Officials in Sluck and Pinsk districts also ban campaigning in crowded places

As in the other regions of Belarus, the executive committee of Sluck and Pinsk district have prohibited to organize campaigning pickets in the most crowded places.

In Pinsk district, local authorities will not allow to collect signatures for candidates at a distance of less than fifty meters from the government buildings, authorities in charge of defense, state security and the livelihoods of the population. This list, in particular, includes companies of water, heat and power supply, schools and kindergartens, as well as healthcare and cultural institutions. A separate item bans the collection of signatures on public transport.

The Pinsk city executive committee has issued a similar black list. The fifty-meter ‘elections-free zone’ includes the same government buildings and other places that provide the livelihoods of the population, including the institutions of trade and public transport. It is prohibited to campaign not only outside these buildings, but also within the premises of all companies, organizations and institutions in the city of Pinsk.

Against the background of such severe restrictions, the decision of the Sluck district executive committee looks extremely liberal. Collecting signatures near the institutions and organizations of the city is prohibited at the distance of ‘only’ 20 meters. However, in the central square of the city campaigning events are banned completely. Campaigning is also prohibited at a distance of 50 meters from the railway station and the bus terminal.

"Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections"