UN Report Documents Crimes Against Humanity in Belarus

The report considers that some of the violations may amount to crimes against humanity.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk has urged the Government of Belarus to end the systematic repression of perceived critics and immediately release all detainees held on political grounds.

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk Photo: UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights

Türk issued these remarks in a UN Human Rights Office report published on March 17 that concludes gross human rights violations are being committed across the country. The report draws on interviews with 207 victims and witnesses and an analysis of over 2,500 items of evidence, including photographs, videos, medical and court records.

It documents widespread and systematic violations of international human rights law, including unlawful deprivation of life and numerous cases of arbitrary deprivation of liberty, torture and ill-treatment, as well as sexual and gender-based violence, violations of the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association, and the denial of due process and equal protection of the law.

“Our report paints an unacceptable picture of impunity and the near-total destruction of civic space and fundamental freedoms in Belarus,” Türk said. “The Government owes it to its people to bring a halt to this mass repression and to conduct impartial and transparent investigations to ensure that those responsible for grave violations are held accountable.”

The report details the findings of the Office’s examination of the human rights situation in Belarus, mandated by the UN Human Rights Council, and covers the period from 1 May 2020 to 31 December 2022.

Violations appear to have been part of a campaign of violence and repression intentionally directed at those who were – or were perceived to be – opposing the Government or had expressed critical views, the report says. The report considers that some of these violations may amount to crimes against humanity.

The beating of thousands of peaceful protesters in the immediate aftermath of disputed elections, from 9 to 14 August 2020, was approved at a high level within Government, coordinated and openly incited, the report finds. The examination also finds reasonable grounds to believe that unnecessary and disproportionate force was used against demonstrators and detainees, resulting in at least five deaths.

“Given the widespread unlawful use of force, the widespread and systematic practice of torture and inhuman treatment, including denial of medical care, and the overall situation of impunity, the actual death toll during the protests and related arrests may have been higher and further investigation would be required,” the report notes.

The UN Human Rights Office collected dozens of first-hand accounts of torture and found hundreds of complaints to be credible. It also documented over 100 cases of sexual and gender-based violence against detainees.

But the scale of sexual and gender-based violations and abuses is likely to be under-reported due to stigma, fear of reprisals and denial of access of UN Human Rights investigators to the country.

Severe sentences passed by the courts are illustrative of the instrumentalization and abuse of the justice system against opposition figures, bloggers, journalists, human rights defenders, trade union activists and lawyers, the report states.

More than a dozen legislative amendments have been passed since 2021 targeting political activists and opponents, facilitating practices such as trials in absentia, revocation of citizenship and confiscation of private property.

In addition, the scope of the death penalty has been expanded. The signature into law on 9 March of provisions authorising the death penalty for civil servants and army personnel convicted of “high treason” further illustrates the extent of repression that is being pursued.

“The appalling practice of pursuing and punishing people for carrying out legitimate human rights work continues,” said Türk, noting the long prison sentences handed down in recent weeks, including against opposition leaders Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and Pavel Latushko; Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski and three other members of the Viasna human rights centre; journalist Andrzej Poczobut; and 10 members of the Workers Movement "Rabochy Rukh".

As of 17 March, 1,462 people are in detention in Belarus on politically motivated charges. By February 2023, the authorities had shut down 797 NGOs, while 432 others had closed to avoid potential prosecution – figures that account for virtually all the human rights groups working in the country.

Most independent Belarusian media outlets have been forced to close – with some declared “extremist“ – along with, recently, the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ).

“It is disgraceful that Belarus authorities are determined to pursue those convicted of so-called ‘extremist activities’ and even go so far as to strip them of their citizenship. Such arbitrary deprivation of nationality will in some cases risk rendering a person stateless,” the High Commissioner said.

While the primary responsibility to address human rights violations remains with Belarus, the report urges UN Member States to consider working towards accountability through national proceedings based on accepted principles of extraterritorial and universal jurisdiction.

Modi Govt Foils Opposition Attempt to Get Modi-Adani Fraud Case Probed

Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) will not be the right route to catch the culprits in the Modani case because the JPC will be dominated by Modi’s colleagues.

