Ten Belarusians file criminal case in Germany against Lukashenko

Ten Belarusians have asked Germany’s federal prosecutor to open a criminal investigation against President Alexander Lukashenko and Belarusian security officers for alleged crimes against humanity during a crackdown on anti-government protests.

Lawyers who brought the case for the 10 people, who are now living across Europe, cited universal jurisdiction laws that allow countries to prosecute crimes against humanity, including war crimes and genocide, regardless of where they were committed.

Germany has been particularly active in pursuing such cases linked to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government.

The lawyers said their clients had documented more than 100 examples of “violence, systematic torture and other abuses” during the Belarusian government’s crackdown on protests, which broke out after Lukashenko won a presidential election last August that the opposition claims was rigged.

“The incumbent government is severely oppressing its own population with a crackdown including arbitrary arrests, politically motivated criminal persecution and other forms of repression,” they added.

The lawyers said their clients had all been imprisoned and reported instances of “spurious arrests, torture and abuse” while they were held.

Source: Aljazeera.com

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