Swiss Parliamentarians Urge UEFA to exclude Belarus from the 2024 European football championship

An open letter addressed to the UEFA president by a group of Swiss parliamentarians has called for the cancellation of the Euro 2024 football qualifying match between Belarus and Switzerland, slated to take place on March 25.

Thirty members from both houses of the Swiss parliament, representing 13 out of the 26 Swiss cantons, have signed an open letter addressed to Aleksander Ceferin of Slovenia.

According to the human rights organization Libereco, the group of Swiss parliamentarians has requested that the European football body exclude Belarus from the 2024 European football championship.

The letter written by the group of Swiss parliamentarians stated that playing a European Championship qualifying match against a country that is responsible for the most serious human rights violations and supports the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine, is not something that can be condoned.

Lars Bunger, president of Libereco Switzerland, pointed out that while UEFA has excluded Russia from all competitions, Belarus is still allowed to participate, which contradicts the decision of the International Olympic Committee that excluded both Belarus and Russia equally from all competitions.

Additionally, over 100 members of the European Parliament have also called on UEFA to cancel the Euro 2024 football qualifying match between Belarus and Switzerland.

Belarus, under the long-time presidency of Alexander Lukashenko, is an ally of Russia and is accused of allowing Moscow to use its territory for its war on Ukraine. The country has also been accused of severe human rights abuses, particularly after the disputed elections in 2020.