Estonia: Riigikogu delegation to PACE: we support organising new transparent elections in Belarus

Helena-Reet Ennet

5 years ago

NordenBladet — The Riigikogu delegation to PACE (Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe) joined the like-minded members of the Assembly in their statement on Belarus.

“As it stands, Alexander Lukashenko should do everything in his power to put an end to violence against political prisoners, and his resignation would be welcome news. It is impossible to imagine how he could continue after the Belarus elite as well as the working people have expressed their will,” said the head of the delegation Maria Jufereva-Skuratovski. She added that the Estonian delegation supports the holding of new transparent elections.

The statement says that the organisation of voting and vote counting at the presidential elections in Belarus did not respect international election standards or reflect the free will of the Belarus nation. The statement condemns the use of violence against the participants of peaceful demonstrations, and calls on the Belarus authorities to immediately release all the illegally detained individuals. Delegates to PACE encourage the parties to open a peaceful dialogue, and affirm their readiness to offer a platform for negotiations. The statement warns the Russian Federation against intervening in the internal affairs of Belarus.

Members of the Riigikogu delegation to PACE Raimond Kaljulaid, Eerik-Niiles Kross, Urmas Reitelmann, Raivo Tamm, and Vilja Toomast joined the statement.