Exam for Belarusian authorities

A technical mission of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights begins its visit to Minsk with a meeting in the Ministry of Foreign Affaires. The mission, headed by British Gerald Mitchell, is to estimate the conditions of work of the observation mission for the parliamentary elections in Belarus and take a decision about the form the OSCE will observe the elections if it will.
The Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights is considered to be the most competent organisation in the world for observation the elections. Its office is based in Warsaw, the office is a part of the OSCE – the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe. ODIHR experts usually began to work in a country two months before the voting, they have opportunities to monitor the whole process of the electoral campaign. A technical expert mission analyses the electoral laws, conditions of holding the elections, situation with media, meets with representatives of the authorities, parties and civil society, Radio Svaboda reports.
Viktar Karnyayenka, coordinator of the campaign “For Free and Justice Elections,” says he wants to tell the experts about three exams for the Belarusian authorities. The first one is the offers, proposed by the democratic forces into the practical use of the electoral laws. The second one is including at least one representative of the United Democratic Forces in every district commission.
“From my point of view, it will be difficult for the authorities to deny including of our representatives into district electoral commissions. It will be difficult to find the reasons why, for instance, former ruler of the Belarusian state, honoured lawyer of Belarus Mechyslau Hryb can’t be a member of the district commission. What is the reason? I think the electorate will be surprised if the authorities behave like that.
The decision will be taken by presidiums of region and Minsk city councils and executive commissions. But it is well-known fact that the Belarusian state is centralised. Everything is governed from the center. If there is a political will, our people will be included into district electoral commissions. And vice versa. The third exam is electoral commissions. It is the most principal point in my view. Because it there where the votes are counted,” the politician says.
Invitation for the main observation mission should be sent not later then 2 months before the election day to provide normal work of the mission. As Lidziya Yarmoshyna, head of the Central Electoral Commission, has recently said, the draft decree, proposing to appoint the elections for 28 September, was already sent to Alyaksandr Lukashenka.