§ Mr. TrendTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what action the Government will take in relation to the detention of(a) Mr. Vincuk Viachorka, Chairman and (b) Mr. Ales Belyatsky, Deputy Chairman of the Belarusian Popular Front. [158278]
§ Mr. Vaz[holding answer 23 April 2001]: In a démarche delivered to the Belarusian authorities on 11 April, HMG together with EU partners, urged the authorities to review the cases of those imprisoned or fined, including Mr. Viachorka and Mr. Belyatsky, in connection with the 25 March demonstrations in Minsk. HMG will continue to work with EU partners and the OSCE Advisory and Monitoring Group to encourage an improvement in the human rights situation in Belarus.
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§ Mr. TrendTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made concerning the abuse of legal process in the trial of(a) Mr. Ales Belyatsky, Head of the human rights centre Vyasna and Deputy Chairman of the Belarusian Popular Front and (b) Mr. Vincuk Viachorka, Chairman of the Belarusian Popular Front. [158279]
§ Mr. Vaz[holding answer 23 April 2001]: An EU démarche was delivered on 11 April to First Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Martynov, raising concerns about the actions of the Belarusian authorities following demonstrations on 25 March, including the imprisonment of Mr. Viachorka and Mr. Belyatsky. The EU also called on the authorities to ensure that freedom of assembly of Belarusian citizens be fully guaranteed.