170 Parliamentarians from 16 European countries have signed a joint letter which is being sent to the heads of the 48 Belarusian prisons who hold political prisoners, and the Ministry of the Interior. The MPs call on the prison authorities to stop all violations and abuses of the rights of the prisoners in all Belarusian detention facilities.

The letter makes it clear to those responsible for the treatment of political prisoners that the world is aware of the abuses that have been happening, reminds them of their responsibility to honour Belarus’ international commitments to treatment of prisoners, and calls for the release of all political prisoners.

The letter was signed by parliamentarians from Austria, France, Germany, Great Britain, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Scotland, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

Libereco’s United Kingdom representative, Ken McBain, said, “It is important that those who are responsible for the life, health and safety of political prisoners in Belarus are aware that their unlawful and inhumane treatment doesn’t go unnoticed. We hope that receiving a personally addressed letter from so many European parliamentarians, from so many countries, will make them think about their responsibilities. They may feel they act with impunity and are anonymous, but the world is watching them.”

The letter from the MPs states: “We are aware of the abuses and basic rights that are denied political prisoners in Belarusian prisons. We know that detainees are put into crowded rooms without adequate clothes and sheets. We know that prisoners are denied their letters and parcels, denied meetings with their families and denied access to proper legal representation. We know that prisoners who require medical treatment are often denied access to doctors and the medication they require and that political prisoners are sent to punishment cells to put pressure on them because of their political views.

We call on you to stop these violations and abuses of the rights of the prisoners in all your detention facilities. The inhumane treatment of your prisoners, that we hear about so frequently, is unacceptable.”

The full letter and list of signatories is accessible here.

The letter campaign is a joint initiative of Libereco, Politzek.me, DissidentBY, the Co-ordination Council, Viasna, and the People’s Embassies of Belarus.

 

The full letter:

We, parliamentarians from across Europe, are writing to you representing the many peoples of Europe.

Since 2020 we have been closely watching Belarus’s mass imprisonment of people who exercised their basic human right to protest against unfair elections and police violence. We see the oppression and abuses of people who express their political views and are denied freedom of conscience and speech. We witness the destruction of civil society, that tries to defend human rights and help the victims of unjust treatment. Along with the people of Europe, who we represent, we have watched with dismay at peaceful protestors’ imprisonment.

We are aware of the abuses and basic rights that are denied political prisoners in Belarusian prisons. We know that detainees are put into crowded rooms without adequate clothes and sheets. We know that prisoners are denied their letters and parcels, denied meetings with their families and denied access to proper legal representation. We know that prisoners who require medical treatment are often denied access to doctors and the medication they require and that political prisoners are sent to punishment cells to put pressure on them because of their political views.

As a member of the United Nations, Belarus has agreed to many treaties that commit to these rights, for example, “The Convention against Torture and Other Cruel Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment”. As the authorities over penitentiary institutions in Belarus, you are responsible for the treatment of the prisoners under your care, and responsible for complying with these international commitments.

As parliamentarians who are passionate about freedom and justice, we call for the immediate release of all political prisoners in Belarus. We also call on you to stop these violations and abuses of the rights of the prisoners in all your detention facilities. The inhumane treatment of your prisoners that we hear about so frequently is unacceptable.

We will continue to watch Belarus closely and monitor the treatment of political prisoners. We hope for your compliance with the Treaties.


