PACE Speaker Concerned Over Belarusian Political Prisoners’ Problem :: Charter'97 :: News

Another hearing of the Belarusian question by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe is likely to be timed to the presidential elections in Belarus. Radio Svaboda was told about it by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe’s Rapporteur on the situation in Belarus, Azerbaijani deputy Azim Mollazade. At the spring session of the Assembly the report prepared by him is to be presented. “We are studying the situation in the country carefully, and the report prepared in the political committee of the PACE, would embrace the situation with functioning of all institutions in the country. The problem of political prisoners, their state of health, the problem of the disappeared are the problems of supreme importance for us,” the PACE Special Rapporteur said. “We think that the country which is situated in the center of Europe must not have political prisoners. It is the most painful question for the Council of Europe”.

Azim Mollazade says that for the Council of Europe the main objective in the relations with Belarus is to achieve a release of all political prisoners from Belarusian jails. This problem remains the main obstacle for establishing the dialogue of the Council of Europe with the official Minsk.

Mr. Mollazade noted that the membership of his country, Azerbaijan, in the Council of Europe, contributed to solving the problem of political prisoners. Hundreds of people were released on the demand of the Council of Europe, which is to his mind, the largest contribution of the organization to the democratization process in Azerbaijan.
At the summer session of the PACE Azim Mollazade presented his memorandum, which was considered in the sub-committee on Belarus. Another similar document is to be presented at the January session. The question of the time schedule of considering the Belarusian question at the plenary session of the PACE is to be decided as well. It is more likely to be discussed at the spring session, before the presidential elections in Belarus.

Half a year after his appointment to this position, Special Rapporteur has not managed to visit Belarus. As representatives of other international human rights organizations, he is unwelcome at the Belarusian territory by the authorities.