European MPs’ calls for relocating championships violate rights of Belarusians

        Calls of European parliamentarians for relocating international competitions away from Belarus violate rights of Belarus citizens. The opinion was voiced by Nikolai Samoseiko, Chairman of the International Affairs Commission of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus, as he commented on the resolution that the European Parliament passed on Belarus on 26 October.
Speaking about the negative evaluation expressed by European MPs about the parliamentary elections, Nikolai Samoseiko said:
        “I am truly sorry that once again the European Parliament has demonstrated its shortsightedness by relying on the policy of dual standards. Once again my attention is drawn to the fact that European politicians care more about the results of elections instead of their process.
If the outcome of an election satisfies European MPs, the blind eye is turned to any kind of violations. If the outcome is not satisfactory, the election is recognized as failing to comply with some mythical standards.
         As far as political prisoners are concerned, there are none of them in Belarus and the appeals to release them are totally groundless. Such appeals now contain more demands: “While we used to hear appeals to release the prisoners, we now hear demands for rehabilitation. If things continue like that, they may soon start demanding giving medals for the fight against the people of the Republic of Belarus”.
Let me also add that calls of European parliamentarians for relocating international competitions away from Belarus violate rights of Belarus citizens. By doing it, the European MPs suggest infringing human rights for the sake of observing human rights.
        The respect for the European Parliament is gradually falling in the eyes of those, who realistically assess the situation instead of looking at it through the ideas voiced for European politicians by representatives of the so-called opposition, who crowd near the trough.
I want to say that, relying on a multiple-vector foreign policy, Belarus is ready for a productive dialogue, a dialogue of equals. The way that the European Parliament outlines in its template-based resolutions leads to a deadlock”.