OSCE Chairman-in-Office issues statement on Belarus

BERN, 30 November 1996 - The Chairman-in-Office of the OSCE, Swiss Foreign Minister Flavio Cotti, issued the following statement today:

Noting the continuing concern of the OSCE over developments in Belarus, I sent the Secretary General of the Organization, Ambassador Giancarlo Aragona, to Minsk on 27-28 November 1996.

I have now received his report on his meetings with President Lukashenko, the President of the Supreme Council, Mr. Sharetsky, and the President of the Constitutional Court, Mr. Tichinya.

His findings confirm that there is a serious division between the President and the parliamentary and judicial bodies of the country.

As the Chairman-in-Office of the OSCE, it is my duty to ensure that OSCE norms and principles, to which Belarus agreed, are fully respected. I recall that a team of legal experts sent by the OSCE to Minsk in October had reported that the constitutional procedures concerning the referendum were not followed, and on 18 November, the Ministers of the OSCE Troika issued a statement warning that, in the prevailing circumstances, the referendum was illegitimate. Several other international organizations and countries had taken a similar stance. Thus, the report of the Secretary General that the President is implementing the results of the Referendum gives us great concern about the democratic development in Belarus.

At the upcoming OSCE Lisbon Summit, we shall consult on ways in which the Organization can assist Belarus to overcome the institutional crisis.