Who observes elections in Mahilioŭ?
Apart from the international mission of the OSCE, the election campaign has been monitored from its very beginning by "Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections" (including the HRC "Viasna" and the Belarusian Helsinki Committee), "Right to Choose-2015" and "For Fair Elections".
Mahilioŭ human rights activist Aliaksei Kolchyn reports that four long-term observers of the campaign "Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections" have worked in Mahilioŭ since the beginning of the electoral campaign, an the question of the number of short-term observers is being solved at the moment: “The campaign intends to send 400 STOs to precincts. Now the question where and in which parts of Belarus this monitoring will be held is discussed. I think, the Mahilioŭ region will have a certain quota.”
A coordinator of the campaign monitoring "Right to Choose-2015" Ales Silkou says that in general the campaign of election observation is going to cover about 1,000 polling stations across Belarus by preparing some 2,000 observers.
“Speaking of the Mahilioŭ region, representatives of six out of eight political subjects that are parties to the election observation campaign, will participate in the election monitoring: Belarusian Social Democratic Party (Hramada), the Movement "For Freedom", "Tell the Truth," Belarusian Christian Democracy party, the Party of the Belarusian Popular Front and the Independent Trade Union of Radio-Electronic Industry. All in all, the campaign intends to send 248 observers to 124 polling stations,” says Mr. Silkou.
A local coordinator of the campaign "For Fair Elections" Yury Novikau says that this year they will send only 12 observers to 6 polling stations in Mahilioŭ. Some more observers may also observe the elections in Babrujsk and Kryčaŭ.
The presidential elections in Belarus are scheduled for October 11t. According to the Belarusian legislation, elections are held in the country for six days - five days are given for early voting and one day is the main day of the elections. The Central Election Commission registered as presidential candidates four persons: Siarhei Haidukevich, Tatsiana Karatkevich, Aliaksandr Lukashenka and Mikalai Ulakhovich.
"Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections"