Фото: t.me/tsikhanouskaya
A side event titled “Human Rights in Belarus” was held in Geneva during the 61st session of the UN Human Rights Council, focusing on the human rights situation in Belarus, the condition of political prisoners and issues of international accountability.
A notable moment of the event was the participation of Nobel laureate and head of the Viasna human rights center Ales Bialiatski, who was released in December last year after 1,613 days in detention.
Leanid Marozau, legal adviser to Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, criticized the release of political prisoners as a tool of “diplomacy.”
“When the regime demands gratitude for releasing people whom it unlawfully imprisoned, it looks like asking for applause for a kidnapper who returned the hostages. People should never be treated as bargaining chips or diplomatic currency. The only genuine humanitarian step is the release of all political prisoners together with an end to repression,” he said.
The discussion also featured Andrea Huber, head of the International Accountability Platform for Belarus (IAPB), and the UN independent expert on Belarus Karinna Moskalenko, the Office of Tsikhanouskaya reported.
On the same day, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya addressed the session’s participants, calling on them to work toward the release of all political prisoners, continue international pressure on the regime and ensure that it is held accountable.