BRUSSELS, June 14 (UPI) -- The European Union welcomes pressure from the United Nations on Belarus over its troubling human rights record, leading commissioners said Friday.
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton and Commissioner for Neighborhood Policy Stefan Fule said they welcomed a resolution at the Human Rights Council condemning Belarus.
"We recall that the development of bilateral relations between the EU and Belarus is conditional on progress toward respect by Belarus for the principles of democracy, the rule of law and human rights," they said in a joint statement Friday. "The EU remains willing to assist Belarus to meet its obligations in this regard."
Miklos Haraszti, U.N. special envoy on human rights in Belarus, told the Human Rights Council human rights in Belarus were "systematically restricted."
"Rule of law is not identical with ruling by law," he said in a statement. "True stability and economic prosperity for a country rest on full respect for human rights."
Haraszti said he was concerned by the ongoing detention of political opposition figures, the use of torture and enforced disappearances and the continued use of capital punishment.
Belarus is the only country in Europe that employs capital punishment. Ashton's office said two people in Belarus were condemned to death this week. Her office didn't specify the charges.