A foot march by leaders of 18 opposition parties led by Congress was stopped on March 15 by Delhi Police which did not allow them to approach the Enforcement Directorate (ED) office to file a case against the Adani Group.

The opposition parties accuse prime minister (PM) Narendra Modi of complicity in the alleged financial crimes of Indian oligarch Gautam Adani who is in news for a series of alleged corporate frauds.

A recent investigative report of Hindenburg Research accused Adani of commiting one of the biggest corporate frauds in the world. In the report released in January, Hindenburg said that the Adani Group has engaged in a brazen stock manipulation and accounting fraud scheme over the course of decades. Since Modi is not answering opposition questions in parliament on the Adani issue, the opposition leaders decided to file a formal complaint at the ED office in Delhi so that a criminal investigation could be launched against Adani and his nexus with Modi.

The Modi government deployed heavy police force to stop opposition leaders protesting against Modi and his oligarch friend Gautam Adani in Adani corporate fraud case – in New Delhi on March 15, 2023. Photo: Congress

When the heavy police force deployed by the Modi government did not allow the opposition leaders to submit their complaint at the ED office, Congress says it has emailed the complaint letter signed by opposition members to the ED.

The 4-page complaint letter dated March 15 alleges that the Adani Group has established a network of offshore shell companies and offshore funds to artificially inflate its stock valuations and commit other frauds including money laundering.

It is also believed that Modi has been helping Adani clandestinely with huge public money raised through dubious government schemes such as the PM-CARES Fund that Modi launched secretly and the corruption money made in the controversial Rafale deal to buy Rafale fighter aircraft. Like the ongoing Adani case, these cases were not probed properly as the complicit courts refused to order investigation into these cases of malfeasance and the investigating agencies do not take any decision that may displease Modi.

Also, the China connection in the Modani (portmanteau for Modi and Adani) case cannot be ruled out. A March 2, 2023 report reveals that Adani’s business empire is deeply connected with China, as an entity related to the Adani Group financially supported a company that violated sanctions imposed by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on trade with North Korea.

According to the report, the sanctioned company was owned by sons of Chang Chung-Ling, an Adani Group associate who appeared in the Hindenburg report for his directorship of Adani entities.

Therefore, Congress and other opposition parties should demand a probe into Modi’s secret relations with China as it is believed that the Chinese occupation of the Indian territory is part of a secret deal to sell the Indian land to China in order to raise money for Adani’s businesses.

It is alleged that in quid pro quo deals, Adani also helps Modi financially to win elections with his money secretly paid through electoral bonds. As the Supreme Court of India mostly colludes with the Modi government, it is not taking a decision to bring transparency to political campaign financing with electoral bonds.

While the Supreme Court often dishonestly rescues the Modi government from such crises, on March 2 the top court formed a perfunctory committee which is expected to exonerate the embattled Adani Group from all the alleged financial frauds reported by credible global agencies and media organizations.

The opposition parties are demanding an investigation into the Adani Group’s dubious business deals by a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC). But the JPC will not be the right route to catch the culprits in the Modani case because the JPC will be dominated by Modi’s colleagues.

The opposition leaders and the workers in opposition parties should hold constant street protests to get their complaints against Adani Group registered with the Indian law-enforcement agencies.

Simultaneously, they should explore the international political and judicial forums to get this case of grand corruption investigated and prosecuted.

Dishonest U.S. Leaders Ignore Corruption and Human Rights Abuses in India

While the U.S. State Department officials have not given a proper response to my specific queries, I urge them again to take legal action against the autocratic Indian authorities.

The U.S. leaders are dishonest. While they selectively criticize corruption and human rights violations in some countries, they ignore the same or worse crimes in India.

The U.S. – which is the self-styled promoter of democracy in the world – has been downplaying the demise of democracy in India. The U.S. leaders frequently hobnob with India's prime minister Narendra Modi and his colleagues despite their regular criticism of Modi’s autocratic idiosyncrasies.

