[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 115 (Wednesday, July 13, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3277-S3278]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   SENATE RESOLUTION 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

  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:

                              S. Res. 708

       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

[[Page S3278]]

       (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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