Sec. 3. Statement of policy
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Section 3 of the Belarus Democracy Act of 2004 ( Public Law 109–480 ; 22 U.S.C. 5811 note) is amended to read as follows: It is the policy of the United States to— condemn the conduct of the August 9, 2020, presidential election and crackdown on opposition candidates, senior members of the Coordination Council, peaceful protestors, employees from state-owned enterprises participating in strikes, independent election observers, and independent journalists and bloggers; continue to call for the immediate release without preconditions of all political prisoners in Belarus, including all those individuals detained in connection with the August 9, 2020, presidential election, a leading opposition figure Maryia Kalesnikava, and United States citizen Vitali Shkliarov; continue to support the aspirations of the people of Belarus for democracy, human rights, and the rule of law; continue to support the aspirations of the people of Belarus to exercise their religion freely, including the head of the Catholic Church in Belarus Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz who was barred from entering the country after criticizing Belarusian authorities; continue to support actively the aspirations of the people of the Republic of Belarus to preserve the independence and sovereignty of their country; not to recognize any incorporation of Belarus into a Union State with Russia, as this so-called Union State would be both an attempt to absorb Belarus and a step to reconstituting the totalitarian Soviet Union; continue to reject the results of the fraudulent August 9, 2020, presidential election in Belarus, and to support calls for new presidential and parliamentary elections, conducted in a manner that is free and fair according to OSCE standards and under the supervision of OSCE observers and independent domestic observers; refuse to recognize Alyaksandr Lukashenka as the legitimately elected leader of Belarus; continue to call for the fulfillment by the Government of Belarus of Belarus’s freely undertaken obligations as an OSCE participating state and as a signatory of the Charter of the United Nations; support an OSCE role in mediating a dialogue within Belarus between the government and genuine representatives of Belarusian society; recognize the Coordination Council as a legitimate institution to participate in a dialogue on a peaceful transition of power; urge an expanded United States diplomatic presence in Belarus to advocate for the aspirations of the people of Belarus for democracy, human rights, and the rule of law; continue to work closely with the European Union, the United Kingdom, Canada, and other countries and international organizations, to promote the principles of democracy, the rule of law and human rights in Belarus; and remain open to reevaluating United States policy toward Belarus as warranted by demonstrable progress made by the Government of Belarus consistent with the aims of this Act as stated in this section. .
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- Pub. L. 109-480
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