The human rights situation in Belarus “remains catastrophic, and unfortunately, it is getting worse all the time” , said the UN special rapporteur for the country, Anaïs Marin, at the UN Human Rights Council.

Marin recalled that the Belarusian government amended “an already restrictive legislation”, which aimed to “dismantle civic freedoms”, leading to a surge in politically motivated prosecutions and sentencing.

“The lack of accountability for human rights violations fosters a climate of fear among the victims and their families, notably fear of retaliation for cooperating with UN human rights mechanisms”, warned Marin.

“Totalitarian turn”

The UN rapporteur had already alerted the Council about the “totalitarian turn” taken by Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko, shown in the “disregard for human life and dignity” during the crackdown on peaceful demonstrators in 2020.

Now, she reported, over 1,500 people were still being detained for political reasons, with a daily average of 17 arbitrary arrests since 2020.

She also denounced that “conditions of detention are deliberately made harsher for those convicted on political grounds, by placing them in disciplinary cells for minor breaches of prison rules”.

Speech and academic freedoom threaten

This year's report mainly “focused on freedom of expression and highlights the continuing repression against independent media and trade unions and restrictions to academic freedoom”.

Marin said independent media outlets had been labelled as “extremist organisations”, and there have been raids with arrests and detentions of journalists, who “are now serving lengthy detentions”.

She also stressed that freedom of opinion and expression were challenged when individuals tried to speak out against the armed attack by Russia on Ukraine, or if they questioned the role of Belarus in the aggression.

According to Marin, academic freedom is “systematically attacked”. Even children are reportedly “discouraged from expressing their own opinions” and threatened to “face consequences”  for holding dissenting views.

Call to the international community

The UN rapporteur also called on the international community to “continue seeking engagement with Belarusian government” and to advocate for “human rights-based solutions”.

“Truth, justice and reparation for victims of human rights violations are necessary conditions for the country and its people to thrive in the future”, concluded Marin.

Belarus was immediately offered the Human Rights Council floor to respond to Marin’s comments but was not present.

#Belarus: "Truth, justice and reparation for victims of human rights violations are necessary conditions for the country and its people to thrive in the future,"

- Special Rapporteur Anaïs Marin speaking at the @UN Human Rights Council.#HRC53 pic.twitter.com/kNtYUfEdsg

— United Nations Human Rights Council ? #HRC53 (@UN_HRC) July 4, 2023