Where is Belarus? I conducted an informal survey asking this
question: the result was that not one person got more than one of the country's
five bordering countries (Latvia, Lithuania, Ukraine, Poland and Russia) correct.
Some people even thought it was a city! Not many people seem to know anything
about this small country which currently holds an important role in
international relations Although Belarus has a history that dates back over 100
000 years, has its own language that dates back to the 10th century (despite
not being widely spoken due to the Russification campaigns of the late 19th
century and under Stalin), and was one of the most devastated areas in WWII, most
people do not know much about it. This is largely caused by the fact that the
country has had a history of being "added" to other countries, from
the Grand Duchy of Lithuania , to the Russian Empire, to Poland.
Yet, this country is likely to hold a place in history as
being 21rst century Europe's last communist-style regime, with a state-led
economy, a state hold on the media, and a large secret (although not so secret)
policing network.
The EU has imposed sanctions on Belarus because of its
unjust regime for 5 years and is currently in the process of lifting them. Why?
Because the president, Alexander Lukashenko, dubbed "Europe's last
dictator" and Europe's longest serving leader, has pardoned six political
prisoners.
The sanctions were originally placed on Belarus after the
2010 'elections' which were clearly undemocratic: not only were opposition
candidates and activists jailed, but
also the following protests in Minsk were violently suppressed by the government.
The EU should be fighting for human rights, and, of course, these were violated
during this election. But, if the EU is going to impose sanctions because of
the lack of freedom of speech and brutality of the regime in the first place,
why lift them now, when the regime is clearly not going to change?
The head of the OSCE mission, Kent Harstedt, stated that 'Belarus
still has a long way to go towards fulfilling its democratic commitments'. The
way the elections were carried out greatly indicate corruption: people were
able to vote early from the 6th to the 10th of October, facilitating the
manipulation of electoral outcome, and Lukashenko did not hold rallies, answer
questions, or go out of his way to meet voters. If this doesn't already essentially
prove corruption from the government, the results undoubtedly do: according to
the Belarusian government the overall turnout was 87.22% and Lukashenko won a
landslide majority with 83.47% of the vote.
The underlying objective of the EU's lifting of the
sanctions is undeniably it's wish to use Lukashenko as "contact man"
with Russia and partner to Ukraine, a peacemaker that he has recently- through,
among other things, hosting multiple talks involving both Putin and Poroshenko
in Minsk. However, the EU has to be more decisive with its position: if it
decides to fight an unfair regime, it should pursue that aim, not change it
depending on the relations of countries surrounding the regime. If not, it
sends signals to other countries. The lifting of sanctions simply for elections
taking place without mass arrest and the release of the opposition candidates
in the 2010 elections from prison undermines the principle of sanctions. Russia,
Egypt or many other countries can now see this as evidence that the sanctions
imposed on them will eventually be lifted too, without a necessary change in
their policy.
Moreover, it does not seem that the dictatorship-like
leadership in Belarus is going to change any time soon. Lukashenko has made it
clear that he wishes his 11-year old son, popularly known as "Kolya",
who has already attended meetings with Putin and Pope Benedict XVI and
accompanied his father in the Independence Day Parade, to become his successor.
