Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections

Aliaksei Paulouski, an activist of the nomination group the United Civil Party leader Anatol Liabedzka, says citizens are forced to sign for Lukashenka in Mahilioŭ.

Last week, the CEC Secretary Mikalai Lazavik said in a talk show on the ONT TV channel that observers should be possible to directly observe the counting of votes.

The employees of the Mikaševičy-based hospital have been involved in using the administrative resource when collecting signatures in support of presidential candidate Aliaksandr Lukashenka during working hours.

The state-owned media of Salihorsk have been actively covering the collecting signatures in support of the initiative group of Aliaksandr Lukashenka. Meanwhile, representatives of the opposition candidates do not receive airtime or opportunity to comment.

The Belarusian Helsinki Committee has received a response to its appeal to the Central Election Commission. In its address, the BHC asked to implement three simple solutions, which could considerably improve the transparency of the electoral process.

Human rights defenders and journalists have received information that on 29 July the office of the head of school No. 27 in Homieĺ will gather signatures in support of Aliaksandr Lukashenka. According to a school employee, the staff were ordered to come to the headmaster's office with their passports.

The Belarusian Helsinki Committee in the framework of the campaign "Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections" asked the Central Election Commission (CEC) to clarify Part 9, Art. 13 of the Electoral Code, which reads as follows: "the Commission, in which the observer is accredited, has the right to deprive him of his accreditation in the case of violation of the electoral laws of the Republic of Belarus.”

Representatives of a well-known international election observation organization ENEMO (European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations) asked the Central Election Commission, the Presidential Administration and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to allow them to monitor this year’s presidential election in Belarus.

The Human Rights Center "Viasna" received yesterday an email with the following question: “Tell me, please, can an initiative group come to the company, occupy an office and start collecting signatures during working hours? If there is any document regulating such moments, could you give me a link or the title of the document. Thanks you.”

Aliaksandra Vasilevich, Chairperson of the Hrodna regional office of the United Civil Party, has sent a complaint to the Central Election Commission of Belarus. The politician wrote to complain about a statement made by the CEC Secretary Mikalai Lazavik on the ONT TV channel on July 26. Lazavik said that all the three members of the opposition nominated to the Hrodna regional election commission had criminal records and therefore were not included in the TEC.

Salihorsk human rights activists have received the first signals of administrative resources used by Aliaksandr Lukashenka’s campaign group when collecting signatures for his nomination.

The Haradok District Executive Committee has posted on its website an announcement saying that "from 23.07.2015 to 09.08.2015 the district authorities are working to register voters for the list of Belarusian citizens who are registered in the territory of the corresponding polling station and have the right to participate in the elections of the President of the Republic of Belarus.”

Valiantsin Tsishko, a member of the initiative group of Tatsiana Karatkevich, has been reportedly detained today in Maladziechna.

An official website “Elections-2015” has been launched on July 23, the Central Election Commission said.

"Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections" have conducted the monitoring and analysis of the formation of territorial election commissions for the presidential elections, the results of which have been used to prepare a report.