THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 215(1) thereof,
Having regard to Council Decision 2010/639/CFSP of 25 October 2010 concerning restrictive measures against certain officials of Belarus as amended by Council Decision 2011/69/CFSP of 31 January 2011,
Having regard to the joint proposal from the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and the European Commission,
Whereas:
(1)
Council Decision 2010/639/CFSP as amended provides for the freezing of funds and economic resources of, inter alia, the persons who are responsible for the violations of international electoral standards in the presidential elections in Belarus on 19 December 2010, and the crackdown on civil society and democratic opposition, as well as of those natural or legal persons, entities or bodies associated with them.
(2)
These measures fall within the scope of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and, therefore, notably with a view to ensuring their uniform application by economic operators in all Member States, regulatory action at the level of the Union is necessary in order to implement them.
(3)
This Regulation respects the fundamental rights and observes the principles recognised in particular by the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and notably the right to an effective remedy and to a fair trial and the right to the protection of personal data. This Regulation should be applied in accordance with those rights and principles.
(4)
The power to amend the lists in Annexes I and IA to this Regulation should be exercised by the Council, in view of the specific threat to international peace and security posed by the situation in Belarus, and to ensure consistency with the process for amending and reviewing the Annex to Decision 2011/69/CFSP.
(5)
The procedure for amending the lists in Annexes I and IA to this Regulation should include providing designated natural or legal persons, entities or bodies with the grounds for their being listed, so as to give them an opportunity to submit observations. Where observations are submitted, or substantial new evidence is presented, the Council should review its decision in light of those observations and inform the person, entity or body concerned accordingly.
(6)
For the implementation of this Regulation, and in order to create maximum legal certainty within the Union, the names and other relevant data concerning natural and legal persons, entities and bodies whose funds and economic resources are to be frozen in accordance with this Regulation, should be made public. Any processing of personal data should respect Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2000 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the Community institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such data and Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 October 1995 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data.
(7)
In order to ensure that the measures provided for in this Regulation are effective, this Regulation must enter into force immediately,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: