Statement by Ireland at the 1422nd meeting of the Permanent Council
Statement
11 May 2023Mr Chair, Ireland fully aligns with the joint statement of the 38 invoking States. I would like to add the following points in my national capacity.
I would like to extend sincere thanks to Professor Hervé Ascensio for his meticulous work on this report. I would also like to express appreciation for the technical assistance provided by ODIHR to the Mission.
Mr. Chair, this report sets out in detail the steps taken by the Belarusian government to equip itself with “a full arsenal of legislation designed to hinder any form of opposition”. The actions of the Belarusian government amount to politically motivated repression and “pose a serious threat to the human dimension of the OSCE”.
The death this week of Mikalay Klimovich in a Belarusian penal colony is a tragic reminder of the human lives impacted by this repression. Mr. Klimovich was sentenced in February to twelve months imprisonment for sharing a satirical picture of President Lukashenka on a social network.
The people of Belarus deserve to have their human rights and fundamental freedoms protected, to be free from state violence, free from repression, free from torture and free from arbitrary detention.
Ireland stands firmly in solidarity with the people of Belarus. Ireland is proud to support the work of the International Accountability Platform for Belarus.
We also take note of the other recommendations of the rapporteur directed to OSCE participating States and the international community.
We reiterate the call by invoking States on the Republic of Belarus to play its part in implementing the recommendations set out in this Moscow Mechanism report.
Anything less than this would be a continued affront to the shared OSCE human dimension commitments made by all participating States around this table.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.