A/HRC/4/16 page 13 various sources, such as the Report on Belarus, the Last Dictatorship in Europe, including Arms Sales and Leadership Assets, issued by the United States Government on 16 March 2006, and the international media (International Herald Tribune, Mark Douglas, “Choke off Belarus’s deadly arms trade”, 9 October 2006) made public data concerning the possible involvement of Belarus in international weapons trafficking, thus confirming the Special Rapporteur’s fears on that issue. 48. On the other hand, after the presentation of the previous report and very much in line with its recommendations, the Russian Federation announced that it would eliminate the price subsidies for energy exported to Belarus (including natural gas). If market prices for energy are going to be applied in the trade relations between Belarus and Russia, it is very likely that the authorities in Minsk will no longer have the financial means to continue to commit human rights violations and limit civil liberties by means of a discriminatory social protection policy. However, a number of representatives of the Belarus political opposition and civil society have claimed that the new Russian trade policy towards their country has as its aim to reduce, or even put an end to the economic and, eventually, political independence of Belarus. C. Cultural rights and national minorities 49. Since the last report of the Special Rapporteur, the Union of Poles in Belarus (UPB) still faces difficulties with the authorities. In late October 2006, Belarusian customs officials claimed that they had found drugs in a car carrying Angelica Borys, the ousted leader of the UPB. She and her supporters say that this accusation is politically motivated. 50. The Roma minority (about 70,000 people) also faces discrimination and exclusion. In particular, Roma often are victims of police violence, lack the identity documents they need to access fundamental rights, live in isolated settlements and have limited access to education. Roma children face difficulties in enrolling in school. Reportedly, 50 per cent of the Roma population is illiterate, 85 per cent do not complete secondary education and 98 per cent are unemployed. V. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 51. Before drawing any conclusion on the substance of the matter, the Special Rapporteur is obliged to address a number of issues which along the years have been the subject of allegations formulated not only by Belarus but also by several members of the Commission on Human Rights and later by members of the Human Rights Council, namely: (a) that the Special Rapporteur’s mandate and his assessments are politically motivated; (b) that the Special Rapporteur’s recommendations have an unacceptably political character which aim at regime change; (c) that the Special Rapporteur’s approach is subjective and biased; and (d) that the Special Rapporteur has exceeded the limits of the mandate entrusted to him by the Commission/Council. On those issues the Special Rapporteur states the following: (a) Individual and collective human rights are about power-sharing between the State and the citizens as well as between the political leadership and the society. That means that everything related to the protection and promotion of human rights is political.