A/HRC/44/55 I. Introduction A. Executive summary 1. The mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus was established in 2012 by the Human Rights Council in its resolution 20/13, on the basis of a report by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (A/HRC/20/8). The Council requested the mandate holder to report to it and to the General Assembly on an annual basis. The Council has since renewed the mandate seven times, for one year each time, in resolutions 23/15, 26/25, 29/17, 32/26, 35/27, 38/14 and 41/22. 2. While Belarus has established a comprehensive national framework for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, the framework lacks human rights components and the commitment to “leave no one behind” in its national programmes for sustainable development. The Special Rapporteur notes that development cannot be sustainable if it is not inclusive and fair, or if it fails to address existing bias and discrimination patterns in society. 3. The present report, submitted to the Council pursuant to its resolution 41/22, covers the period from 1 April 2019 to 31 March 2020 and is prepared on the basis of information received up to the latter date. 4. In spite of her attempts to engage constructively with the Government of Belarus, the Special Rapporteur notes that, as in previous years, the latter has not recognized her mandate. The Special Rapporteur can only regret this and encourages the Government to review its position on the mandate. The Special Rapporteur welcomes the Government’s engagement with the Senior Human Rights Adviser as part of the wider United Nations system in Belarus, especially as Belarus is rolling out its United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework in 2021. 5. Based on the information collected, the Special Rapporteur cannot attest to any major improvements in the legal and regulatory protection of human rights in Belarus. The systemic and systematic human rights violations that she highlighted in her previous reports remain present in law and practice. The Constitution and legislative acts continue to provide inadequate protection of the rights enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and Belarus has not made meaningful progress toward the establishment of a national human rights institution. 6. During the reporting period, five death sentences were handed down and at least two executions were carried out in Belarus. Belarus continued to be the only country in Europe that imposed and executed the death penalty, and also continued to deny access to information about death penalty cases. However, the increased readiness of the Government of Belarus to engage in international and national dialogue on the issue of capital punishment is a welcome development. The Special Rapporteur reiterates that Belarus must promptly implement a moratorium on executions as a first step towards full abolition of the death penalty. 7. There has been no systemic improvement in the prevention of torture and illtreatment, although a small number of cases could suggest positive developments. Torture remains undefined in the Criminal Code of Belarus, and the Government has not addressed the necessity to prevent it in practice. 8. Arbitrary detention continued to be targeted towards civil society activists, peaceful protesters and independent journalists throughout the reporting period. While the decriminalization of activities undertaken by members of an unregistered association is a welcome step, the Special Rapporteur is extremely wary of the fact that the legislation now provides for administrative liability and heavy fines instead. Disproportional and discriminatory restrictions on freedom of opinion and expression, freedom of assembly and freedom of association highlighted in the last report of the Special Rapporteur to the General Assembly (A/74/196) attest to the persisting pressure on fundamental freedoms. Previous recommendations meant to establish an enabling environment conducive to the exercise of the right to participate in public affairs and the holding of pluralistic elections have remained unaddressed. 2