Item 4 - Interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on Belarus. NB8 Denmark (29.06.2026)

UNITED NATIONS HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL 62st Session

Item 4 - Interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on Belarus

Intervention by Denmark on behalf of the Nordic-Baltic States

 

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29.06.2026

President,

 

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the Nordic-Baltic States.

We thank the Special Rapporteur for his report, which confirms that Belarus continues to systematically violate human rights and perpetrate total suppression of freedoms of expression, peaceful assembly and association.

850 political prisoners remain detained and politically motivated arrests continue. The of release of prisoners should never be accompanied by coercion, exile, or further punishment.

We deplore the use of torture, coercive psychiatric treatment, arbitrary detention, misuse of anti-extremism laws, and transnational repression to suppress dissent beyond Belarus’ borders. The latest wave of repression targeting supporters of Ukraine raises serious concerns.

We condemn Belarus's transnational repression of Vilnius-based European Humanitarian University students and their families in Belarus, following the Belarusian government's decision to label this university as an "extremist organisation”.

We urge Belarus to immediately and unconditionally release all political prisoners and end all forms of repression.

We strongly condemn the marginalisation of the Belarusian language, and discrimination of LGBTI+ persons and minority communities, including Polish and Lithuanian minorities, which reflects a broader effort to eliminate pluralism and consolidate ideological control.

How should we utilise the tools at our disposal to ensure accountability?

Thank you.