Dear President Lukashenka,

With this writing I want to express my concern about the detaining of peaceful demonstrators by the security forces during demonstrations following the recent presidential election results in Belarus. I would like to remind the Belarusian government that it is a state party to the UN Convention on Civil and Political Rights. Article 19 of this Convention states that "everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression".I am calling for the immediate and unconditional release of all those peaceful demonstrators who have been detained by the security forces during the demonstrations. The Belarusian authorities must ensure that international human rights standards are fully observed during policing operations and that demonstrators are not subjected to beating or other forms of ill-treatment. I trust that you will take the necessary steps to address this matter.

Yours sincerely,
DA