Homel: private printing houses refuse to publish agitation materials of candidates

Private publishing enterprises of Homel refuse to publish leaflets of independent candidate. As said by Sviataslau Shapavalau, a coordinator of the organizing committee of the Belarusian Christian Democracy, candidate for the Homel regional Council of Deputies, at one of private enterprises he was told that there was a secret order to them not even to talk with the candidates who wanted to publish such production.

’All private enterprises (we visited three of them) forwarded us to Palesdruk. However, the peculiarity of the situation is that I wanted to print my agitation as stickers and Palesdruk cannot implement such order, whereas the private enterprises who have the necessary equipment, refuse to do it,’ says Mr. Shapavalau.

’I intended to print a half of the leaflets at Palesdruk and make the other half as stickers, at some private enterprise. However, at Palesdruk I was explained that they had an order not to print a part of agitation materials – either the whole set, or nothing at all,’ said the candidate. ’The state supplies candidates with finances for agitation, but then takes them back through such state enterprises as Palesdruk.’

Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections