Maladechna: district election commissions stages shows for observers
The Maladechna District Election Commission officially invites observers to
its sittings, but when they come ahead of time the commission members get
confused and refuse to let them in.
Observer Eduard Balanchuk came to the Maladechna District Election Commission
in the evening of 29 Friday, before the end of the working hours, in order to
specify the information about the number of the received signatures. He was
surprised to see that all members of the commission were present and worked
with signature sheets.
The Commission Chairperson, Mr. Kushniarevich, tried to
show Eduard the door, but the latter answered that he was an officially
registered observer and had the legal right to observer the work of the
election commission. After this the official ordered members of the commission
to go away.
The following day, on 30 October, the commission held a
sitting to which observers had been invited officially. Having come there ahead
of time, the observers saw that the members of the commission were walking with
files and hurried to finish something. However, the observers weren’t admitted
to the room where the commission worked till the beginning of the sitting.
According to Eduard Balanchuk, the signature sheets have been already looked
through and sorted. Having looked at a signature sheet of a democratic
candidate a representative of the commission said that too many signature
sheets were filled in one hand and they most probably would be found invalid.
The Maladechna human rights defenders are going to clear the situation and
demand a transparent work of the commission.
Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections