[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 708 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






117th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 708

   Expressing the sense of the Senate on the political repression in 
  Belarus on the two-year anniversary of the August 2020, fraudulent 
                         presidential election.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 13, 2022

 Mr. Durbin (for himself, Mr. Tillis, Mrs. Shaheen, Mrs. Fischer, Mr. 
   Van Hollen, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Markey, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Kaine, and Mr. 
 Coons) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
   Expressing the sense of the Senate on the political repression in 
  Belarus on the two-year anniversary of the August 2020, fraudulent 
                         presidential election.

Whereas Alyaksandr Lukashenka has ruled Belarus as an undemocratic dictatorship 
        since the first presidential election in Belarus in 1994, dismantling 
        the democratic institutions of Belarus and seeking to jail those who 
        compete against him in presidential elections or protest his 
        authoritarian regime;
Whereas the Lukashenka regime jailed leading opposition candidates that 
        attempted to compete in the August 9, 2020, presidential election in 
        Belarus;
Whereas Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya ran in the August 9, 2020, presidential 
        election after the jailing of her husband, opposition candidate Siarhei 
        Tsikhanouski, and was widely seen as the legitimate winner by the 
        international community;
Whereas the August 9, 2020, presidential election, in which Lukashenka claimed 
        victory, was marred by widespread concern over its legitimacy, as noted 
        by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the 
        European Council, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, 
        the Department of State, and reputable international human rights 
        groups;
Whereas the Senate, as expressed in Senate Resolution 658 (116th Congress) and 
        Senate Resolution 345 (117th Congress), both of which passed with 
        unanimous support, has stated its deep concern regarding the most recent 
        fraudulent election that took place in Belarus on August 9, 2020;
Whereas, in response to the August 9, 2020, fraudulent presidential election, 
        the people of Belarus staged the largest and longest sustained public 
        protests in the history of the country, calling for a democratic 
        Belarus;
Whereas, since the August 9, 2020, fraudulent presidential election, the 
        Lukashenka regime has continued to pressure, harass, imprison, and 
        persecute opposition leaders, civil society activists, human rights 
        defenders, and independent media;
Whereas, according to the Viasna Human Rights Centre, the Government of Belarus 
        has continued to keep at least 1,244 people imprisoned on politically 
        motivated charges or under false pretense of terrorist threat, including 
        opposition candidate Siarhei Tsikhanouski, who was sentenced to 18 years 
        in prison;
Whereas Russia provided critical support to the Lukashenka regime following the 
        repression of the protests that followed the August 9, 2020, fraudulent 
        presidential election, backing the Lukashenka regime's efforts to 
        prevent the emergence of a democratic Belarus, including through the 
        provision of financial assistance, propaganda support, and offers of 
        military assistance;
Whereas, on May 23, 2021, the Government of Belarus unlawfully forced the 
        landing of Ryanair Flight 4978 in Minsk to arrest journalist and 
        activist Raman Pratasevich and his partner Sofia Sapega;
Whereas, since July 7, 2021, the Government of Belarus has weaponized vulnerable 
        migrants by manufacturing a border crisis with Latvia, Lithuania, and 
        Poland in retaliation for sanctions imposed by the European Union;
Whereas, on February 24, 2022, Russia launched an unprovoked war against 
        Ukraine, using Belarus as a launching pad for its attack;
Whereas the Lukashenka regime has continued to allow Belarus to be used by 
        Russian President Vladimir Putin for his illegal and unprovoked war 
        against Ukraine, including via a sham February 27, 2022, constitutional 
        referendum on provisions to enable Belarus to host nuclear weapons and 
        undo Belarus' decades-long commitment to neutrality;
Whereas, since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Lukashenka has met with Vladimir 
        Putin on at least four separate occasions, including most recently on 
        June 25, 2022, when Putin pledged to supply Belarus with missile systems 
        capable of carrying nuclear weapons;
Whereas, despite support from the Lukashenka regime for Putin's war in Ukraine, 
        hundreds of brave Belarusians have joined together to defend Ukraine, 
        both on the battlefield in Ukraine and in the disruption of Russian 
        supply lines;
Whereas the United States and allies of the United States have imposed sanctions 
        on the Lukashenka regime for the August 9, 2020, fraudulent presidential 
        election and ensuing repression as well as support for Putin's war in 
        Ukraine;
Whereas, on December 15, 2020, Julie Fisher was confirmed by the Senate as 
        Ambassador to Belarus, but her credentials were not accepted by the 
        Lukashenka regime, resulting in President's Biden decision in October 
        2021 to appoint Mrs. Fisher as Special Envoy for Belarus; and
Whereas Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, in exile in 
        Lithuania, continues to represent the widely shared desire of the 
        Belarusian people for free and fair elections and democracy: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) continues, on the second anniversary of the fraudulent 
        presidential election that took place in Belarus on August 9, 
        2020, to refuse to recognize Alyaksandr Lukashenka as the 
        legitimately elected leader of Belarus;
            (2) condemns the ongoing harassment and persecution of 
        opposition leaders, civil society activists, human rights 
        defenders, and independent media carried out by the Lukashenka 
        regime, and urges the immediate release, without preconditions, 
        of all political prisoners in Belarus, including Siarhei 
        Tsikhanouski, as well as for all representatives of democratic 
        forces, civil society, and independent media in exile to be 
        able to return home without fear of persecution or prosecution;
            (3) calls for new presidential and parliamentary elections 
        to be held in Belarus, conducted in a manner that meets 
        international standards and includes independent election 
        monitoring;
            (4) condemns the shameful and self-serving support provided 
        by the Lukashenka regime for Russian President Putin's savage 
        war in Ukraine;
            (5) welcomes continued and coordinated sanctions imposed by 
        the United States and European Union and other tools to support 
        democracy in Belarus;
            (6) recognizes the extraordinary support offered by the 
        Governments of Lithuania, Poland, and Ukraine to support the 
        people of Belarus, including support for the political 
        opposition, accommodation of political refugees, and backing of 
        independent media;
            (7) encourages President Biden to swiftly appoint a new 
        Special Envoy for Belarus to support the pro-democracy 
        movement; and
            (8) stands in solidarity with the many brave Belarusians, 
        such as Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who continue to strive for a 
        free and democratic Belarus.
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