Belarus: Presidential Elections

Jim Shannon Excerpts

Thursday 24th September 2020 Commons Chamber

[Dominic Raab]

I pay tribute to the work of my right hon. Friend and Members from across the House in the Council of Europe, which is an important institution. It does not get the same media or public attention as the EU, but it does incredibly important work, particularly in this field. I give my full support to the efforts that she and the Council of Europe are making. Not only will our work with the OSCE investigation of vote rigging and human rights abuses provide moral support, but its findings will provide practical support in making progress with her important work.

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

I thank the Foreign Secretary for his statement. I am greatly encouraged, as this House should be, by the fact that we have a Foreign Secretary who leads from the front. Will he outline whether reports of women and children being beaten by police officers and having their passports removed have been verified by FCDO officials in Belarus? What steps can we take to stand alongside those who are having their most basic human rights disregarded in the horrific scenes we have watched on TV?

[Dominic Raab]

We are shocked, as the hon. Gentleman is, by the severity and brazenness of the violence that has been carried out in front of the media, and the reports that we have seen are as bad as he suggests. Right now, we need a dual effort: we need to reach out and support those who find themselves under attack, particularly the journalists and those in the media who are trying to shine a light on this horrific abuse; and, ultimately, with our European, American, Canadian and other partners, we need to hold to account those who commit these appalling abuses of human rights.