Photo : Emerging Europe
22 December 2021, Wednesday | NIAS Europe Daily Brief #79
IN BRIEF
By Joeana Cera Matthews, Padmashree Anandhan and Ashwin Dhanabalan
BELARUS
Anti-government protestors receive long jail terms
On 22 December, a court in Belarus sentenced four anti-government protestors to 18-20 years in prison. The four protestors were sentenced for ‘terrorism’ and ‘arms trafficking’ offences while accusing them to be members of an anarchist group. The individuals were found with weapons and explosives, and during the protests, they had set several police cars on fire and thrown Molotov cocktails at an administrative building. In October 2020, while crossing the Belarusian-Ukrainian border, they were caught and charged with arson. The incident and ruling have brought to light President Alexander Lukashenko's use of courts and police for his political advantage. This comes amidst the West continuing to not acknowledge Lukashenko as Belarus’ legitimate leader and placing several sanctions on his regime. ("Belarus: Lengthy prison terms for anti-government protesters," Deutsche Welle, 22 December 2021)
DENMARK
Minister Stojberg voted out for violating human rights laws
On 21 December, former Danish Immigration Minister and current Parliament member Inger Stojberg was voted out by her fellow lawmakers. She had recently been given a 60-day prison sentence for separating underage couples while they were seeking asylum in the country. Social Democratic party spokesperson Jeppe Bruus said: "The conclusion in the case must be, that Mrs Inger Stojberg's conviction at the impeachment court is incompatible with being a member of parliament." Danish and human rights laws are in line while assessing cases of refugee couples, married or in a relationship. These cases were to be evaluated individually, and no blanket law was to be followed. Under Stojberg’s tenure, 23 under-age couples were separated. After the ousting, Stojberg said: "I would rather be voted out by my colleagues here in parliament because I have tried to protect some girls than getting voted out by the Danish people because I have turned a blind eye." ("Denmark: Former immigration minister facing jail voted out of parliament," Deutsche Welle, 21 December 2021; Nikolaj Skydsgaard and Angus MacSwan, "Danish ex-minister ousted from parliament after impeachment," Reuters, 21 December 2021)
POLAND
European Commission initiates infringement procedure against Poland over rule of law violations
On 22 December, the European Commission declared the initiation of an infringement procedure against Poland for violating EU law via its Constitutional Tribunal. A “letter of formal notice” has been sent to Poland; financial penalties are set to follow if the latter fails to meet EU requirements and reply within two months. Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal had earlier stated that state law took precedence over EU law. This made the European Court of Justice (ECJ) rule against the Tribunal, with the European Commission stating it “has serious doubts on the independence and impartiality” of the Polish court. The Commission further stated: “(The Tribunal ruling was) in breach of the general principles of autonomy, primacy, effectiveness and uniform application of Union law and the binding effect of ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ).” Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki responded to the move on national television, saying: “... a trend for… bureaucratic centralism is unfortunately progressing in Brussels but it has to be stopped.” Meanwhile, Polish Deputy Justice Minister Sebastian Kaleta tweeted: “The EC (European Commission) is initiating proceedings and wants to subordinate the Constitutional Tribunal in Poland to EU law… This is an attack on the Polish constitution and our sovereignty.” (“EU starts new legal action against Poland over rule of law,” Deutsche Welle, 22 December 2021; Jennifer Rankin, “Brussels launches legal action over Polish rulings against EU law,” The Guardian, 22 December 2021)
COVID-19
Romania: Protests triggered over green pass mandate
On 21 December, more than 2,000 people gathered for protests before the Romanian Parliament in Bucharest against the imposition of COVID-19 green passes at workplaces. In the recent months, Romania has experienced a severe surge in the COVID-19 infections; this worsened the situation as the previous waves had adversely affected the country’s health care facilities. The latest surge owes to the fact of Romania being the second-lowest vaccinated country in the EU. Despite efforts of the coalition government to mandate a health certificate at workplaces to increase vaccination, the outcome has only been protests. Another reason behind the protests is also said to be the opposition party, which opposes the green passes. (“Romanians protest COVID certificates,” Deutsche Welle, 21 December 2021; “Romanian crowd tries to storm parliament in protest at COVID-19 pass,” Reuters, 21 December 2021)
WHO Director criticizes developed nations on COVID-19 booster programmes
On 22 December, the World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus criticized the COVID-19 booster programmes of the developed nations. He stated that such programmes only provide a chance to the pandemic to protract since it took away the poor countries’ chance to recover or immunize its populations. According to Ghebreyesus: “Blanket booster programs are likely to prolong the pandemic rather than ending it, by diverting supply to countries that already have high levels of vaccination coverage, giving the virus more opportunity to spread and mutate.” On the question of the new variant’s capacity to spread, WHO has commented that it is too early to disclose the severity of the infection. (“COVID: WHO rails against vaccine booster programs,” Deutsche Welle, 21 December 2021)
INTERNATIONAL
Lavrov confirms talks between Russia and the US for early January
On 22 December, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov verified that they would initiate talks with the US in early 2022. Speaking at an interview with RT television station, Lavrov said: “The first round will be held in the form of a bilateral contact between our and US negotiators, who have already been named and are acceptable for both sides… We do not want war. We do not need conflicts and, hopefully, everyone else does not view conflicts as a desirable course of action.” Although the West is yet to confirm any such talks, they intend to dialogue with Russia. On 21 December, a statement released by the German government read that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz held a telephonic conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the “increased Russian military presence near Ukraine”; Scholz reportedly “expressed his concern about the situation and the urgent need for de-escalation”. On 21 December, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg commented on maintaining dialogue with Russia, as he stated: “Any dialogue with Russia needs to be based on the core principles of European security and to address Nato’s concerns about Russia’s actions. And it needs to take place in consultation with Nato’s European partners, including with Ukraine.” (Russia: Security talks with US and NATO set for January,” Deutsche Welle, 22 December 2021; Andrew Roth, David Smith, and Dan Sabbagh, “Russia claims it will begin talks with US and Nato,” The Guardian, 22 December 2021)