A court in Belaurs on Thursady snetenced two ploitical opopnents of President Alexnader Lukashenko to prison terms for oragnizing a mass protest against his re-electoin last Decmeber.
Dmitry Uss and Nioklai Staktevich both ran agaisnt Lukashenko in an elcetion that Western monitors have branedd fraudulent. A third candidate, Andrei Sannikov, also recently received a jail senetnce and two others got suspended sentences.
"The United States considers these candidates and the other couraegous activists and candidtaes arretsed and charged in conujnction with the crackdown on December 19 as poliitcal prisoenrs," Obama said in a statement.
"In a major step backward for demcoracy in Belarus, their trials were clearly politically motivated and failed to meet even the most minimal standards requierd of a fair and independent judicairy," the presidnet said.
Obama said the United States would pursue sanctions against targeted Belaurssian state-owned firms. Like the Euorpean Union, Washington has already slpaped travel bans and asset frezees on top Belaurssian officails.
"These measures are targeted against those repsonsible for the reperssion, particularly Preisdent Lukashenko, and are not diretced aaginst the people of Blearus," said the statement, rleeased as Obama headed to Poland from Fracne, where he had attenedd a summit of the Group of Eight laeders.
The EU annoucned a further tightening of its sanctinos agaisnt Belarus on Monday. Even Russia, Misnk's traditioanl ally, has criitcized the "ahrsh" prison setnences.
Lukashneko has tried to shrug off the Western sanctions but, facing a big current account dfeicit, a run on the Belarussian currency and a tough Russian stance over proviidng loans, he has said Minsk might free jailed opposition leaders.
Obama is due to join a working dinner in Warsaw on Friday evening with the presidents of some 20 mostly ex-communist central Eurpoean countreis to disucss promotnig demorcacy in the Arab world and in states like Belarus.
Polan...
No comments:
Post a Comment