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UN secretary general urged to bar Belarusian minister from New York conference

Belarusian opposition activists have petitioned UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to bar Interior Minister Uladzimir Navumaw from attending a UN conference on human trafficking in New York on March 5.

According to the so-called Pourgourides Report and a resolution adopted by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Mr. Navumaw is suspected of involvement in the 1999-2000 disappearances of Mr. Lukashenka's opponents, the petition reads, BelaPAN reported.

"The UN Human Rights Commission and PACE have urged the Belarusian government to conduct a true, independent investigation into the above mentioned disappearances and inform the families of the abductees about the progress and the results of the inquiry. Unfortunately, the Belarusian authorities ignore these calls and appeals," the petition says.

The petitioners recall that General Navumaw is among several dozen Belarusian officials banned from traveling to the United States and the European Union, noting that the Belarusian minister's participation in the UN conference would be in violation of UN conventions.

"We believe that only when Belarus returns to the community of democratic nations will the participation of high-ranking officials in such international events be significant and constructive," the petition says.

Among the petitioners are Iryna Krasowski and Svyatlana Zavadski, the wives of Mr. Lukashenka's two disappeared opponents, as well as former presidential candidate Alyaksandr Milinkevich, Anatol Lyabedzka, leader of the United Civic Party; Vintsuk Vyachorka, chairman of the Belarusian Popular Front; Syarhey Kalyakin, chairman of the Belarusian Party of Communists; and Iryna Kazulin, the wife of imprisoned opposition politician Alyaksandr Kazulin.