Estonia urges Belarus to free political prisoners

Estonia expresses concern about human rights violations and the lack of democracy and rule of law in Belarus, Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Paet said.

“Political prisoners should be freed and rehabilitated. We condemn repressions and persecution of civil society representatives, politically motivated trials against the opposition and restriction of liberties of the media in Belarus,” Paet said today in Tallinn at a congress of Belarusians living in the EU and the US.

Urmas Paet added that further democratic development of Belarus is possible only through building stronger civil society and establishing the rule of law. “International sanctions were imposed on the regime of Lukashenka due to restrictions of civil liberties and human rights violations in Belarus. The sanctions were imposed on the regime, not on ordinary people,” the Estonian Foreign Minister emphasized.

Estonia seeks to contribute to civil society development in Belarus, Paet assures. Since 2008, Estonia has been supporting Belarusian students expelled from Belarusian universities on political grounds, Eesti Rahvusringhääling reports.