Credit: By Gary Raynaldo /  ©Diplomatic Times/ United Nations Secretary-General António  Guterres

By Gary Raynaldo      DIPLOMATIC TIMES

UNITED NATIONS  –   NEW  YORK  –  UN Secretary-General António  Guterres  Wednesday appealed for restraint in Belarus, where ongoing clashes between police and demonstrators continue following disputed elections held on Sunday. Police in Minsk continued to detain and arrest people amid the unrest following the re-election of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko who reportedly won a sixth term with a landslide 80% of the vote.  Many protesters called the election fraudulent. Thousands were arrested in the protests, which continued for a third night. UN Spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said Secretary-General Guterres continues to follow the situation “with great concern”.

UN chief António Guterres has urged all relevant parties to avoid actions that would further enflame tensions, and to approach the issues in the spirit of dialogue. The Secretary-General calls on the Belarusian authorities to show maximum restraint and to ensure full respect for the rights of freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association”

-UN Spokesman Stéphane Dujarric  

UN Human Rights Chief Condemns Violence against Protesters

Photo Credit: UN News/Daniel Johnson / Michele Bachelet, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.

The flow of free information is “crucial” in a democratic society, the UN human rights chief said on Wednesday, spotlighting the landlocked eastern European nation of Belarus, “especially in a context of crisis and social unrest”.  UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, condemned the authorities’ violent response: “I remind the Belarusian authorities that the use of force during protests should always be exceptional and a measure of last resort” she said, “clearly differentiating between any violent individuals and peaceful protesters, against whom force should not be used.”

🇧🇾 #Belarus: UN Human Rights Chief @mbachelet condemns the violent response of the Belarusian authorities to the peaceful demonstrations held across the country in the aftermath of the presidential election and calls for people’s grievances to be heard 👉 https://t.co/wKz0s2LgvM pic.twitter.com/cQSiWwZZWy

— UN Human Rights (@UNHumanRights) August 12, 2020