Thank you Mr President,
Let me start by thanking the Special Rapporteur for her report and her recommendations, which we warmly welcome.
Let me also salute the bravery of the Belarusian people in the face of repression. We know that you never voted to allow your country to become an accomplice to Putin’s aggression against your friends and neighbours in Ukraine.
Arbitrary arrests and detentions continue at an alarming pace. As you highlight, Special Rapporteur, we continue to see farcical trials leading to long, politically motivated sentences. Those in detention face torture, as well as cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment. The regime’s failure to adequately investigate some 5,000 complaints tells its own story.
Let me call once more for an end to the human rights violations, for the investigation of and accountability for those violations, for the unconditional release of all political prisoners, for fresh, fair elections, and for an end to the enabling of Putin’s aggression.
Special Rapporteur, how best can the UN support the Belarusian people in the face of such repression?