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EU issues Belarus black list, opposition says sanctions too soft

Evropa

  11:48

In the wake of new sanctions against Belarus, EU bans travel for 158 officials and pledges more money for civic society, dissidents

Czech EU Commissioner Štefan Füle (left) with Swedish foreign minister Carl Bildt — an advocate of tough sanctions against Belarus — at EU Foreign Affairs Council foto: Česká pozice

The EU on Tuesday published the names of 158 Belarus state officials who are now banned from entering the EU and are subject to a freeze of any assets they may hold within the union; Brussels also announced fresh initiatives for supporting civil society in Belarus. Some representatives of the Belarus opposition, however, see the sanctions as “soft” and “inadequate.”

The press service of the Czech Interior Ministry has yet to respond to questions posed Tuesday by Czech Position as to how the ministry intends to implement the EU travel ban. Presumably, the Foreigners Police and immigration authorities — both bodies that fall under its jurisdiction — will be responsible for enforcing the measure. The Ministry of Finance also had not responded to questions about how it intends to enforce the EU economic sanctions and monitor adherence by private financial companies.

The EU has published the names of 158 Belarusian state officials, singled out by the Council of EU foreign ministers earlier this week when it voted in favor of imposing sanctions against Minsk, and the conditions of the travel ban and asset freeze imposed upon the individuals.

Among those banned from traveling to the EU are President Alexander Lukashenko and his two adult sons; several top figures in the presidential administration; the ministers of interior, justice and information; the chief state prosecutor and regional state prosecutors and judges; the head of the Central Election Committee and heads of regional election committees; several representatives of state media, including the head of state television and the editor-in-chief of the government daily Sovetskaya Belarus; and top ranks of the state security service – the KGB. 

Belarus remains in ‘Eastern Partnership’

The EU Foreign Affairs Council confirmed following its meeting this week that it is not considering ending the inclusion of Belarus in the Eastern Partnership – an initiative to encourage participating states to introduce reforms to bring their legislation and state institutions in into line with EU norms, with the promise of free trade agreements with the EU and visa-free travel to the union for their citizens.

Critics of the Eastern Partnership say the initiative is simply a consolation from Brussels for not making a commitment on eventual EU membership

Critics of the Eastern Partnership — which was inaugurated under the Czech EU Presidency in the first half of 2009 — say the initiative is simply a consolation from Brussels for not making a commitment on eventual conditional EU membership for the participating states – Ukraine, Moldova, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Belarus.

“The EU remains committed to its policy of critical engagement, including through dialogue and the Eastern Partnership,” the foreign affairs council said in a press release Monday, adding that it “stands ready to consider further targeted measures in all areas of cooperation as appropriate.” 

No economic sanctions 

The measures approved by the EU Foreign Affairs Council fell short of the demands of Belarusian opposition activists and even the recommendations of the European parliament endorsed on Jan. 12.

Among other measures, the EU parliament recommended that the Council consider suspending the participation of Belarus in the Eastern Partnership; consider “freezing of all the macrofinancial aid provided via IMF loans as well as lending operations by the EIB and EBRD programs,”; and suspending sporting events in Belarus, including the 2014 Ice Hockey World Championships.

The Council did not, however, introduce any of these measures. The US State Department on the other hand, in addition to wider travel restrictions on Belarus state officials, also announced the reintroduced of a ban on US persons and entities conducting business with the largest Belarusian petro-chemical conglomerate Belneftekhim.  

Critics say sanctions too soft    

Jan Ruml, a former Czech interior minister and current director of the Prague-based NGO Civic Belarus, told Czech Position in a written statement that the Council’s measures are the bare minimum that the EU could do.

“The visa restrictions that the European Union has introduced are the minimum in the way of an essential response to the events in Belarus,” said Ruml — a political dissident during the Communist era in Czechoslovakia who was among the original signatories of Charter 77 — adding that he and Civic Belarus colleagues will meet with the Minister of Foreign Affairs Karl Schwarzenberg (TOP 09) in mid-February to put forward their specific proposals.     

Along with Jan Ruml, former Czech president Václav Havel, Senator Petr Bratský (Civic Democrats - ODS), and Marek Svoboda of Czech NGO People in Need are members of the Civic Belarus board.

Former Belarusian presidential candidate and prominent opposition figure Alexander Milinkevich —awarded the European Parliament's Sakharov Prize in 2006— said the sanctions probably don’t go far enough.  

“I think the decision is too mild if one takes into account the extent of brutal repressions, the way the election results were rigged, the number of political prisoners and the overall clearing of the political and public space in Belarus,” said Milinkevich, who addressed the European Parliament on Jan.12. He hoped that the EU would follow through with its promise to ease visa requirements for certain sections of Belarus society, including dissidents and students, and lend more support to civil society initiatives. 

“These cannot be called ‘sanctions’ because they will not affect Lukashenko and his regime at all ... We support the resolution passed by the European Parliament.”    

Denis Sadovsky, a representative of the Belarus Christian Democracy party was harsher in his assessment: “These cannot be called sanctions because they will not affect Lukashenko and his regime at all…. We support the resolution passed by the European Parliament and hoped that the Council of Ministers would endorse all of those measures, recommended by Karel Schwarzenberg among others,” Sadovsky told Czech Position by phone from Warsaw.

Sadovsky stressed that in his view only the financial sanctions recommended by the European Parliament, i.e. the suspension of all loans and financial support programs provided by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), European Investment Bank (EIB), and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) would have any impact upon Lukashenko’s regime.

Closer ties to Moscow would ‘end sovereignty’

Sadovsky refuted the argument that such financial sanctions could prompt Lukashenko to former a closer alliance with Moscow. “Lukashenko cannot take a single step closer to Russia… This would lead to the country losing its sovereignty and consequently the end of Lukashenko’s power,” Sadovsky said, in part referring to the coming into force of the Belarus – Russia- Kazakhstan economic and customs union. 

On Feb. 2, the EU moved to honor its promise to increase support for civic society initiatives in Belarus and for Belarusian political dissidents abroad. Speaking at a conference called “Solidarity with Belarus” International Donors’ Conference in Warsaw, Štefan Füle, European Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighbourhood Policy, pledged more funds.

“As a clear demonstration of our unequivocal support to civil society in these difficult times, we will increase our funding from the currently available €4 million to €15.6 million. Our support will target primarily Belarusian NGOs, independent media and students who are subject to the regime’s repression,” Füle said, and proposed that a follow-up meeting be held in a month’s time to coordinate the allocation of the funds.    

Scores of students were expelled from higher education institutions and workers fired for voting against Lukashenko or for taking part in the mass demonstration in Minsk on Dec. 19 following the announcement of the provisional results of presidential elections which saw Alexander Lukashenko returned for a fourth presidential term.

Sergei Ablameiko, Rector of the Belarusian State University, is among the 158 officials now barred from the EU.

 

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