Two OSCA PA observers were denied Belarusian visas as the authorities found them “unwelcome persons.”
Marieluise Beck, a member of Alliance’90/The Greens in Germany's Bundestag who planned to arrive in Belarus to observe the country’s parliamentary elections, said on Wednesday that Belarusian authorities’ decision to deny her a visa was “further proof that the elections are a farce.”
“Dictator Lukashenka is not even trying to keep up appearances of free and fair elections if he locks journalists and observers out,” said Ms. Beck, who is also a member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
“I'm feeling honored that Aliaksandr Lukashenka thinks I'm so dangerous that they have to deny the entry to me,” she said. “With the visa denial, Belarus affronts the OSCE and the instrument of election observation which was agreed between the states who take part in the OSCE. We will nonetheless follow closely the elections and political developments in Belarus even without a visa.”
Emanuelis Zingeris, another member of the observation mission of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly who was not allowed to enter Belarus, said that the visa denial for him suggests that nothing has changed in Belarus.
“This reveals that the regime in Belarus has not changed its color,” said Mr. Zingeris, who chairs the Lithuanian parliament's foreign affairs committee. “This reveals that the regime has taken a selective approach to deciding which people to let into the country and which ones to deny entry. Unfortunately, the regime continues its old policy.”
Mr. Zingeris noted that he had learned about the visa denial for him from news reports.
He said that he had repeatedly been denied a Belarusian visa because of his criticism of the Lukashenka regime. “I guess I’ll even be unable to visit the graves of my ancestors in Lida while this regime exists,” he said.
“I am disappointed to hear that two members of our delegation were not allowed to enter Belarus to observe the upcoming parliamentary elections,” Matteo Mecacci, head of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s observation mission, said in a statement.
“I hope to receive an exhaustive explanation on this issue from the authorities to make sure that the atmosphere for the upcoming Election Observation Mission will remain calm and so that our work can continue without restrictions or limitations, as stated in our invitation to observe the elections," Mr. Mecacci said.
It was reported previously that two OSCA PA observers were denied Belarusian visas as the authorities found them “unwelcome persons.”
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