Pro-governmental candidate lies to electors

There were hot debates at the latest sitting of the electoral commission of Vitsebsk-Chyhunachnaya constituency #19, concerning the electoral poster with the biographical data of candidates which, according to part 10 of Article 45 of the Electoral Code, is to be produced by the constituency electoral commission.

The matter is that the pro-governmental candidate Siarhei Siamashka, who is running for the third term at the parliament already, is living in Minsk, but specified Vitsebsk as his place of residence.

According to part 1 of Article 19 of the Civil Code the regular place of residence is the place where a citizen lives most of the time or regularly. It is clear that Siarhei Siamashka has regularly lived in Minsk during the last eight years. During this time he managed to build his own flat. He also has a house in Hrodna, a car garage, a summer residence and a car. At the sitting of the commission it was found that Siamashka registered the car in Minsk. By the way, according to the information of the electoral commission Mr. Siamashka is also the reaches of the candidates: his yearly income for 2007 is 41,5 million rubles (about $19 500), whereas the yearly income of sportsman Ihar Kanyhin is 11,9 million rubles, and that of policeman Andrei Levinau – 8,6 million rubles.

The commission is headed by Ivan Rytsol the headmaster of Vitsebsk technical college #19. He has been working in electoral commissions for more than 20 years already. Nevertheless, he explained the case of Siamashka in an interesting way: Siarhei Siamashka is 48, and he lived only 8 years in Minsk, which is not ‘most of the time’ of his life. The constituency electoral commission abstained from taking a decision and applied to the Central electoral commission for assistance. Now they are waiting for an answer.

Human rights activists for free elections