BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

10/11/2006

Members of German Delegation Denied Entry to Belarus

Belarus' government refused to issue visas to two German lawmakers and two journalists planning to attend a conference in the former Soviet republic, in retaliation for European travel bans on Belarusian officials.

"We have been obliged to take this step as a symmetric reaction to limitations placed on our country by the European Union, the US, and other countries," said Andrei Popov, Belarus Foreign Ministry spokesman, according to an Interfax news agency report.

Two parliamentarians and two journalists in a German delegation planning to participate in the annual forum on Belarus-related issues had their visas revoked. Other participants were allowed in.

"This is again a clear sign that Lukashenko's system seals itself off from any kind of critical dialogue," said German parliamentarian Marieluise Beck, one of the members of the German delegation that was denied entry. "This almost brings us back to Stalinist times."

Cornelia Rabitz of DW RADIO's Russian program, who was also denied visa to Belarus, said that the entry ban was a "political and symbolical act of revenge by a small faction which, in the end, reflects on those who are in power in Minsk."

A sensible strategy

The conference, called the Ninth Minsk Forum, began work on Thursday evening as scheduled.

Roland Pofalla, General Secretary of Germany's CDU political party, opened the three-day conference, which was attended by politicians, academics, and journalists.

"The most sensible strategy (for dealing with an authoritarian regime such as Belarus) is always to ask clear questions about human rights, democracy, and the rule of law," Pofalla said shortly before departure.

Some 300 participants are expected at the conference.

Increasing isolation

The last conference allowing direct contact between Belarusian and western officials was in March. The Minsk Forum is one of the few ongoing exchanges between western nations and Belarus, which has been isolated due to its authoritarian regime.

Members of the European Parliament would not be allowed into the country to attend the conference, but if they wanted to discuss other issues with the Belarusian government sometime in the future "their visas would be considered under normal terms," Popov said.

The Belarusian visa decision was in retaliation for bans enacted in recent months by western nations on trips abroad by authoritarian President Aleksander Lukashenko, and other senior Belarusian officials.

The EU and the US initiated the travel bans in March after Lukashenko won a technically unconstitutional third term in office in an election widely condemned by international vote monitors.

Lukashenko's election victory was recognised by neighbouring Russia, but criticised by international observers from the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).

Jailed opposition

Protesters seen through an EU flag during an opposition rally in Belarus Bildunterschrift: Gro?ansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Belarus has been denounced as Europe's last dictatorship

Earlier this week, the European Union criticized the jailing of Belarussian opposition youth leader Dmitry Dashkevich, who was sentenced at a closed hearing to 18 months in prison for running an unregistered organization.

"The accusations against Dmitry Dashkevich ... seem to be politically motivated and show the Belarussian authorities' repeated unwillingness to respect international human rights standards, especially the right to a fair trial," the EU Commission said in a statement.

The EU reiterated its concern for the well-being of Alexander Kozulin, a runner-up in the March presidential election, who was sentenced to five-and-a-half years in prison on "hooliganism" charges for heading a protest against President Alexander Lukashenko's re-election. Kozulin is now thought to be in hospital following a hunger strike.

DW staff (tt)

Source:

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,2234254,00.html