{"id":120746,"date":"2025-01-06T15:16:14","date_gmt":"2025-01-06T12:16:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/120746\/"},"modified":"2026-03-10T12:05:06","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T12:05:06","slug":"berlin-fair-election-in-belarus-impossible-amid-reprisals","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/120746\/","title":{"rendered":"Berlin: fair election in Belarus impossible amid reprisals"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n (tagesschau.de)<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

January 6, Pozirk<\/em>. <\/strong>Germany and other European Union member states are not likely to change their policies towards Belarus which is set to hold its seventh presidential election amid ongoing politically-motivated reprisals, the German foreign ministry has told Pozirk<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Germany will continue to support a free and democratic Belarus, establish contacts with the leaders of the exiled Belarusian pro-democracy forces and promote media freedom in Belarus and other countries, it noted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Berlin will seek the release of political prisoners and maintenance of minimum humanitarian standards for prisoners in Belarus, hoping for Minsk\u2019s cooperation, the ministry said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Belarus will hold a presidential election from January 21 to 26, with the whole election cycle limited to just three months. The current campaign is taking place in a purged political landscape amid a new wave of crackdown on regime critics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Alaksandar \u0141uka\u0161enka, in power since 1994, his supporters Aleh Hajdukievi\u010d, Alaksandar Chi\u017eniak, Siarhiej Syranko\u016d as well as former MP Hanna Kanapackaja intend to run for president.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Belarusian opposition dismissed the election as a sham, noting that political reprisals prevent pro-democracy candidates from running and voters from freely expressing their will.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The country has not held a single free and fair election since 1996 by the standards of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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