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Baranavichy: are Belarusian observers less important than international ones?

2008 2008-09-28T16:20:38+0300 1970-01-01T03:00:00+0300 en The Human Rights Center “Viasna” The Human Rights Center “Viasna”
The Human Rights Center “Viasna”

An election observer Mikalai Severtsau stated that precinct electoral commission #15 of Baranavichy-Zakhodniaya electoral constituency #5 refused to provide any information for him, whereas international observers received such information without any problems.

In the morning Severtsau addressed the head of the precinct commission Viktar Rakuts in order to receive information about the number of the received ballots, the number of the electors, the number of early votes and the number of electors in the list of electors. Rakuts refused to answer these questions. 

An hour later two CIS observers came to the polling station together with the head of Baranavichy city Soviet of deputies Uladzimir Stakhnou (who, by the way, has no right to be present at the polling station). They went directly to the head of the commission. In about ten minutes they left the commission. Mikalai Severtsau asked them who they were. They answered they were observer from the Commonwealth of Independent States.

When Severtsau asked one of them what they thought about the elections, one of them answered that everything was alright.

‘Did you notice any violations?’, asked the observer.
‘No, we did not’, answered the CIS observer.
‘Do you think the fact that I still cannot get any information meets the requirements of the Electoral Code?’

‘It’s not a problem. We can give such information to you,’ was the answer.
‘Thank you, but I’d like to receive it from the administration of the precinct commission,’ answered Mikalai Severtsau.

But who are these elections held for: the Belarusian people or the international observers?

Human rights activists for free elections

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