Signed by all those below,

Ewa Ernst-Dziedzic, Austria

Gudrun Kugler, Austria

Hannes Heide, Austria

Helmut Brandstätter, Austria

Lukas Mandl, Austria

Stephanie Krisper, Austria

Thomas Waitz Austria

Baroness Crawley, British

Baroness Helena Kennedy Q.C, British

Baroness Massey of Darwen, British

Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick, British

Brendan O'Hara, British

John Howell, British

Lord Balfe, British

Lord Blencathra, British

Lord Alton of Liverpool,British

Lord Foulkes of Cumnock, British

Lord Russell of Liverpool, British

Maria Miller, British

Rachel Maskell, British

Sir Ed Davey, British

Sir Tony Lloyd, British

Tonia Antoniazzi, British

Wendy Chamberlain, British

Alexandra Louis, France

Claude Kern, France

Frédéric Petit, France

Jacques Maire, France

Nicole Trisse, France

Agnieszka Brugger, Germany

Alexander Müller, Germany

Alois Rainer, Germany

Anja Liebert, Germany

Anja Reinalter, Germany

Annette Widmann-Mauz, Germany

Anton Hofreiter , Germany

Armin Grau, Germany

Axel Echeverria, Germany

Beate Müller-Gemmeke, Germany

Beate Walter-Rosenheimer, Germany

Birgit Sippel, Germany

Chantal Kopf, Germany

Claudia Müller, Germany

Claudia Roth, Germany

Deborah Düring, Germany

Delara Burkhardt, Germany

Dietmar Koster, Germany

Dr Nils Schmid, Germany

Erik Marquardt, Germany

Falko Mohrs, Germany

Felix Banaszak, Germany

Filiz Polat, Germany

Frank Schwabe, Germany

Franziska Brantner, Germany

Gaby Bischoff, Germany

Gyde Jensen, Germany

Hanna Steinmüller, Germany

Helmut Scholz, Germany

Hubert Hüppe, Germany

Jamila Schäfer, Germany

Julian Pahlke, Germany

Jürgen Hardt, Germany

Kai Gehring, Germany

Katarina Barley, Germany

Katja Keul, Germany

Konstantin von Notz, Germany

Lisa Badum, Germany

Lukas Benner, Germany

Marcel Emmerich, Germany

Maria Klein-Schmeink, Germany

Markus Hümpfer, Germany

Marlene Schönberger, Germany

Max Lucks, Germany

Merle Spellerberg, Germany

Michael Gahler , Germany

Michael Link, Germany

Norbert Altenkamp, Germany

Nyke Slawik, Germany

Olaf in der Beek, Germany

Renata Alt, Germany

Ricarda Lang, Germany

Robin Wagener, Germany

Sabine Grützmacher, Germany

Sabine Verheyen, Germany

Sandra Bubendorfer-Licht, Germany

Sebastian Schäfer, Germany

Sergey Lagodinsky, Germany

Stefan Gelbhaar, Germany

Swantje Michaelsen, Germany

Tabea Rößner, Germany

Terry Reintke, Germany

Tessa Ganserer, Germany

Tobias Bacherle, Germany

Barry Andrews, Ireland

Barry Ward, Ireland

Billy Kelleher, Ireland

Brendan Griffin, Ireland

Brendan Howlin, Ireland

Cathal Berry, Ireland

Cathal Crowe, Ireland

Catherine Ardagh, Ireland

Charlie Flanagan, Ireland

Colm Markey, Ireland

Deirdre Clune, Ireland

Denis Naughten, Ireland

Erin McGreehan, Ireland

Frances Fitzgerald, Ireland

Gary Gannon, Ireland

Gerard Craughwell, Ireland

Ivana Bacik, Ireland

James Lawless, Ireland

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, Ireland

Jim O'Callaghan, Ireland

Joe O'Reilly, Ireland

Malcolm Byrne, Ireland

Marian Harkin, Ireland

Mary Seery Kearney, Ireland

Neale Richmond, Ireland

Rónán Mullen, Ireland

Seán Haughey, Ireland

Seán Kelly, Ireland

Seán Sherlock, Ireland

Timmy Dooley, Ireland

Vincent P. Martin, Ireland

Massimo Ungaro, Italy

Rasa Jukneviciene, Lithuania

Thijs Reuten, Netherlands

Tineke Strik, Netherlands

Krzysztof Śmiszek, Poland

Michał Szczerba, Poland

Tomasz Frankowski, Poland

Radoslaw Sikorski, Poland

Isabel Santos, Portugal

Iulian Bulai, Romania

Alexander Burnett, Scottish

Bill Kidd, Scottish

Liam McArthur, Scottish

Mercedes Villalba, Scottish

Paul Sweeney, Scottish

Willie Rennie, Scottish

Ivan Štefanec, Slovakia

Miriam Lexmann, Slovakia

Jordi Sole, Spain

Anders Österberg, Sweden

Björn Söder, Sweden

Gudrun Nordborg, Sweden

Gulan Avci, Sweden

Håkan Svenneling, Sweden

Heléne Björklund, Sweden

Jens Holm, Sweden

Lotta Johnsson Fornarve, Sweden

Yasmine Posio, Sweden

Barbara Gysi, Switzerland

Benjamin Roduit, Switzerland

Carlo Sommaruga, Switzerland

Cedric Wermuth, Switzerland

Celine Widmer, Switzerland

Claudia Friedl, Switzerland

Damien Cottier, Switzerland

Fabian Molina, Switzerland

Franziska Ryser, Switzerland

Katharina Prelicz-Huber, Switzerland

Laurence Fehlmann Rielle, Switzerland

Marianne Streiff, Switzerland

Martina Munz, Switzerland

Mattea Meyer, Switzerland

Nicolas Walder, Switzerland

Priska Seiler Graf, Switzerland

Samira Marti, Switzerland

Stéfanie Prézioso, Switzerland