News on the topic: elections-2008
18.08.2008 Maladechna: only members of pro-governmental NGOs were selected to precinct election commissions
By the decision of Maladechna and Valozhyn rayon executive committees, only representatives of the pro-governmental NGOs and political parties were included in precinct election commissions in Maladechna city district # 70 and rural district # 71.The total number of members of such organizations as the CPB party, Belarusian Union of Women, veterans' organizations, BRSM, and Belaya Rus is 72 people.
18.08.2008 Polatsak: Main principle of forming precinct election commissions is dependence
The principles of creation precinct election commissions did not change in Polatsak – just as it happened during the previous election, members of one work collective often become the core of a precinct commission. The person who the rest of commission members depend on is often chosen commission chairperson. Let take precinct election commission # 1 as an example.
18.08.2008 Mahiliou: UDF contender received seven letters from financial investigation department of the Committee for State Control
Yury Novikau has received seven registered letters from the financial investigation department of the Committee for State Control. The letters contain summons to come to the financial investigation department and forms he and his family have to fill in.
18.08.2008 Zhlobin: Refuse from collected signatures!
Member of Valery Rybchanska’s initiative group was forced to refuse from the signatures he had collected. His employer insisted he did that in written form.
18.08.2008 Navahradak: Сontender has problems with signature registration
Yury Istomin, contender in Navahradak election district, was detained in the afternoon together with several members of his initiative group. Istomin, head of the regional UCP organization, continued to collect signatures in Navahradak. The police considered their actions "early agitation". This way the police did not only hinder the signature collection, but also deprived Yury Istomin of the opportunity to get the local authorities to confirm the signatures.
18.08.2008 Rechytsa: tax inspectorate summons UDF candidate’s employer
On Friday, August 15th, manager of private company “Alida & Co.” A. Shabetnik was summoned by the tax inspectorate. He was asked if V. Putsitski, who is a candidate on the UDF list, really worked for the company. A person in civil clothes was present during the conversation.
18.08.2008 Babruisk: Adverse publicity for UDF candidate Aliaksandar Chyhir
The trial over UDF candidate Ales Chyhir was used by the official newspaper Babruiskaye Zhytstsio for the article “Bearded Poltergeist”. The author who hid under the pseudonym Al. Palindrom, used the attributes that insult the candidate. For example, he called Chyhir “our anti-hero”. Besides that, the portrait of Chyhir is pictured with emotionally negative colors. The author hid all of the characters of his “work” behind initials for “ethical reasons”, and revealed only Chyhir’s full name.
17.08.2008 Blast investigation does not change direction
Aleh Pronski, Masty activist of the Movement for Freedom, nominated to the precinct election commission, was invited to visit the local KGB office. The guy spent the last two months abroad, but they want to talk about Minsk explosion with him.
17.08.2008 Future parliament looms from publications in state media
State mass media continue to promote certain candidates. They obviously know who they should write about. From the publications we can actually see who is going to become the “elected representative” of the people.
17.08.2008 Vetka: candidate fined 1 million BYR for missing road sign
Kanstantsin Zhukouski plans to run in district # 38. On August 15th he was fined by Vetka rayon court. Judge Yu. Mazheika decided Zhukouski had committed an administrative infringement “which was revealed in entering the radiation polluted area” (Article 16.3 part 2 of the Administrative Code).
17.08.2008 ELECTION WEEK: EVENTS AND GENERAL CONCLUSIONS
Formation of precinct election commissions was the main topic this week. As a result, very few representatives of pro-democratic parties and NGOs will work in the commissions. Another week trend was growing amount of promotion of pro-governmental candidates in state mass media, who, in violation of the election law, seem to be not ashamed of giving election promises on this stage of the campaign. The candidates, especially incumbent MPs, seem to have just woken up after four-year hibernation and all of a sudden remembered about their voters. To be more precise, they decided it was about time to start “feeding” people with another portion of usual promises. At the same time, the so-called “self-initiative” – running without the agreement of the authorities, which in fact is the expression of the political will of a citizen, not only fails to win admiration (although it should – finally people show political activity the authorities have been calling for!) but leads to job losses… Signature collection for the candidates backed by the authorities was quite different from the process which pro-democratic and independent candidates had to undertake.
17.08.2008 Slutsk: Executive committee’s ideologists “train” chairs and secretaries of precinct election commissions
On August 15th two conferences took place in the building of Slutsk rayon executive committee. The first conference gathered chairmen and secretaries of rural precinct election commissions, and the second one gathered chairmen and secretaries of urban precinct committees. The conferences were organized directly by Slutsk executive committee officials: deputy head of the committee for social issues and ideological work Piotr B. Dauhuchyts and head of ideological department of the committee Larysa H. Dabravolskaya.
17.08.2008 Paleskaya election district: Authorities set the keynote, who to vote for
Administrative resource in support of the pro-governmental candidate is fully used in Paleskaya election district. According to headquarters of the UDF representative Mikalai Haurylenka, the authorities (the executive committees’ representatives) hold meetings with work collectives, during which they promote Siarhei Kanoplich, chairman of Yelsk executive committee. For instance, chairman of Lelchytsy rayon Council Anatol Khaliava organized meetings for nomination of representatives of work collectives to precinct election commissions (Milashevichy forestry, Prybalavichy forestry, Barauskoye forestry, “Alyans” agro-industrial complex, engineer-constructor company PMK-103, Lelchytsy rayon hospital, etc.) and urged them to vote for Siarhei Kanoplich.
17.08.2008 Nomination of candidates to the Council of the Republic begins
Nomination of candidates to the upper chamber of the Belarusian parliament, the Council of the Republic of the 4th convocation, began on August 17th. Mikalai Lazavik, secretary of the Central Election Commission, informs, candidates to the Council of the Republic can be nominated by presidiums of local councils and corresponding executive committees. No less than two thirds of the local council’s presidium and the executive committee should participate in the joint session nominating the candidates.
15.08.2008 Minsk: teachers busy collecting signatures
The stage at which signatures for nomination of candidates to the Chamber of Representatives of the National Assembly are collected is coming to an end. However, some of the pro-regime candidates continue violating the requirements of the Electoral Code by using the administrative resource. The officers of the capital’s educational establishments still actively help them in it.
