Фото: t.me/rada_vision
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe has adopted a resolution titled “Towards the Universal Abolition of the Death Penalty in All Circumstances”. The document reaffirms the Assembly’s consistent position that the death penalty is incompatible with the principles of human rights, democracy and the rule of law.
As noted by rapporteur Gala Veldhoen, Belarus remains the last country on the continent where this practice is still in place.
PACE condemned the continued use of the death penalty in Belarus, expressing particular concern over the secrecy surrounding executions: those sentenced and their families are not notified in advance, bodies are not returned to relatives, and guarantees of a fair trial are not respected.
The resolution also highlights that the scope of the death penalty has been expanded to include offences that do not meet the threshold of the “most serious crimes” under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Belarus is a party. It also notes the use of the death penalty as a tool of political pressure and repression.
In the resolution, PACE calls on the Belarusian regime to immediately introduce a moratorium on the use and execution of death sentences, commute all existing sentences to imprisonment, and end the practice of secrecy — by notifying those sentenced, their families and lawyers, and returning bodies.
The document also highlights the role of Belarusian democratic forces. PACE welcomed the adoption by the Coordination Council of Belarus in June 2025 of a memorandum on the abolition of the death penalty, also supported by the United Transitional Cabinet and the office of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya.
Head of the international commission and the delegation of Belarusian democratic forces to PACE Aliaksandra Mamaeva said the memorandum confirms a political consensus among democratic forces on abolishing the death penalty and called on civil society organisations to join it.
“For me, it is important already now to lay the foundations for Belarus to become a country without the death penalty and for a democratic Belarus to become part of the Council of Europe,” she said, the Coordination Council press service reported.