BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

18/12/2005

Belarus rejects Romania's criticism

Denisa Maruntoiu

Belarus authorities said they view Romania's statements claiming violations of human rights in Belarus as an attempt to divert the international community's attention from the problems in Romania, Belarusian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ruslan Yesin said.

"Romania's statements criticizing Belarus are nothing other than an attempt to divert attention from its own problems and allay the international community's strong suspicions of the gravest violations of human rights on Romanian territory," Yesin said.

The Council of Europe's Ministers Committee, which is currently chaired by Romania, said on Wednesday that the Belarus authorities are not very careful when it comes to human rights. The Ministers' Committee expressed concern over the Belarus' National Assembly's plan to enforce a new law which would amend the Criminal Code.

"The amendment might undermine even more the rights of the people, NGOs, and political parties," the Ministers' Committee stated in a press release.

In addition, the Ministers Committee demanded the Belarusian authorities reconsider their position and reject those provisions that could lead to violations of human rights and freedom.

Source:

http://www.daily-news.ro/article_detail.php?idarticle=20549