On 23 February 2022, IAPB’s Senior Prosecutor, Kate Vigneswaran, took part in a side event organized by Human Rights House Foundation and others ahead of the release of the report by the OHCHR Examination on the human rights situation in Belarus.

The OHCHR Examination of Belarus was created by Human Rights Council Resolution 46/20 in March 2021, following widespread, serious human rights violations in Belarus in the context of the Presidential election in Belarus in 2020. This event preceded the 49^th United Nations Human Rights Council session during which the report of the OHCHR Examination was presented and provided an update on the human rights situation and focus on the Council’s next steps in the accountability process.

Watch the recording of the side event here

On 2 December 2021, the IAPB’s Senior Prosecutor, Kate Vigneswaran, and IAPB representative Victoria Fedorova, Co-founder of the International Committee for the Investigation of Torture in Belarus, participated in an high-level side event “The OSCE Moscow Mechanism Report of Belarus: Accountability of perpetrators and justice for victims” that was held alongside the 28^thOSCE Ministerial Council in Stockholm.

The high-level side event aimed to highlight the deteriorating human rights situation in Belarus and foster a discussion between OSCE participating States and representatives from civil society on the possible next steps to follow up on the recommendations in the OSCE Moscow Mechanism report, in order to help ensure accountability of perpetrators and justice for the victims of human rights violations in Belarus.

On 30 November 2021, the IAPB’s Senior Prosecutor, Kate Vigneswaran, presented the work of the IAPB to the European Parliament Subcommittee on Human Rights.

This event, the third meeting of the European Parliament’s platform on the fight against impunity in Belarus, focused on accountability for perpetrators and justice for victims. MEPs together with prominent members of Belarusian civil society and academia, as well as representatives of other EU institutions, explored options for the international community to react to ongoing events in Belarus, where a relentless state crackdown on dissenting voices has been ongoing since the fraudulent presidential elections in August 2020.

In particular, participants examined the use of universal jurisdiction to investigate and prosecute crimes committed by the Belarusian regime, and the roles institutions such as the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice could play in the case of Belarus.

Download the full statement here

Watch the recording of the European Parliament Subcommittee on Human Rights briefing here

On 8 October 2021, the IAPB’s Head, Jens Modvig, and IAPB representative and Co-founder of the International Committee for the Investigation of Torture in Belarus, Victoria Fedorova, participated in an Aria Formula Meeting on the Situation in Belarus.

The high-level informal virtual meeting was held at the UN Security Council on Estonia’s initiative to draw attention to the deteriorating human rights situation in Belarus and the actions of Belarusian authorities that violate international law, such as the forced landing of a civilian airplane.

The keynote speaker was Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights (OHCHR) in New York Ilze Brands Kehris. Estonia had called the meeting and it had a record number of co-sponsors – 32 countries, including several members of the UN Security Council and other UN members from Europe and beyond.

Watch the recording of the Aria Formula Meeting on the Situation in Belarus here

See the photo gallery of the Aria Formula Meeting on the Situation in Belarus here