General documents - Joint Statement on the continued worsening of the election environment in Belarus - Delegation for relations with Belarus

Brussels, 19 June 2020 - "We are alarmed by the deteriorating election environment in the run-up to the 9 August presidential election and condemn renewed arrests and harassment of presidential candidates, as well as their supporters, peaceful demonstrators and civil society activists.

We are profoundly disturbed by the arrest, by order of President Lukashenka, of presidential candidate Viktar Babaryka and his son Eduard, who heads his nomination group. We have also been appalled by the anonymous threats made against presidential candidate Svietlana Cichanouskaja and her children; by the intimidation and violence targeting the family and associates of detained video blogger Siarhiej Cichanouski; by the continued harassment of opposition figures, including Mikalai Statkevich and Pavel Severynets; as well as by large-scale arrests of participants of peaceful and legal signature collection campaign events across the country.