Mazyr: human rights defender asks prosecutor to check legality of establishment of ‘working group’
The human rights
defender Uladzimir Tseliapun believes that the ‘working group’ that was established at the Mazyr
District Executive Committee, takes over the functions of the Central Election Commission
and the district commissions, and asks the inter-district prosecutor of the
Mazyr district to check the legitimacy of the ruling of the district executive
committee concerning its formation.
On 4 November the Mazyr human rights defender Uladzimir Tseliapun paid a visit
to the Mazyr District Executive Committee (DEC) to find the ruling concernign
the formation of the so-called ‘working groups’ that had actually formed the
precinct election commissions of the district by preparing the draft lists of
members of the commissions.
’I found Ruling #1202 About the
preparation and holding of the election of President of the Republic of Belarus
dated 28 October, in the foyer of the DEC, in the ‘elector’s corner’.
However, Annex 5 that included the staff of the working group, was missing.
Point 5 of the ruling reads that the ‘working group’ was established for
‘organizational, material and technical provision of the activities of the
Mazyr District Election Commission’.
According to point 6.2, it ‘provides according to the established order:
the preparation of draft decisions, teaching materials, and proposals for
consideration at the sittings of the commission;
verification of the documents, complaints and applications
that are submitted to the commission and concern the election.’
The ruling also includes point 3 concerning the establishment of a
‘consultative group for giving consultations to the election commissions that
are situated on the territory of the district on the issues concerning the
ensuring of the unconditional implementation of requirements of the legislation
of the Republic of Belarus during the preparation and holding of the election
of President of the Republic of Belarus and the related applications of
citizens by its staff that is drawn in Annex 3’.
In this regard the human rights activist addressed the inter-district prosecutor
of the Mazyr district V.Sushchynski assess within the frames of the
prosecutorial review the legality of Ruling #1202 of 28 September 2010 About the preparation and holding of the
election of President of the Republic of Belarus and concerning the establishment
of the ‘working group’, its personnel, powers and competence to consider
documents concerning the election of President of the Republic of Belarus, its
conformity to the Electoral Code and the Law On the Normative Legal Acts of the Republic of Belarus.
The address insists that the working group was delegated the functions that
belong to the competence of the Central Election Commission (preparation of
training aids) and the district election comission (preparation of draft
decisions and proposals for consideration by sittings of the commission,
verification of the documents, complaints and statements of citizens that were
presented to the commission).
’This ruling tells about the facilitation to the election commissions, but says
nothing about the procedure of the choice of the personnel for these
commissions and the discussion of the personal skills and qualities of the
candidates for them,’ points Mr. Tseliapun.
Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections
