A/HRC/4/16 page 18 Belarus, involving the European Union, the Council of Europe, the OSCE, the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the Commonwealth of Independent States, as well as possibly the Government of Belarus and representatives of the civil society. The conference would provide a forum to discuss possible ways to improve the human rights situation in Belarus and prepare the ground for an open-ended national round table on the situation of human rights in Belarus, with the objective of defining a road map for the implementation of human rights reforms, as requested by the United Nations human rights special procedures and treaty bodies; (d) The United Nations Secretary-General should adopt appropriate measures to investigate the apparent involvement of senior government officials in international organized crime and illegal arms sales, monitor the international financial cash flows of Belarus and, if necessary, freeze foreign bank accounts of those involved in illicit trafficking, and prosecute criminals; (e) The Special Rapporteur welcomes the recommendation of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe that the European Convention on Human Rights be amended in such a way as to open it for signature by Belarus even before the country meets the standards for becoming a member of the Council. That would allow Belarusian citizens to bring cases of human rights violations committed in their country before the European Court of Human Rights. 63. The Special Rapporteur would like to reiterate that Member States should be aware and should not ignore that present trading relations with Belarus do not grant a better quality of life to Belarusian citizens, but allow President Lukashenka’s regime to remain in power by systematically violating human rights and threatening international security. Trade relations should be conditional upon the immediate adoption of democratic initiatives such as the organization of the proposed round table on the situation of human rights in Belarus. While the European Union and the United States of America should maintain travel restrictions for Belarusian officials, the Special Rapporteur recommends that all Member States, especially the Russian Federation and Ukraine, as neighbouring States, adopt similar measures. On the other hand, international travel for ordinary Belarusian citizens should be facilitated and a reduction of or even an exemption from visa fees would be much welcomed. 64. The mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus gave a sign of international solidarity to Belarusian victims of human rights violations and to human rights defenders, further raised international awareness of the situation of human rights in Belarus, mobilized international support, and indicated clearly to Belarusian stakeholders what measures they are expected to take in order to ensure the compliance of Belarus with its international human rights and international law obligations as a dignified Member of the United Nations. Therefore, the Special Rapporteur reiterates his recommendation to the Human Rights Council to extend the mandate not only in time, but also in scope and means. This is the least the international democratic and civilized community can do to keep alive the hope that an improvement of the human rights record in Belarus is possible.