Special Rapporteur on Belarus

Introduction

On 28 June 2012, the Human Rights Council established the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus in its resolution 20/13. The mandate has since then been renewed each year. From 1 November 2012 to 31 October 2018, Mr. Miklós Haraszti (Hungary) assumed the functions of Special Rapporteur. Since 1 November 2018, Ms Anaïs Marin (France) assumes the functions of Special Rapporteur.

Current mandate holder

Anaïs Marin is an independent researcher based in Warsaw, Poland, and an associate fellow with the Russia and Eurasia programme at Chatham House, London, UK. A political scientist specialising in international relations and Russian studies, she holds a PhD from Sciences Po, where she studied international public law and comparative politics with a focus on post-communist transformations in Central and Eastern Europe. She has also taken part in OSCE/ODIHR election observation missions, including in Belarus. She has published extensively on Belarusian domestic policies.

Overview of the mandate

The Human Rights Council resolution A/HRC/20/13 mandates the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus to:

1. monitor the situation of human rights in Belarus and to make recommendations for its improvement;
2. help to implement the recommendations contained in the report of the High Commissioner (A/HRC/20/8) to the Human Rights Council in June 2012;
3. assist the Government of Belarus in fulfilling its human rights obligations;
4. to offer support and advice to civil society;
5. seek, receive, examine and act on information from all relevant stakeholders pertaining to the situation of human rights in Belarus;
6. report annually to the Human Rights Council and to the General Assembly.