The U.S., in fact, exploits human rights abuses in India for its commercial interests, as the U.S. believes that India is a big market for its products and services. The modus operandi of the U.S. leaders is to subtly intimidate Modi with the accusations of corruption and human rights violations, and then force him to buy American products or services worth billions of dollars.

In order to take the U.S. administration’s response on why it ignores corruption and human rights abuses in India, I sent the following questionnaire to the U.S. Department of State on March 18, 2023. Although I had requested the State Department to give a specific response, as expected it gave me a totally ambiguous reply on March 20. It shows that because of its selfish interests, the U.S. administration ignores state crimes in India.

My Questionnaire Sent to the U.S. Department of State

While there are multiple global reports of extreme corruption and human rights violations in India including Kashmir, what action does the U.S. plan to take against Indian rulers? Is the U.S. driven by its commercial interests that it ignores grand corruption and human rights abuses in India?

Why can't the U.S. use laws such as the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act against Indian rulers, as the Act targets perpetrators of serious human rights abuse and corruption around the world?

In this context, please also refer to H.Res.1196 117th Congress (2021-2022) introduced in the House (06/21/2022). Submitted by Rep. Omar, Ilhan [D-MN-5] (for herself, Mr. McGovern, Ms. Tlaib, and Mr. Vargas), the resolution condemns human rights violations and violations of international religious freedom in India, including those targeting Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Dalits, Adivasis, and other religious and cultural minorities. Why is the decision on this resolution being delayed?

Note: Please do not give a standard response that the U.S. shares democratic values, etc. with India. Rather, give a specific response to the above query.

Thank You

Rakesh Raman

March 18, 2023

Evasive Reply Sent to Me by the U.S. Department of State

Rakesh,

We refer you to the following excerpt from the Monday, March 20 briefing linked below.

Acting Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Erin Barclay on the 2022 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices https://www.state.gov/acting-assistant-secretary-for-democracy-human-right s-and-labor-erin-barclay-on-the-2022-country-reports-on-human-rights-practi ces/

QUESTION: Thank you so much. Human rights advocates have raised concerns about treatment of dissidents and minorities in India. Human Rights Watch in 2019 said the Indian Government’s policies targeted minorities.

The Indian Government recently banned a BBC documentary and then raided the BBC’s offices, and India is ranked 150th in the press freedom index.

Blinken has raised concerns about the rise of rights abuses in India last year without going into specific incidents. Are you concerned by India’s treatment of minorities and dissidents and by the state of press freedom in the country? And have you raised these concerns directly with Indian counterparts?

MS BARCLAY: Thank you very much for the question. As the Secretary said, we raise the difficult issues in all of our conversations with our partners. The U.S. and India regularly consult at the highest levels on democracy and human rights issues. We have and we will continue to strongly urge India to uphold its human rights obligations and commitments.

Not surprisingly, we also regularly meet with civil society both in the U.S. and in India to hear their perspectives and learn from their experiences, and we encourage the Government of India to consult with them as well.

On the BBC issue, we’re of course aware of the BBC issues and we will continue to support free press around the world and have communicated the same.

While the U.S. State Department officials have not given a proper response to my specific queries, I urge them again to take legal action against the autocratic Indian authorities which are committing acts of corruption and human rights abuses blatantly.

Meanwhile, in its report released on March 20, 2023, the U.S. Department of State has accused India of extreme human rights violations and rampant corruption. According to the report, the state crimes happening in India include unlawful and arbitrary killings, including extrajudicial killings by the government or its agents; harsh and life-threatening prison conditions; arbitrary arrest and detention, arbitrary or unlawful interference with privacy; restrictions on freedom of expression and media, and serious government corruption. Surprisingly, however, the U.S. which promises to punish corruption and human rights violations in all parts of the world with the aim to protect democratic systems is not taking any punitive action against the autocratic Indian regime.

Despite Threats from Russia, ICC to Open Office in Ukraine

ICC has expressed concern over “threats” from Russia following its issuing of a war crimes arrest warrant for President Putin.

The Prosecutor General of Ukraine, Kostin Andriy, and the Registrar of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Peter Lewis, signed a cooperation agreement on 23 March 2023 for the establishment of an ICC country office in Ukraine.

