Aug. 11, 2004
BELARUSIAN AUTHORITIES ACCUSED OF IMPEDING REGISTRATION OF OPPOSITION CANDIDATES
Anatol Lyabedzka, leader of the opposition United Civic Party (AHP), has accused the authorities of pressuring members of groups formed in Homel, Vitsebsk, and Minsk oblasts to nominate AHP candidates for the 17 October parliamentary elections, BelaPAN reported. "In Polatsk [in Vitsebsk Oblast], for instance, district election commission members have contacted by phone all members of the nomination group for AHP member Henadz Voranau, strongly recommending that they drop out," Lyabedzka said. "As a result, the group has only eight of its 11 members left, whereas the minimum number of members required for a group's registration is 10." A similar tactic was used for preventing the registration of a group supporting Syarhey Salash, a member of the opposition Belarusian Popular Front in Barysau, Minsk Oblast. "The authorities are preventing the nomination of pro-democracy figures who enjoy the highest popularity in the districts," Lyabedzka said. The deadline for registering nomination groups is 12 August.
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