Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/1999-10-07-Speech-4-048"

Predicate	Value (sorted: default)
rdf:type	lpv_eu:Speech2
dcterms:Date	"1999-10-07"^^xsd:date2
dcterms:Is Part Of	lp_eu:Human rights2
dcterms:Language	"nl"^^xsd:language2
lpv:document identification number	"en.19991007.4.4-048"2
lpv:hasSubsequent	lp_eu:1999-10-07-Speech-4-0492
lpv:speaker	lp:Jan Marinus Wiersma2
lpv:spokenAs	substitute; Committee on Regional Policy, Transport and Tourism (1999-07-22--2002-01-14)3 chair; Delegations to the parliamentary cooperation committees and delegations for relations with Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova (1999-07-22--2002-01-14)3 member; PES (1999-07-20--2004-07-19)3 member; PETI (1999-09-16--2002-01-14)3 member; Conference of Delegation Chairs (1999-07-22--2002-01-14)3 member; Committee on Foreign Affairs, Human Rights, Common Security and Defence Policy (1999-07-21--2002-01-14)3 unknown; Partij van de Arbeid (1999-07-20--2004-07-19)3
lpv:translated text	"Mr President, we have just come from the first meeting of the delegation from this Parliament that concerns itself with relations with countries such as Belarus. We have already briefly discussed the alarming situation in this country. We would like to ask Parliament to give some of its attention today to recent developments there, whereby Belarus, that is the Government of Belarus and President Lukashenko in particular, are at risk of isolating themselves still further from the international community, and in so doing from the European Union too, of course. The internal situation in Belarus gives great cause for concern. Democratic structures are not functioning and we are on the sidelines to some extent because the international community is disregarded by the authorities in Minsk. Our willingness to help to find a solution to the internal political problems and the deadlock that exists there is not being satisfactorily addressed by President Lukashenko. We also want to help to promote dialogue between the opposition and the government. We support the OSCE, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, in its efforts to achieve this. Our Parliament is also involved in activities undertaken by the Assembly of the OSCE which are designed to bring about an improvement in the situation in Belarus. But where is the gesture from the President? What positive reaction has there been on the part of the government in Minsk to the efforts being made to bring about a dialogue? What we see is quite the reverse. Instead of positive gestures we see arrests, intimidation and disappearances. A climate of fear is being created. It gets very difficult to find a compromise in a situation of this kind. We are in fact prepared to stretch our standards a little in the interests of the people of Belarus. We are prepared to talk to a President who is actually there illegally. If he fails to offer us a gesture, then things will certainly become very difficult. If, as I said, the opposition wants to talk then we will support this, but there will have to be a prospect of fair elections which will put an end to what is currently an extremely odd constitutional situation in Belarus in which there are two parliaments and a President reappointed by “referendum”. There are, of course, limits to our realism and that is why we want to take the opportunity today to register our protest about the situation in Belarus. We also want to make an urgent appeal to its government to do something about those who have disappeared and to ensure that they reappear so that that in itself may lead to really getting a dialogue going which will move towards free and fair elections, hopefully next year."@en1

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