Sentences built on ‘fabricated charges of treason, extremism, conspiracy,’ says EU foreign policy chief
The European Union condemned Belarus’ “absurd” prison sentences against five opposition figures in exile on Tuesday.
“Yesterday, (President Alexander) Lukashenko’s regime reached a new low in its attempts to silence those who stand up in defense of Belarus’s fundamental freedoms and challenge his illegitimate regime,” said EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell in a statement.
“Five prominent members of Belarus’s democratic opposition in exile were sentenced to long and unjustified prison terms in absentia and in closed trials,” he added.
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the leader of Belarus’ pro-democratic forces, was sentenced to 15 years in prison, while Coordination Council member Pavel Latushko was sentenced to 18 years and council members Maryya Maroz, Volha Kavalkova, and Siarhei Dylevski were each sentenced to 12 years.
“They were targeted solely for advocating for democratic rights and justice, as well as free and fair elections,” said Borrell.
The European Union condemns these “absurd sentences” based on “fabricated charges of treason, extremism, conspiracy, and incitement to hatred,” he said. “This is yet another heinous example of Lukashenko’s ongoing travesty of justice and political abuse of the judiciary.”
He reiterated the EU’s support for those who “courageously stand up for an independent and democratic Belarus,” and said the bloc is prepared to take action in response to the continued “outrageous bulldozing of its population’s rights.”
