{"id":95130,"date":"2024-07-12T12:28:16","date_gmt":"2024-07-12T09:28:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/95130\/"},"modified":"2026-03-09T20:10:49","modified_gmt":"2026-03-09T20:10:49","slug":"osce-asks-minsk-tough-questions-about-human-rights-using-vienna-mechanism","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/95130\/","title":{"rendered":"OSCE asks Minsk tough questions about human rights using Vienna Mechanism"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>July 12,&nbsp;<em>Pozirk<\/em>.&nbsp;<\/strong>Thirty-eight member states of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) have invoked the Vienna Mechanism in respect of serious human rights concerns in Belarus, including torture, physical or sexual violence, lack of basic medical care and privacy, lack of a fair trial, psychological pressure and discrimination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The&nbsp;Vienna Mechanism&nbsp;allows participating states, through an established set of procedures, to raise questions relating to human dimension.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe wish to express our deep concern regarding the severe human rights violations and abuses occurring in Belarus,\u201d said Slovenian Ambassador to the OSCE, Barbara Zvokelj, according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/government\/speeches\/uk-and-others-invoke-vienna-mechanism-on-political-prisoners-in-belarus-joint-statement-to-the-osce\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">transcript<\/a> posted today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThese were documented by rapporteur Professor Herv\u00e9 Ascensio after 38 participating States invoked the Moscow Mechanism on 23 March 2023.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>His report described repression designed to hinder any form of opposition, which led to waves of arrests on political grounds, targeting demonstrators, journalists, other media workers, human rights defenders, representatives of trade unions, lawyers, political opponents, and those expressing their opposition to the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, among others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The report recommended the release of all political prisoners and reform to bring national criminal legislation and the code of administrative offences in full compliance with international standards.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Regrettably, Belarus has followed neither these recommendations, the ambassador said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Below is the list of questions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>What steps have Belarusian authorities taken to ensure that persons deprived of liberty on politically motivated grounds are treated with humanity and respect for their inherent dignity?\u00a0\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>What steps have Belarusian authorities taken to release political prisoners on humanitarian grounds, including those with serious health issues or chronic conditions, people with disabilities, minors, older persons, people with children or single parents? What update can be provided on the prisoners mentioned in the letter?\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>What steps have Belarusian authorities taken to ensure that specific needs of female detainees, including psychological and medical needs, are taken into account?\u00a0\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>What steps have been taken to ensure that all detainees have access to necessary and appropriate medication and medical care?\u00a0\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>What steps have been taken to ensure decent conditions of detention for all prisoners? Do authorities in charge of detention facilities provide all prisoners, without exception, with blankets, mattresses, and sanitary articles? Which measures have been taken against overcrowding?\u00a0\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>In the light of documented cases of ill-treatment which may in some instances amount to torture, including sleep deprivation, what steps have Belarusian authorities taken to investigate all allegations and to prevent such treatment in the future?\u00a0\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>What criteria govern the use of solitary confinement, punishment cells\u00a0and cell-like premises? As these have been identified as potentially inhumane conditions of detention, what steps have been taken to reduce their use?\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>What steps have been taken to ensure that every prisoner has access to legal counsel of their own choosing, to effective remedies and a fair trial? What steps have been taken to ensure that prisoners are able to maintain contact with family members?\u00a0\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Will Belarusian authorities refrain from implementing the procedure of deprivation of citizenship of Belarusian nationals living abroad as a sanction for so called \u201cparticipation in extremist activity or infliction of grievous harm to the interests of the Republic of Belarus\u201d?\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Will Belarus end repressive measures taken against family members in order to exert pressure on defendants and political prisoners?\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>As a measure of transparency, would Belarus allow visits to detention facilities by representatives of international organizations, including the International Committee of the Red Cross, and foreign States in detention facilities?\u00a0\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>July 12,&nbsp;Pozirk.&nbsp;Thirty-eight member states of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) have invoked the Vienna Mechanism in respect of serious human rights concerns in Belarus, including torture, physical or sexual violence, lack of basic medical care and privacy, lack of a fair trial, psychological pressure and discrimination. The&nbsp;Vienna Mechanism&nbsp;allows participating states, through [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":83,"featured_media":0,"template":"","rubric":[16],"class_list":["post-95130","articles","type-articles","status-publish","hentry","rubric-politics"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>OSCE asks Minsk tough questions about human rights using Vienna Mechanism | Pozirk<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"July 12,&nbsp;Pozirk.&nbsp;Thirty-eight member states of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) have invoked the Vienna Mechanism\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/95130\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" 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