A group of 28 U.S. House members called the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) to remove World Championship 2014 from Minsk.
Signatories to the treatment claim that people in Belarus do not have the capacity "to carry out even basic civil and political rights", while "those who publicly demonstrate their frustration with the regime are subject to arrest and face the threat of abuse".
They emphasized that the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention had found that the detention of ex-candidate Statkevich was “a direct consequence of the fundamental freedoms” and "violates the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights". "Despite this, Statkevich is still in jail". said the congressmen.
"The climate of repression in Belarus creates a significant cause for concern for the welfare, security and freedom of movement for players, officials, spectators and media. Thus, IIHF has the right to revoke the decision to hold the championship in Belarus and to sign this right away to another country", said the U.S. lawmakers.
"The Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives, as well as the European Parliament have already called to cancel the decision to hold the World Hockey Championship in Belarus as there are political prisoners in the country. Today, we reiterate that call, believing that as long as the Belarusian authorities have not released all political prisoners, they can’t be given the honor to host the tournament", they said.
