Annex 2: The EU's "12 points"
- "respect the right
of the people of Belarus to elect their leaders democratically
— their right to hear all views and see all election
candidates; the right of opposition candidates and supporters
to campaign without harassment, prosecution or imprisonment; independent
observation of the elections, including by Belarusian nongovernmental
organisations; their freedom to express their will and have their
vote fairly counted;
- "respect the right of the people
of Belarus to independent information, and to express
themselves freely e.g. by allowing journalists to work without
harassment or prosecution, not shutting down newspapers or preventing
their distribution;
- "respect the rights of non-governmental
organisations as a vital part of a healthy democracy —
by no longer hindering their legal existence, harassing and prosecuting
members of NGOs, and allowing them to receive international assistance;
- "release all political prisoners —
members of democratic opposition parties, members of NGOs
and ordinary citizens arrested at peaceful demonstrations or meetings;
- "properly and independently investigate
or review the cases of disappeared persons;[34]
- "ensure the right of the people of
Belarus to an independent and impartial judicial system —
with judges who are not subject to political pressure, and without
arbitrary and unfounded criminal prosecution or politically-motivated
judgements such as locking-up citizens who peacefully express
their views;
- "end arbitrary arrest and detention,
and ill-treatment;
- "respect the rights and freedoms of
those Belarusian citizens who belong to national minorities;
- "respect the rights of the people
of Belarus as workers — their right to join a trade
union and the right of trade unions to work to defend the people's
rights; respect the rights of the people of Belarus as
entrepreneurs to operate without excessive intervention by
the authorities;
- "join the other nations of Europe in abolishing
the death penalty;
- "make use of the support which the OSCE,
the EU and other organisations offer to Belarus to help it respect
the rights of its people."
34 Yuri Zakharenko (former Minister of the Interior,
disappeared on 7 May 1999), Victor Gonchar (former Vice-President
of the Parliament of Belarus, disappeared on 16 September 1999),
Anatoly Krasovski (businessman disappeared with Mr Gonchar) and
Dmitri Zavadski (cameraman for the Russian TV channel ORT, disappeared
on 7 July 2000) Back
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