News on the topic: Homel
23.09.2008 Homel: District commission bans campaigning against pro-governmental opponents
On September 22nd chair of Homel-Savetskaya district # 34 Mikalai Malyi did not let a group of citizens to Festyvalny conference room which was appointed as a place for election events. During the planned event the organizers planned to campaign against the official candidate Larysa Kuzniatsova. The event organizer Uladzinmir Katsora and speaker Alexander Milinkevich had to conduct the meeting in the open air.
23.09.2008 Homel: Precinct commissions do not register observers
Precinct election commission # 13 in Homel-Savetskaya district refused to register Leanid Udavichenkau as an observer. Vasil Ptashnikau was denied registration as an observer in precinct # 4 of Homel-Centralnaya district. Both were nominated by BPF party. The reason for the denial was lack of the stamp on the nominating documents, although, according to the Party Statute, structural units of BPF do not have stamps at all.
22.09.2008 Homel region: independent web-sites cover election campaign
A number of regional web-sites regularly publish information about the election campaign in Homel region. They publish both their own and local news, published by the national independent sources. In particular the regional web-sites offer the visitors information about unequal conditions for official and pro-democratic candidates.
22.09.2008 Homel: Military forces strengthen the center?
Extra-ordinary activity of the military was noticed in Homel on September 18th. Ten days before the election, the military and equipment began to move to the center of the city.
20.09.2008 Homel: Mayor Candidate uses administrative resource
A meeting with voters of Alexander Bialiayeu was planned for September 19th in Homel Arts School # 5 (Homel-Selmashauskaya district # 32). The school administrations made all the prior arrangements to prepare for the visit of the candidate and Homel mayor in one person.
20.09.2008 Homel: “Students, don’t be afraid to say NO!”
On September 19th civic activists spread the brochure “Students and elections” in Homel higher educational establishments. The pocket book informs about the rights and duties of citizens during elections, and tells the students that forcing anyone to vote is the violation of the Belarusian law.
25.08.2008 Homel: CIS observer rushes to “assess” the elections
Homel newspapers published positive comments of CIS observer Anatoly Bekeshchenko about organization of the election process in Homel region.
31.07.2008 Signatures for official nominees collected at workplaces
In Rechytsa and Khoiniki election districts signatures are collected both for pro-democratic and for the “official” candidates. Signatures for the former are collected through a door-to-door campaign, and for the latter – by the administration at workplaces.
29.07.2008 Homel: Piotr Kuzniatsou’s initiative group not registered again
The decision not to register Piotr Kuzniatsou’s initiative group again was made by Homel-Centralny district election commission # 33 on Friday, July 25th. The reason was the refusal of two initiative group members to participate in the process. The commission states it has the appropriate statements from these two people. However, they failed to provide the documents to Kuzniatsou for either reading or copying.
29.07.2008 Homel: Signatures for incumbent candidate collected with violations of the law
The team of Larysa Kuzniatsova collects signatures in support of her nomination in Homel-savetskaya district # 34 with serious violations of the election law. Members of Kuzniatsova’s initiative group use the administrative resource and misinform the voters. The facts were revealed by observer Andrei Tolchyn: Staff member of a children’s institution located in the district told me, a signature collector came to the daycare she works at. The staff was proposed to sign for Kuzniatsova. It is worth mentioning, that the signature collector works in Savetski district administration of Homel. The signature collector proposed to sign in support of Kuzniatsova. When the staff member refused, the daycare director highly recommended to put the signature otherwise she would have “difficulties” at work. The staff member of the daycare wanted to remain anonymous.
23.07.2008 Homel: Siarhei Serhiyenka questioned in the blast case
Siarhei Serhiyenka, UDF candidate in 35th election district was summoned today to Savetski district police department of Homel. In the summons, signed by senior officer E. Masliukou, Serhiyenka’s status was indicated as a “witness”. At the same time, the case in which Serhiyenka was supposed to testify, was not mentioned. The investigator who talked with the witness asked questions about the blast on July 3rd: where Serhiyenka was in the night of the blast, and if he had a car.
23.07.2008 Homel: First initiative group denied registration
On July 22nd election commission of Homel district # 33 denied registration to Piotr Kuznetsou’s initiative group. During the session of the commission it turned out that not all documents were correct. However, the commission members did not say a word when the documents were submitted. The documents lacked information about the workplace of the UDF candidate.
17.07.2008 Many members of district election commissions worked during parliamentary election 2004.
We compared the lists of district election commissions in Homel region with the lists of the same commissions in 2004. It turned out many commission members already have experience of working in the commission from 2004. The lists of district commissions in Homel did not change much. In district #35 eight out of thirteen members are the same people. In districts ## 33 and 34, four out of thirteen members are the same.
17.07.2008 First sessions of district commissions in Homel region
On July 16th district election commissions gathered for their first session. The commission of district #35 had a session in the building of Savetski district administration of Homel city (Rechytskaya Shasha, 6). At the same time, the officially stated place of the meeting was Barykina Street, 143. No one picks up the phone of the commission at its official headquarters.
17.07.2008 Opposition representative not included into Zhlobin district commission
There will be none opposition represnentaives in Zhlobin district. Two neighbouring districts – Rahachou and Svetlahorsk – have one UDF representative each. Civic activist Anatol Papou was nominated to Zhlobin district election commission by signature collection. However, he did not get the seat in the commission.
