Written question asked by Claire Curtis-Thomas (Labour) on Wednesday, 18 November 2009, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 23 November 2009. It was answered by Ivan Lewis (Labour) on Monday, 23 November 2009 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Belarus: Capital Punishment

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the government of Belarus on the death sentence passed on a young man in that country on 29 June 2009; and if he will make a statement.

Answer: Vasily Yuzepchuk and Andrei Zhuk have been sentenced to death in Belarus this year.We, and EU partners, have raised their cases with the Belarusian authorities on a number of occasions. We also took part in a European Commission press conference on 12 October 2009 to mark World Day Against the Death Penalty. EU member states are working with local and international non-governmental organisations to promote public debate, and publicise EU views on the death penalty.We continue to urge Belarus to abolish the death penalty or, as an initial measure, to introduce a moratorium. A moratorium would be beneficial for the development of EU-Belarus relations, and is a pre-requisite for enhanced relations with the Council of Europe. We have agreed with Spain that the death penalty will be one of four priority areas when the UK holds the local presidency on behalf of Spain in the first half of 2010.

Secondary information