Situation of human rights in Belarus in the run-up to the 2020 presidential election and in its aftermath - Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (A/HRC/52/68) [EN/AR/RU/ZH]

Human Rights Council
Fifty-second session
27 February–31 March 2023
Agenda items 2 and 4
Annual report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and reports of the Office of the High Commissioner and the Secretary-General Human rights situations that require the Council’s attention

Summary

In the present report, submitted pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 49/26, the High Commissioner sets out the findings of the examination of the human rights situation in Belarus since May 2020 and makes recommendations to relevant stakeholders. The report includes updated information on developments and incidents about which OHCHR has collected, consolidated, preserved and analysed information and evidence, with a view to contributing to accountability for perpetrators and justice for victims. He concludes that there are sufficient grounds to believe that systematic, widespread and gross human rights violations have been and are being committed in Belarus.

I. Introduction

1. The present report is submitted pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 49/26, in which the Council requested the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to monitor and report on the situation of human rights in Belarus and to examine all alleged human rights violations committed in Belarus since 1 May 2020, in the run-up to the 2020 presidential election and in its aftermath.

2. The present report should be read in conjunction with the previous report of the High Commissioner, 1 in which she provided an overview of the situation of human rights in Belarus, in particular the period from 9 to 14 August 2020, during and immediately after the 2020 presidential election.

3. An examination team of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), based in Vienna, supported the High Commissioner in implementation of the mandate. The High Commissioner appointed three experts to assist in the discharge of the mandate: Karinna Moskalenko (Russian Federation), Susan Bazilli (Canada) and Monica Płatek (Poland).