Statement by Senator Giulio Terzi (FdI) Chairman of the Senate Committee on EU Policies on Belarus Freedom Day On 25 March 1918, the Belarusian People’s Republic declared independence from Russia, signalling a determination to take a separate path from Russia. Today, in light of the repression and the structural submission of Minsk to Moscow, we stand in solidarity with all democratic Belarusian citizens who celebrate a date that has become a symbol of freedom and democracy against Soviet oppression and Alexander Lukashenko’s iron fist since 1994. Sviatlana
@Tsihanouskaya, Head of the United Transitional Cabinet of Belarus, said that Belarus is “under a creeping occupation by Russia, dragged into Putin’s criminal war against Ukraine by the pro-Russian dictator Lukashenka.But Belarus is not Russia – Belarus is Europe. And Belarusians, like any other nation, deserve freedom.” Recently, President Tsikhanouskaya addressed the audience of an international conference held in Rome with the support of the Inter-Parliamentary Group of Friendship of the Belarusian People. The conference ended with the adoption of the Rome Declaration which was signed by European parliamentarians and personalities participating in the meeting. The Declaration condemns the repression by the regime of Lukashenko, the massive electoral fraud of last January and the exclusion of opposition candidates, the arbitrary arrests and imprisonment of over 1,200 political prisoners, the Russification of Belarus. The Declaration also calls on democratic forces to support the efforts to enhance the struggle for freedom and the right of the Belarusian people to democratically choose their representatives. Nearly all European nations that suffered under Soviet occupation and that achieved freedom and democracy after the dissolution of the USSR support the European project designed by the United Transitional Cabinet of Belarus. Leaders in the European Council announced the launch of in-depth investigations into the serious human rights violations committed in Ukraine by the Russian army with the direct assistance and full complicity of Belarusian authorities. Not a mere military collaboration in the invasion of Ukraine, as Lukashenko also contributed to the deportation of thousands of Ukrainian children and minors to Belarus and Russia. The European Council conclusions of 20 March reaffirmed the EU’s strong commitment to holding to account those responsible for war crimes and serious crimes committed in relation to Russia’s war of aggression. In this context, the progress made on establishing a Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine, within the framework of the Council of Europe, is an important step. The mechanisms of international justice have been activated following the massacres by the Russian occupation forces in Bucha in April 2022. Then High Representative and Vice-President of the European Commission Josep Borrel, declared that “there can be no impunity for war crimes”. As President Tsikhanouskaya says, “supporting a free and democratic Belarus is not charity, it is an investment in peace and security for the whole of Europe. It is the best guarantee of security for Ukraine and Europe”. Happy Freedom Day to the people of Belarus!