MINSK, 11 June (BelTA) – In any country a politician, who calls for sanctions against his or her own country, can give up on their political career because he or she foretells a political and economic collapse in the country, BelTA learned from an interview of the political analyst Vadim Borovik with the SB. Belarus Segodnya newspaper.
According to Vadim Borovik, work is in progress to bring to account those, who call for sanctions. The first meeting within the framework of the Roundtable of Democratic Forces think tank has already been held. Members of the parliament, representatives of various organizing committees, lawyers, and political experts took part in it. Prosecution can be introduced either by amending the Criminal Code and the Administrative Offences Code or by issuing a presidential decree. Both options will be submitted for consideration of the head of state after debates. The deprivation of political rights was also suggested as an option. For a certain period of time people, who call for sanctions, may be deprived of their right to get elected, participate in political activities, and make statements about public and political issues. “It is important for us to work out a fair mechanism of recovering the costs. For instance, we don't want members of the family to suffer: it may turn out that the mother and the father of the person that makes such destructive appeals do not share his or her views,” Vadim Borovik noted.
It is also necessary to differentiate between small and major offences. “It is one thing when some dim-witted citizen likes a post. And it is a totally different thing when a politician runs to various European offices to beg for sanctions against his or her own country. Such people must be punished harshly and should abandon political careers as traitors of national interests. You have to understand that discussions about sanctions not to mention the introduction of sanctions worsen the investment climate in the country, undermine investors' trust and the country's image in the international scene. So, even talking about sanctions can be harmful,” Vadim Borovik stressed. “We are talking not only about the desire to punish someone. We have to instill responsibility towards their own country and towards their own people into members of the general public. So that they wouldn't even think about calling for sanctions against their own country despite any political battles and disagreements with a point of view!”
Vadim Borovik believes that sanctions and other kinds of external pressure are simply exploited by interested parties. “The goal is to capture markets and step up geopolitical influence. A number of countries use the politicians, who have fled Belarus, the puppets, who are completely dependent on their Western sponsors, as those, who speak on behalf of the Belarusians. Meanwhile, markets are being captured and interests are being lobbied in the international arena. Don't be naive: there is fierce competition in the world and all the steps are carefully thought-out. When someone leaves the market or steps down its presence, competitors move in. This is why it is necessary to refute statements that sanctions are used to fight for human rights. Everyone fights for their own interests, primarily economic ones,” the political analyst summed it up.
