At its 29th session (15 June-3 July 2015), the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) adopted a resolution extending the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus for one year, as the November 2015 presidential election is approaching. By doing so, a large group of HRC member states from all regions rejected narratives on the so-called "normalization" of Belarus. They also reaffirmed the need for the international community to monitor the country’s situation, characterized by "systemic and systematic" human rights violations, and to protect human rights defenders, civil society organizations and independent voices.
Despite the release of Ales Bialiatski, President of Viasna and Vice-President of FIDH, after three years of arbitrary detention, the human rights situation in Belarus has not improved. Its gravity calls for continued and close scrutiny by the UN’s main body in charge of promoting and protecting human rights. The HRC has responded to this call from FIDH and other NGOs by adopting this resolution on Belarus.