BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

Thursday, 07 July 2005

Sanctioning Belarus

Written by Brussels journalist David Ferguson

"Our grave concerns about trade union rights in Belarus have led to an investigation into alleged violations of freedom of association and also the right to collective bargaining, as defined in the ILO Conventions, especially within the framework of the GSP, the Generalised System of Preferences," said EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner. "The investigation might ultimately result in the withdrawal of Belarus' access to the benefits of the GSP."

The EU's Generalised System of Preferences grants products imported from beneficiary countries, including Belarus, either duty-free access or tariff reductions. Losing this status would cause great economic disruption for politically isolated Belarus which exports and imports around ?2.6 billion from the EU.

At the end of 2003, the Commission decided to initiate an investigation into violation of freedom of association in Belarus as the first step towards a possible temporary withdrawal of GSP status. Neighbouring Poland and Lithuania vigorously oppose increased restrictions on trade with Belarus. And within the European Parliament, many also oppose cutting trade links with Belarus.

"I have never advocated completely cutting off contact with the Belarus authorities in areas of mutual concern such as people trafficking and trade matters," said MEP Charles Tannock. "It is also true that current EU policies have not paid any dividends. The regime of President Lukashenko has retreated into a siege mentality, in which increasing paranoia about the intentions of the EU, the USA, and even Russia at times has resulted in mounting repression and authoritarian responses."

On Thursday, though, frustrated at the lack of results from the Commission's Belarus policy, the European Parliament adopted its fourth resolution on the country in the space of one year. The Parliament called for more support from the Council and Commission for independent media and NGOs in Belarus, and to support the initiative of independent radio broadcast from abroad. The vote in Strasbourg symbolically took place in the presence of Iryna Krasouskaya, chair of the 'We remember' NGO and wife of a government-critical businessman who disappeared in mysterious circumstances in 1999.

"The problem is our financial regulations. It is very difficult for me to go against the financial rules, which is why it takes a lot of time," admitted European Commissioner Ferrero-Waldner, replying to criticism in the European Parliament. "I cannot just go and give money to any NGOs. I do not wish to be accused of irregularities, as colleagues have been in the past."

"The European Parliament's initiatives on Belarus are a way of presenting an alternative to the current bureaucratically driven approach of the European Commission," said Polish MEP Bogdan Klich, chair of the Parliament's Belarus delegation. "We are strongly convinced that only courageous and unconventional undertakings can influence an effective support for democracy in Belarus by the European Union. It is our duty to remind as often as possible about the situation in Belarus, the last remaining dictatorship in Europe," said Klich.

Source:

http://euro-reporters.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=119&Itemid=1