UN Human Rights Council Launches a Body to Investigate Violations Committed by the Belarusian Authorities
On April 4, 2024, the United Nations Human Rights Council adopted a resolution establishing a new investigative body to advance accountability for international crimes committed by Belarusian authorities. International organizations note that there is currently no meaningful avenue to justice for the abuses within Belarus and very few avenues in international fora.
In 2022, the Belarusian authorities officially banned victims of human rights violations from filing complaints with the UN Human Rights Committee. Based on its own independent investigations, the UN Human Rights Office has concluded that grave human rights violations committed in Belarus since the crackdown began in 2020 may amount to crimes against humanity, and this conclusion clearly warrants decisive action delivered by this resolution.
The new body has a mandate to investigate grave ongoing abuses, collect and preserve evidence of international crimes, and identify those responsible, building on the work of the UN Human Rights Office’s own investigation. The resolution also renewed the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Belarus.
“While the new investigative body will not resolve the rights crisis in Belarus overnight, its work will be vital in efforts to hold those responsible for these crimes accountable. It will also support human rights defenders and survivors of human rights violations who want recognition of and justice for crimes committed. The UN leadership should ensure – despite the current liquidity crisis – that the new mechanism has the support and resources to start its work immediately.”