At their video meeting on 19 August, the members of the European Council expressed their strong support for peaceful democratic development in Belarus.
The EU leaders urged the Belarusian government to "engage in genuine political dialogue with the opposition in order to deescalate the situation," the Finnish Government said in a press release. Prime Minister Sanna Marin represented Finland at the meeting.
“The country’s elections did not meet the international criteria or the criteria of the OSCE and its Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), nor can they be considered free or fair. Any new elections should be held in accordance with agreed principles, including international election observation by the OSCE,” Marin said.
In their meeting, the leaders strongly emphasised the EU’s demand to avoid the use of force and respect citizens’ fundamental rights and freedoms.
“We must strongly urge the Belarusian authorities to avoid the use of violence and to release the political prisoners arrested during demonstrations and those who were previously imprisoned,” Prime Minister Marin said.
Sanctions
In Finland’s view, the EU is justified in imposing targeted, legally warranted sanctions on those responsible for organising electoral fraud and for perpetrating violence against peaceful demonstrators.
“It is also important to maintain dialogue with Belarus. The EU must strengthen its support for Belarusian civil society, including youth and independent media. The situation must be resolved in a way that respects the will of the Belarusian people,” Marin explained.
Third protester dead
Belarusian media on Wednesday reported the third confirmed death of a protester during demonstrations against the widely disputed presidential election this month.
Gennady Shutov, aged 43 or 44, is alleged to have been shot during a protest in the south-western city of Brest, media reports said.
Belarus' Health Ministry confirmed that Shutov, a Belarusian citizen, had been brought to a military hospital in critical condition last week and died on Wednesday "despite all the efforts by doctors."
The Health Ministry's statement did not say that Shutov had been a protester or explain why he was in critical condition.
A prominent independent news source, Tut.by, said that Shutov appeared to have been shot in the head with a firearm at a protest.
Belarusian authorities previously confirmed the death of two other protesters, in the capital Minsk and the south-eastern city of Gomel.
