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Helsinki Dialogue - A democratic future for Belarus
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Belarus: parliamentarians and democratic forces hold dialogue in Helsinki on the country’s future

11/01/2024 | Political Affairs and Democracy

Leading representatives of democratic forces from Belarus as well as members of civil society and journalists joined with parliamentarians from across Europe in Helsinki on 11-12 January 2024 for discussions on building a democratic future for Belarus. The “Helsinki Dialogue” event, jointly...

Helsinki Dialogue - A democratic future for Belarus / Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya
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Belarus democratic forces in Helsinki for parliamentary dialogue on the country's future

08/01/2024 | Political Affairs and Democracy

Leading representatives of democratic forces from Belarus – including their leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya – as well as members of civil society and journalists will join parliamentarians from across Europe in Helsinki on 11-12 January 2024 for discussions on building a democratic future for...

Minsk, Belarus
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Belarus: PACE committee takes a stand for democracy, urges accountability and support

12/12/2023 | Political Affairs and Democracy

The PACE Political Affairs committee reaffirmed its dedication to supporting and advocating for the rights, freedoms, and safety of all Belarusians, expressing solidarity with all those impacted by the crimes of the Lukashenka regime. It reiterated its “ambition to welcome a future democratic...

Return of Ukrainian children: ‘Parliamentarians must increase awareness on the crimes committed by Russia...

10/12/2023 | News

PACE Vice-President Olena Khomenko (Ukraine, CE/AD) participated in the first meeting of the International Coalition of Countries for the Return of Ukrainian Children, representing PACE on behalf of President Tiny Kox. “As parliamentarians, we can employ many instruments to increase awareness on...

Paul Galles

‘National parliaments should support Belarusians in exile’, says PACE rapporteur

10/11/2023 | Migration, International Protection and Economic Co-operation

PACE rapporteur Paul Galles (Luxembourg, EPP/CD) on “Addressing the specific challenges faced by the Belarusians in exile” today urged that, amidst the tragedies happening around the planet, the fight for a democratic and free Belarus must remain high on the agenda. In this context, he welcomed...

Prison
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PACE General Rapporteur calls on Belarus not to carry out a new death sentence

20/10/2023 | Legal Affairs and Human Rights

PACE General Rapporteur on the abolition of the death penalty Aleksandar Nikoloski (North Macedonia, EPP/CD) reacted today to a new death sentence in Belarus: “I condemn in the strongest possible terms yesterday’s judgment of the Minsk Regional Court, sentencing Aleksandr Taratuta (convicted of...

Kimmo Kiljunen (Finland, SOC)
©Jukka-Pekka Flander / SDP

Belarus: Statement by PACE rapporteur on the occasion of the 3rd anniversary of the presidential elections

08/08/2023 | Political Affairs and Democracy

“The 3rd anniversary of the fraudulent presidential elections of 2020 in Belarus is a moment to mark our solidarity with all those Belarusians who have chosen freedom, human rights, democracy, and the rule of law,” said Kimmo Kiljunen (Finland, SOC), rapporteur on “Call for a national political...

Hemicycle EP
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Summer Session: political consequences of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, participation of Russian and...

23/06/2023 | Session

A joint urgent debate on the political consequences of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, and on the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in the Paris 2024 Olympics and Paralympics, was a highlight of the Summer plenary session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe...

Linda Hofstad HELLELAND (Norway, EPP/CD)
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PACE calls for a total ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes taking part in the Paris Olympics and...

22/06/2023 | Session

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has called on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and its constituent sports bodies to maintain the position expressed in 2022, and to prohibit the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in the Paris Olympic and Paralympic...

Volny choir
©Council of Europe

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya: ‘Volny Chor performances give Belarusians hope and energy to continue the fight’

20/06/2023 | Session

In the framework of the debate on “Addressing the specific challenges faced by Belarusians in exile”, the Volny Chor today performed before the Parliamentary Assembly. Volny Chor emerged from the rallies arranged by the musicians of the Belarusian State Philharmonic in August 2020. Almost...

Paul Galles

PACE hails ‘resilience, courage and determination’ of exiled Belarusians, urges practical support

20/06/2023 | Session

PACE has hailed the “resilience, courage and determination” of Belarusians who have been forced into exile by the repression of the Lukashenka regime – and urged states hosting them to take legal and practical steps to welcome them. In a resolution, based on a report by Paul Galles (Luxembourg...

Indrek Saar at current affairs debate on Olympics

Current affairs debate on ‘Excluding athletes from Russia and Belarus from taking part in the Olympics’

26/05/2023 | Standing Committee

“The Olympic Charter clearly states that the goal of Olympism is to place sport at the service of the harmonious development of humankind, with a view to promoting a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity. The Russian war of aggression is an indisputable breach of this...