Strasbourg, 06/04/2006 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday, the European Parliament adopted a resolution calling for new presidential elections to be held in Belarus, where Alexandre Lukashenko “cannot be recognised as the legitimate president” because of the anti-democratic way in which the election was held on 19 March. MEPs welcome the Council's intention to add Lukashenko to the list of persons affected by the visa ban but call for this list to be extended to all local, regional and national officials involved in the violation of human rights and political freedom. The Council is also expected to work in favour of an international freeze of assets abroad belonging to the members of the regime and for the regime to be completely isolated in international organisations. In parallel, the Belarusian people must be supported, the EP says, mainly suggesting a more flexible system for visa issuance, more support for free media and the funding of exchange programmes for the young people of Belarus. The EP states it is “appalled” by the reactions of the Duma and President Putin who congratulated Lukashenko upon his victory. The EU must tackle the question of Belarus in its contacts with Moscow as a matter of urgency, as Moscow “is lending decisive support to the last dictatorship in Europe”.
Like the text of the resolution, the debate on Wednesday afternoon in the presence of Alexandre Milinkevitch was also marked by a rare consensus among all speakers - first of all, on the need to take targeted measures against Lukashenko and his collaborators and to avoid at all cost measures that could punish the population. In addition to the extended list of persons covered by the visa ban, to be adopted by the Council on Monday (EUROPE 9168), the “EU is still examining other sanctions, which must not, however, affect the population”, Hans Winkler (Austrian Presidency) asserted. It is a good thing to have added Lukashenko to the list “but all those responsible for repressing demonstrations and especially the people who have thrown students out of university because they took part in the opposition movement should be added too”, Bogdan Klich (EPP, Poland) said. Jan Wiersma (PES, NL) was adamant about freezing the financial assets of the regime's leaders, while his compatriot, Camiel Eurolings (EPP), suggests an international embargo against arms exports from Belarus, as such “exports fill up Lukashenko's pockets”. At the same time, the EU must take concrete measures to help the population, for example by facilitating visa procedures and reducing the cost of obtaining a visa (some, like Janusz Onyszkiewicz of Poland, even call for free visas), which would allow Belarusians to travel more easily. In the very short term, EU Member States ought to take measures to host the many students expelled from their universities, providing them with study grants, was the suggestion made by many MEPs. “We have programmes like Erasmus and Tempus” and the Commission is willing to look into the possibility of financial aid for these students, Benita Ferrero-Waldner said. Earlier, the president of the European Council, Wolfgang Schüssel, confirmed that contacts are underway with several member nations on this subject.
Russia and the support that it is giving to the Minsk regime (“Lukashenko is a governor appointed by Moscow”, Lithuanian Vytautas Landsbergis, EPP, said) were a constant theme during the debate. The EU must make Belarus a core subject in all its contacts with Moscow, including during the next G-8 meetings currently presided by Russia, nearly all speakers said. “Are you afraid of mentioning Belarus to Moscow perhaps because of the new Union energy strategy?” in which Russia plays an important role, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert (ALDE, NL) asked the Council and Commission. “Afraid? No, we are not afraid”, Hans Winkler replied, saying: “We know the EU's values and we shall defend them without ambiguity, including with Russia”. Putin should understand that a president other than Lukashenko would not threaten the special relations between Belarus and Russia, Benita Ferrero-Waldner said.
Several MEPs stressed the importance of the psychological change that took place with the elections of 19 March “when the population lost its fear of Lukashenko”, Camiel Eurlings (EPP) asserted. Jonas Sjöstedt (GUE/NGL) said this nothing is won in advance as Lukashenko also enjoys popular support mainly because of the security that he gives at the social level and that “many Belarusian citizens are ready to exchange for democratic freedom”. Many Polish MEPs took the floor and most of them did not conceal their ambitions regarding the European future of Belarus. “Poland and Belarus have a common border and history, and I hope that we shall also have a common future” in Europe, Jan Tadeusz Masiel (NA) said, for example. His compatriot, Konrad Szymanski (UEN), was even clearer when directly addressing Mr Milinkevitch, saying: “Let us hope that, one day, you and your friends will also have a seat at the EP”. Hans Winkler and Benita Ferrero-Waldner recalled that “the objective is inclusion of the country in the EU's Neighbourhood Policy”.