Amnesty International considers Dmitry Dashkevich, Vasil Parfyankov, Alyaksandr Zapartyka and Artur Finkevich prisoners of conscience
Dear President Lukashenka
We are members of Amnesty International in Sheffield UK. Amnesty International is a world wide movement of people who campaign for internationally recognised human rights. Amnesty International’s vision is of a world in which every person enjoys all of the human rights enshrined in the universal declaration of human rights and other international human rights standards.
Amnesty International is independent of any government, political ideology, economic interest or religion. It does not seek to support or oppose any government or political system, nor does it support or oppose the views of the victims whose rights it seeks to protect. It is concerned solely with the impartial protection of human rights
We are deeply concerned about the imprisonment of Dmitry Dashkevich, Vasil Parfyankov, Alyaksandr Zapartyka and Artur Finkevich for their legitimate exercise of the fundamental right to freedom of expression as well as the right to freedom of assembly and association, in violation of the government's international human rights obligations, including Articles 19 and 20 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Amnesty International considers Dmitry Dashkevich, Vasil Parfyankov, Alyaksandr Zapartyka and Artur Finkevich prisoners of conscience and urges you to ensure their immediate and unconditional release.
President Lukashenka, we call on you to implement into practise in Belarus human rights standards and fundamental freedoms and ensure that in your country:
• No one shall be subject to arbitrary arrest and detention (Article 9, Universal Declaration of Human Rights)
• Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression (Article 19, Universal Declaration of Human Rights)
• Everyone has the right to freedom of assembly and association (Article 20, Universal Declaration of Human Rights)
Yours sincerely
Members of Sheffield (UK) group of Amnesty International
