News on the topic: EU-Belarus
22.05.2013 European Parliament's rapporteur recommends suspension of travel bans against Belarusian officials
Minsk, 21 May. Justas Paleckis, the European Parliament's rapporteur on Belarus, has recommended the suspension of the visa ban against key Belarusian officials.
08.05.2013 Catherine Ashton urges Belarus to introduce moratorium on death penalty
EU High Representative, Catherine Ashton today issued a statement condemning the death sentence imposed on a detainee of Mahiliou prison in Belarus after he murdered his cellmate.
23.04.2013 EU foreign ministers discuss Belarusian issue
It happened at their Monday meeting in Luxembourg.
16.04.2013 Valiantsin Stefanovich: “Brussels has no illusions in its assessment of the regime”
Such a conclusion was made by the deputy chairman of the Human Rights Center “Viasna” as a result of his recent visit to the capital of the European Union to participate in a conference on the dialogue on the modernization of Belarus and have a number of meetings.
28.03.2013 Natallya Pinchuk: Paleckis must show his hand
The situation of political prisoners does not and will scarcely change for the better. Natallya Pinchuk, the wife of political prisoner Ales Byalyatski, gave an interview to charter97.org.
20.03.2013 European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to consider release and rehabilitation of political prisoners in its activities in Belarus
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) published on 12 March a new strategy for the Republic of Belarus designed for the next three years. It is noteworthy that the development of the concept paper was contributed to by representatives of Belarusian civil society.
19.03.2013 Foreign ministry expresses hope that report by MEP Paleckis will help Belarus-EU dialogue
Minsk, 19 March. The Belarusian foreign ministry hopes that the report to be drawn up following the Minsk visit of a delegation of the European Parliament will help Belarus and the European Union step up their dialogue, the ministry's spokesman, Andrey Savinykh, told BelaPAN.
19.03.2013 Maryna Adamovich: Paleckis should demand meeting with political prisoners
Maryna Adamovich, the wife of political prisoner Mikalai Statkevich, believes Justas Paleckis, European Parliament’s Rapporteur on Belarus, should meet with Belarusian prisoners of conscience, the Charter-97 website reports.
19.03.2013 European Parliament’s Rapporteur on Belarus Justas Paleckis arrives in Minsk
Justas Paleckis, 71, European Parliament’s Rapporteur on Belarus, arrived in Minsk on a working visit to end on March 21. The purpose of the visit is the preparation of the report on the state of relations between the EU and Belarus, the BelaPAN news agency reports.
14.02.2013 Iryna Khalip allowed to meet with her husband in the UK
The spouse of the former presidential candidate was granted the possibility to temporarily leave Belarus.
01.02.2013 Police start putting down passport data of visitors of foreign Embassies
The Belarusian police started putting down the passport information of the persons who visit the Embassies of the United States of America, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Federal Republic of Germany. This information was passed to "Charter'97" by the leader of the United Civil Party Anatol Liabedzka.
24.01.2013 MEP Marek Migalski writes to Belarus’ MFA to request meeting with political prisoners
Member of the European Parliament Marek Migalski, who initiated a campaign of solidarity with two Belarusian political prisoners – leader of the “Young Front” Zmitser Dashkevich and former presidential candidate Mikalai Statkevich – has addressed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs asking for an opportunity to meet with them in prison.
11.01.2013 Lithuanian Foreign Minister: What is more important: human rights or freight traffic in Klaipeda?
Foreign Minister of Lithuania Linas Linkevicius presented his own opinion on the Lithuania-Belarus relations in an interview on Morning Topic programme on 10 January. The minister thinks that “Belarusians are our partners. Both Lithuania and the EU can and should talk to them.” “Only in this case we will be able to see changes,” DELFI new agency quotes Linkevicius.
09.01.2013 European MP Marek Migalski supports Hrodna human rights defenders
On 5 January the Leninski District Court of Hrodna sentenced each of the three human rights activists to 1.5 million rubles of fine for a photo with portraits of the head of the Human Rights Center "Viasna" Ales Bialiatski.
06.12.2012 European Commissioner Štefan Füle: release of Belarusian political prisoners remains a principal issue
It was once again stated by the European Commissioner during a meeting with the deputy head of the Human Rights Center “Viasna” Valiantsin Stefanovich and the head of the Belarusian Association of Journalists Zhana Litvina on 5 December in Brussels.
