorities worked together to silence critics. It also accuses the judiciary of legitimising abuses and denying victims effective remedies.
The experts say the alleged violations continue and that Belarus breached multiple international human rights treaties. They repeated earlier findings that some abuses committed since May 2020 could amount to crimes against humanity, including persecution and imprisonment. Those characterisations are preliminary allegations, not judicial findings.
Lukashenko has held power since 1994 and was declared the winner of the August 2020 presidential election. The opposition and Western governments said the vote was rigged, while thousands of people were arrested during subsequent protests.
Belarus has previously rejected UN criticism and did not respond to the experts’ requests to visit or engage with authorities. The findings come as US envoy John Coale arrives in Minsk for talks on releasing political prisoners. Human rights group Viasna says more than 900 remain detained, a figure not independently verified in the supplied material.
