BRUSSELS. Feb 17 (Interfax) - It is unacceptable that the people of Belarus are being persecuted for exercising their fundamental rights by peacefully protesting against police brutality and the fraudulent election of August 2020, Peter Stano, spokesperson for High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell, said.
"The Belarusian authorities have today targeted human rights defenders, including from the respected Human Rights Centre Viasna, and journalists leading the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ). Their houses and offices are being searched as the authorities escalate their intimidation and assault campaign against civil society activists, human rights defenders and journalists, in complete violation of their fundamental freedoms, human rights, and the rule of law," Stano said in a statement seen by Interfax on Tuesday.
Hundreds of the trials which have taken place in Belarus were politically motivated, he said.
"Belarusians have been denied the most basic rights, including the right to fair trial and the right to humane treatment in custody. Hundreds of documented cases of torture have been collected to date," Stano said.
The EU continuously addresses the human rights situation in Belarus, he said.
The EU has already imposed sanctions against 84 individuals and seven entities "responsible for repression and intimidation of peaceful demonstrators, opposition members and journalists, as well as for misconduct of the electoral process," Stano said.
Any further sanctions are for the Council of the EU to adopt by unanimity, he said.
"The EU firmly believes that only democracy, the rule of law, and conducting free and fair elections in respect of the democratic will of the people of Belarus is the only way forward, and will guarantee the long-term stability and sovereignty of Belarus," Stano said.
Belarus has seen continuous protests against the official results of the presidential election that took place on August 9, 2020. The authorities declared incumbent President Alexander Lukashenko the winner. Lukashenko has been in office since 1994. The opposition does not recognize the results of the presidential election, saying the election was rigged. Several opposition leaders have been arrested, and others have been forced to leave the country. The protesters are demanding Lukashenko's resignation, the release of political prisoners, and a new election.
Belarusian law enforcement has been fiercely suppressing the protests, which as a result have moved into residential areas and are being held in different parts of Minsk.
The EU and the U.S. do not recognize Lukashenko as the legitimate president of Belarus. The EU has imposed sanctions on Belarus.