Russia criticises Belarus over "harsh" sentences
Mon, 16 May 2011 13:34 GMT
MOSCOW, May 16 (Reuters) - Russia criticised Belarus on Monday for handing down "harsh" prison sentences to opposition activists convicted for protests over a December election in which President Alexander Lukashenko won a new term.
Russia's foreign ministry said the sentences against opposition presidential candidate Andrei Sannikov and others convicted after being arrested in a government crackdown on election day protests "cannot fail to raise questions".
Belarussian courts "have come out with a series of harsh sentences for participants in the protest action that took place in Minsk on Dec. 19," Russian ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said in the statement.
"We call on the Belarussian side to relate more responsibly to adherence to its international commitments in the area of human rights and freedoms," the Russian foreign ministry spokesman was quoted as saying.
Sannikov received a sentence of five years in prison, and his wife Irina Khalip was given a two-year suspended sentence.
The tough talk from influential neighbor Russia adds to the pressure on Lukashenko, whose country is struggling with a severe currency crisis brought on in part by lavish public spending ahead of the vote and higher prices for Russian oil.
Russian leaders see Belarus as a buffer against NATO, and has helped prop up Lukashenko's Soviet-style economy for years with preferential energy pricing. But Russia refused last week to provide a $1 billion direct bailout loan to Belarus.
(Writing by Steve Gutterman; Editing By Thomas Grove)
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