"We are very grateful for the cooperation, support and assistance we have received from the Government of Ukraine and look forward to strengthening our cooperation in the future,” ICC Registrar Peter Lewis said.

Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin, signing on behalf of Ukraine, stated: “The historic decision by the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber to issue the arrest warrant for the sitting head of the Russian state, Mr Putin, marks a new phase in the global pursuit of justice. I firmly believe that the opening of the ICC country office in Ukraine marks the beginning of a new chapter in our close cooperation with the Court.

“This is just a start, a strong start, and I'm convinced that we will not stop until all perpetrators of international crimes committed in Ukraine are brought to justice, independently of their political or military position”.

The ICC has a Liaison Office to the United Nations in New York and seven field presence/country offices: Kinshasa and Bunia (Democratic Republic of the Congo, “DRC”); Kampala (Uganda); Bangui (Central African Republic, “CAR”); Abidjan (Côte d’Ivoire); Tbilisi (Georgia); and Bamako (Mali).

ICC field presence/country offices are essential to develop and maintain cooperative relationships with key stakeholders in situation countries and to support the Court's mandate and resulting activities in these countries.

Meanwhile, ICC has expressed concern over “threats” from Russia following its issuing of a war crimes arrest warrant for President Putin. It is learnt that Russia has opened a criminal case against ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan and the judges who issued the warrant for Putin.

After Delhi Police Action, Rahul Gandhi Releases Video to Question Modi-Adani Nexus

Rahul Gandhi released the video after a Delhi Police team came to his home to ask him certain random questions related to his comments during his recently concluded Bharat Jodo Yatra.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi - who has been constantly raising the issue of a criminal nexus between prime minister (PM) Narendra Modi and Indian oligarch

Gautam Adani - on March 19 released a video montage of his allegations.

In a series of questions, the Congress leader asks Modi how much money he has received from Adani in quid pro quo deals. He also alleged that PM Modi and the Modi government have been helping Adani expand his business illegally.

Rahul Gandhi said that Adani has external shell companies which are being used for the purpose of money laundering and stock manipulation while the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India is being forced by the Modi government to invest in Adani Group companies.

A recent investigative report of Hindenburg Research accused Adani of commiting one of the biggest corporate frauds in the world. In the report released in January, Hindenburg said that the Adani Group has engaged in a brazen stock manipulation and accounting fraud scheme over the course of decades.

Since Modi is not answering opposition questions in parliament on the Adani issue, the opposition leaders decided to file a formal complaint at the Enforcement Directorate (ED) office in Delhi so that a criminal investigation could be launched against Adani and his nexus with Modi. A group of opposition leaders held a street demonstration in Delhi on March 13 to highlight the nexus between Modi and his corporate associate Gautam Adani. They shouted rhymed slogans in Hindi,

Modi-Adani bhai bhai, desh bech ke khai malai. The slogans mean that Modi and Adani are like brothers who are selling the country to share the looted money.

Modi is also accused of misusing his position as the PM of India to help Adani by forcing the public sector banks and corporations – such as the State Bank of India (SBI) and the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India – to invest public money in Adani Group companies.

Rahul Gandhi released the video on March 19 after a Delhi Police team came to his home to ask him certain random questions related to his comments during his recently concluded Bharat Jodo Yatra.

Congress alleges that the Modi government is misusing the police force to harass Rahul Gandhi who is asking pertinent questions about the possible criminality in the Adani Group in connivance with Modi.

Delhi Police - which acts like a private militia under the autocratic Modi regime - has failed completely to maintain law and order in Delhi. But Delhi Police is being used as a weapon by the Modi government to terrorize critics and political opponents.

The Modi government used a controversial court judgment to expel Rahul Gandhi from parliament on March 24. Congress said it is an attempt by the Modi regime to terrorize Rahul Gandhi who is questioning Modi on various issues.

Congress says that despite the Modi government’s threats, Congress and Rahul Gandhi will keep asking questions related to Modi-Adani enterprise and other despotic actions of the Modi government.

You can click here to download and read the previous issues of The Unrest news magazine.

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