Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections

Праваабарончы цэнтр «Вясна» беларускі хельсінкскі камітэт

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CEC registers campaign teams of 3 presidential candidates

According to BelaPAN, at its today’s meeting the Central Election Commission (CEC) has registered three initiative groups for nominating presidential candidates: the incumbent President Aliaksandr Lukashenka, Chairman of the Belarusian Party of the Left "Fair World" Siarhei Kaliakin and Chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Siarhei Haidukevich.

All the twelve members of the CEC unanimously voted to register the three groups. At the same time, from the initiative group of Siarhei Kaliakin they removed one person who does not have a Belarusian citizenship and from the group of Siarhei Haidukevich – three persons: two minors and a citizen of Russia.

At the moment, the documents for registration of their initiative groups have been filed by ten contenders for the presidency. In addition to A. Lukashenka, S. Kaliakin and Haidukevich, applications were submitted by businessman Andrei Kanavets of Navapolack; activist of the campaign "Tell the Truth!" Tatsiana Karatkevich; chairman of the United Civil Party Anatol Liabedzka; the leader of the organizing committee of the Belarusian Social Democratic Party (Narodnaya Hramada), ex-presidential candidate in the 2010 elections, political prisoner Mikalai Statkevich; as well as Zhanna Ramanouskaya, Iryna Pershyna and Siarhei Zablocki. Nearly nothing is known about the latter three.

The CEC Chair Lidziya Yarmoshyna told reporters after the meeting that so far she sees the reason for the registration of only five groups, three of which have already been registered today. The official refused to clarify which groups were likely to be registered.

According to the CEC, some applicants included in their initiative groups less than 100 people (needed for registration), but promised to add more activists later. Lidziya Yarmoshyna also sees no reason for the registration of the initiative group of Siarhei Zablotski who sent his documents to the CEC by mail, which is a sufficient ground for refusal of registration.

The documents for the registration of the initiative group of Tatsiana Karatkevich, according to Yarmoshyna, differ from documents filed by the two other female contenders.

"At least it (the initiative group. - BelaPAN.) is numerous," said the CEC Chair.

Today, the CEC is expected to receive applications from at least three more campaign teams. It is expected that all other documents for registration of initiative groups will be considered by the CEC on July 20.

July 17 is last day for submitting the documents to the CEC for registration of candidates’ campaign teams.

"Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections"


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