Say NO to the death penalty in Belarus

December 10, “Viasna” activists congratulated passers-by on the Human Rights Day in the center of Minsk, handing out the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and information booklets on the death penalty.

On the day of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, human rights defenders turned the attention of fellow citizens to the fact that the Belarusian State disparages the fundamental rights enshrined in the universal document and does not fulfill its obligations in the field of human rights.

A striking proof of this fact is the decision of the Human Rights Committee of the United Nations in the case of Uladzislau Kavaliou, who was shot dead in 2012 on the court verdicts, which is describe in the booklet which was distributed during today's informational action.

Let us remind that Belarus has executed the death verdict in violation of its international undertakings: Uladzislau Kavaliou was shot within two months after the verdict of the Supreme Court despite the fact that his case was pending at the UN Human Rights Committee. Later, the Human Rights Committee of the UN ruled that the Belarusian state had violated the right to life in respect of Uladzislau Kavaliou. Moreover, Belarus fails to fulfill its obligations on giving publicity of the Committee's decisions: the state was to have published this documents withing 180 days after its adoption. This function was overtaken by the human rights activists within the framework of the campaign “Human Rights Activists against Death Penalty in Belarus”.