BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

16/05/2006

Bush Bans Travel to U.S. by Belarusian Dictator, Associates

Important for United States to help Belarusians achieve democracy, Bush says

By Jeffrey Thomas

Washington File Staff Writer

Washington - President Bush has banned travel to the United States by Belarusian dictator Aleksandr Lukashenko and those associated with his regime, citing pervasive election fraud, corruption and human rights abuses in the former Soviet republic.

In a proclamation issued May 15, Bush said it is important and in the interests of the United States "to help the Belarusian people achieve their aspirations for democracy and to help complete the transformation to a Europe whole, free, and at peace."

Affected by the travel ban are all those who "formulate, implement, participate in, or benefit from policies or actions, including electoral fraud, human rights abuses, and corruption, that undermine or injure democratic institutions or impede the transition to democracy in Belarus," Bush said.

The ban extends to those who, through business dealings with Belarusian government officials, "derive significant financial benefit" from the Lukashenko regime's anti-democratic polices or corruption; it also applies to spouses of those forbidden entry into the United States.

In the proclamation, Bush cites several offenses of the Lukashenko regime, including the suppression of human rights and democracy, fraud perpetrated during the March Belarusian presidential election, the detention of peaceful protesters, persistent acts of corruption by Belarusian government officials and the failure of the Lukashenko government "to support the rule of law, human rights commitments, and other principles of high priority to the United States."

Lukashenko, who has been in office since 1994, ran for a third term in March. In 2004, he engineered what the United States considered a "fraudulent referendum" that enabled him to change the Belarus Constitution, which otherwise would have banned him from running for a third term.

The international election observation mission charged with evaluating the electoral process leading up to the March 19 vote deemed it "severely flawed." Citing the election observation mission's findings, the United States refused to accept the results and supported opposition calls for a new vote. (See related article.)

The United States also has criticized Lukashenko for his corruption and links to terrorists. A U.S. government report released in March cited "credible information" that senior government leaders in Belarus "abuse public resources, including for personal use," and said that Lukashenko "is likely among the most corrupt leaders in the world" with assets potentially worth billions of dollars. The report also cited secret arms sales to such state sponsors of terrorism as Iran and Sudan. (See related article.)

The United States previously applied economic sanctions to the Lukashenko regime through the Belarus Democracy Act of 2004, which provided assistance for Belarusian political parties, nongovernmental organizations and independent media while prohibiting U.S. government agencies from providing loans and investment to the Belarus government, except for humanitarian goods. (See related article.)

The European Union imposed a travel ban in late March on Lukashenko and more than 30 other high-ranking Belarusian officials. According to news reports, EU officials intend to announce further sanctions in the coming days. (See related article.)

The United States and European Union, as well as international human rights organizations, strongly criticized the Belarusian government for jailing opposition leader Alexander Milinkevich for 15 days for taking part in a demonstration commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor accident. (See the U.S. statement to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Permanent Council on the U.S. mission's Web site.)

"There is no place in a Europe whole and free for a regime of this kind," U.S. Vice President Cheney told a summit of leaders from the Baltic and Black Sea states May 4 in Vilnius, Lithuania.

Source:

http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2006&m=May&x=200605161431211CJsamohT0.8588831&t=livefeeds/wf-latest.html