Emilee Gaebler
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe
MINSK, Belarus — On 3 of August, Swedish ambassador, Stefan Eriksson, was expelled from Belarus by President Alexander Lukashanko. The action led to a number of outbursts.
According to the EU Observer, Swedish foreign minister, Carl Bildt, tweeted that Eriksson was expelled for being “too supportive of human rights.” Bildt ended his posting by stating, “Outrageous. Shows nature of regime.”
The sudden departure of Eriksson is certainly questionable. It comes suspiciously soon after President Lukashanko’s firing of two security chiefs, on 1 August, for allowing an invasion into the Belarusian air space during the “teddy bear incident.”
This “teddy bear incident” occurred on 4 July, when a Swedish PR firm air-dropped hundreds of teddy bears into Belarus with messages that called for freedom of speech. For weeks following the incident Belarusian officials denied that such an event took place.
Once the incident was confirmed, the stunt’s organizer, Per Cromwell, made it clear that the Swedish ambassador was not a part of the plans and that he had not even been contacted.
President Lukashanko and his administration are adamant that Eriksson was not expelled, it was simply that his accreditation was not extended. Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Andrei Savinykh, told Reuters, in a telephone interview, that Eriksson’s work was not strengthening the Belarusian-Swedish relationship but rather harming it.
Swedish foreign minister Bildt claims that the incidents cited by Belarus to show Eriksson’s negative effect on bilateral relations are ridiculous. Bildt said those reasons included Eriksson’s meeting with opposition leaders and the fact that the Swedish ambassador donated books on human rights to a Minsk university library.
This is not the first time that Belarus has expelled foreign diplomats. Earlier, in February, the EU and Polish ambassadors to Minsk were pushed out when the EU imposed sanctions on a close friend of President Lukashenko.
Back in 1998, President Lukashenko went so far as to cut off water and weld shut the gates to the US envoy’s residence. At the time the residential compound was housing EU and US diplomats but Lukashenko wanted to reside there himself. In 1999, the ambassadors returned once a pledge was made by Lukashenko to respect the rights of foreign diplomats.
For now, the Swedish government has stated that the Belarusian diplomats, currently in Stockholm, were asked to leave. Further diplomatic envoys from Belarus to Sweden will also be turned away. Catherine Ashton, the EU’s foreign policy chief, said that this action by Belarus will be referred to the EU Political and Security Committee for consideration as to what is “appropriate EU measures.”
For further information, please see:
Chicago Tribune — Belarus Expels Swedish Ambassador, EU Weighs Response — 3 August 2012
Euro News — Belarus: Teddy Bear Drop Claims Swedish Victim — 3 August 2012
EU Observer — Belarus Expels Swedish Ambassador After Teddy Bear Fiasco — 3 August 2012
Ria Novosti — Belarus Denies Expelling Swedish Ambassador — 3 August 2012
