Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-05-22-Speech-4-222"
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"en.20080522.29.4-222"2
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".
Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, the positive momentum generated in Belarus by the release of five of the six political prisoners appears to have stalled. Regrettably, renewed pressure on civil society and a number of particularly harsh and disproportionate sentences have ruined this positive atmosphere. We continue to condemn the political arrests and the way in which civil society and the independent media are being treated.
At the same time, we must make Belarus understand that we mean what we say when we propose a partnership subject to progress being made with regard to respect for democracy, human rights and the rule of law. However, in order to make such progress, Belarus needs to take a number of measures that, for us, are essential. These include the unconditional release of all political prisoners, including Alexander Kazulin.
They also include the holding of parliamentary elections, scheduled for September, which must comply with democratic principles. In this regard, we ask that the international OSCE/ODIHR observers be granted unhampered access. The Belarusian authorities have informed us of their intention to admit both short-term and long-term observers; we will be sure to hold them to their word. Naturally, the presence of observers from the European Parliament would be an additional source of valuable expertise. It is also vital that opposition parties participate fairly in these elections. We will take into account any suggestions made by Parliament in this regard.
However, irrefutable evidence that progress has been made would be the presence of opposition in this Parliament, which is not currently the case. In that event, the European Union would be ready to respond positively, as it confirmed only last month in a statement relating to sanctions and to the progress that would encourage us to ease these sanctions.
I shall now address an issue that we feel most strongly about: contacts with the people of Belarus. However regrettable the situation in Belarus may be, we must expand our contacts. Naturally, restrictions on ministerial-level contacts with the Belarusian authorities are still being maintained. Nevertheless, I think that it is necessary to draw a distinction between political and technical levels. Accordingly, the Commission is holding meetings to discuss technical issues such as energy, transport and the environment with experts from the Belarusian administration. These contacts are obviously a means of getting across various messages on matters about which we feel very strongly.
The fact that we currently have a delegation in Minsk will also enable us to forge closer links both with the Belarusian administration and with civil society, local NGOs, independent media and students, all of whom we have a duty to assist, as you have rightly pointed out in your report and as several speakers have said. In addition, aid is being provided to the European Humanities University, which is currently in exile in Vilnius and will continue its activities there for as long as the University is unable to return to Belarus.
Finally, I should like to broach a subject that comes up time and time again: visas. As you and I are aware, we are unable, as things stand, to open negotiations on the easing of visa restrictions with Belarus – this has been determined by the Council – but this does not prevent us from taking advantage of the discretion enjoyed by the Member States under the Schengen rules as part of their consular prerogatives."@en1
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