The UN heard a report on the situation of human rights in russia and belarus. The rapporteurs spoke about the widespread practice of torture in russia and the high level of repression in belarus. This UNN writes with reference to the Voice of America.
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Mariana Katsarova, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the russian federation, submitted a report on russia to the UN. The report describes numerous instances of the use of torture as a tool of repression to suppress dissent and intimidation.
According to Katsarova's report, these are not isolated cases. The full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 exacerbated this practice and introduced it into everyday life in russia. The use of torture is no longer limited to specific places of detention or to groups and individuals. They have become a widespread tool used to silence. The goal is to control through fear and repression, to subjugate russians through brute force. Torture has become a weapon against the very foundations of human rights and civic space in russia
She said that political prisoners, critics of the ongoing war in Ukraine and participants in protest movements are often tortured in russia.
The UN General Assembly also heard a report on the human rights situation in belarus. Special Envoy for Human Rights in belarus Anais Marin stated that after the disputed presidential election in 2020, belarusians faced repressions of unprecedented scale and intensity. She spoke about the increasing repression by the lukashenko regime.
Since the disputed 2020 presidential election, belarusians have faced repression of unprecedented scale and intensity. Thousands of people have been convicted without a fair trial for legitimately exercising their human rights. Some of those who still remain behind bars are in life-threatening conditions. Many have been detained and incommunicado for so long that we suspect they are victims of enforced disappearances
Anais Marin made it clear in her speech that, in her opinion, civil society in belarus has been practically eradicated
Recall
The prosecutor's office has identified three occupiers who tortured a civilian during the seizure of a part of Kharkiv region. Three military officers from the russian federation and the so-called "lnr" have been declared suspects for the torture and murder of a 57-year-old man in Izium. The victim was tortured to death for his pro-Ukrainian stance and buried under number 311 in a mass grave.