Homel: initiative groups hold no pickets for collecting electors’ signatures
According to our information, no initiative groups have held any pickets for collecting electors’ signatures in support of the candidacy of their pretenders during the current election campaign. The potential candidates say that such pickets are inexpedient. For instance, Piatro Barysau, a well-known Homel lawyer who often detained democratic activists at court, registered an initiative group of seven persons who collect signatures from door to door. Barysau is going to run for the Homel city Soviet of Deputies at the Halavatskaya election constituency #39. ‘There is no sense in holding the pickets as the election constituencies are small and you can hardly meet an elector walking in the street with the passport,’ points Mr. Barysau. He is sure that 75 signatures (the minimum that is necessary for getting registered as a candidate to a city Soviet) can be collected without any pickets.
Members of the initiative group of Ivan Kaliuka (activist of the Nash Dom civil campaign), also collect signatures in his support from door to door. Mr. Kaliuka intends to run to the Homel oblast Soviet at the Alimpiyskaya constituency #1, and to the Homel city Soviet – at the Svirydauskaya constituency #2. The members of his initiative group are sure that they would manage to collect the necessary number of signatures in support of his candidacy by the weekend.
Deputy of the Homel city Soviet of the 24th Convocation Yury Hlushakou, member of the Green Party, intends to run for the city Soviet again. His initiative group was registered and has already started collecting signatures. Mr. Hlushakou intends to run at the Aviatsyinaya election constituency #37. At present the potential candidate enjoys a positive attitude from the side of the election commission. He also stated that there was no need in holding any pickets for collecting of signatures in support of his candidacy.
In Homel, ten initiative groups collect signatures for members of the unregistered Belarusian Christian Democracy Party. The BCD members intend to run for the oblast and the city Soviets. Seven persons intend to nominate their candidacies to the city and to the oblast Soviets, one person – only to the city Soviet and two – only to the oblast Soviet. According to information of Kastus Zhukouski, BCD coordinator in Homel, the potential candidates have started collecting signatures already and can hold a number of appropriate pickets next week.
Three initiative groups collect signatures in support of activists of the For Freedom movement. Piatro Kuzniatsou, coordinator of the movement in the Homel oblast, also considers the pickets as inexpedient, first of all because the authorities banned holding them in populous places and it had absolutely no sense otherwise.
Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections
