Who appoints a human rights expert in Belarus?

Through resolution A/HRC/RES/55/27 on 4 April 2024, the Human Right Council established, for a renewable period of one year, a group of three independent experts on the situation of human rights in Belarus, to be appointed by the President of the Human Rights Council.

Who can submit information about the human rights situation in Belarus?

The UN Group of Independent Experts on the Human Rights Situation in Belarus invites individuals, groups and organizations to submit information and documentation relevant to the mandate of the examination of the human rights situation in Belarus. The deadline for submission is 30 November 2024.

What is Belarus' new human rights body?

The new body – which was advocated for by Belarusian and international rights groups, including Human Rights Watch – has a mandate to investigate grave ongoing abuses, collect and preserve evidence of international crimes, and identify those responsible, building on the work of the UN Human Rights Office’s own investigation.

Is there justice for human rights abuses in Belarus?

There is currently no meaningful avenue to justice for such abuses within Belarus and very few avenues in international fora. In 2022, Belarusian authorities officially blocked victims of human rights violations from bringing their complaints before the UN’s Human Rights Committee.

Does Belarus have a human rights problem?

Belarus continued to allow Russian forces to use the country’s territory in Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In February, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) reported on systematic, widespread, and gross human rights violations committed in Belarus, concluding that some may amount to crimes against humanity.

How many political prisoners are in Belarus?

Between October 2022 and September 2023, according to leading Belarusian human rights organization Viasna, more than 400 people were sentenced on politically motivated criminal charges, and another 3,300 faced politically motivated administrative charges. At time of writing, Viasna’s count of political prisoners was 1,462.