News

• Sep 23, 2012: Polls close in Belarus election amid boycott, Al Jazeera (2012) Allegations of fraud and illegal detentions have disrupted the September 23rd parliamentary election in Belarus, prompting demonstrations from parties opposing the current leadership. Opposition parties urged their supporters to boycott the vote to prevent legitimacy in election polls.
• Aug 29, 2012: Voter turnout at Belarus parliament elections may reach 70%, Belarusian Telegraph Agency (2012) Belarus expects 70% voters turnout in the upcoming parliamentary elections.
• Aug 29, 2012: Belarus’ CEC invited to monitor elections in Georgia, Belarusian Telegraph Agency (2012) Belarusian CEC members has received invitation to participate in Georgian parliamentary elections which will happen in October 2012.
• Aug 29, 2012:
• Aug 17, 2012: Belarusian election commission chair expects OSCE to be biased in monitoring elections, Interfax.com (2012) Chair of Central Election Commission of Belarus stated that they suspect bias in OSCE observational mission, especially after the order to recall of Sweden embassy in Minsk.
• Aug 17, 2012: Opposition parties deceive Belarusians by pretending to run for parliament seats, Belarusian Telegraph Agency (2012) Secretary of Central Election Commission in Belarus warned about the contestants who’s main purpose to hinder electoral process.
• Aug 17, 2012:
• Aug 17, 2012:
• Aug 17, 2012: OSCE/ODIHR observers to start arriving in Belarus 24 August, Belarusian Telegraph Agency (2012) According to the secretary of the Central Election Commission of Belarus, the staff of OSCE/ODIHR observation mission for the upcoming Belarusian parliamentary elections will start arriving to Belarus on 24th of August.
• Aug 17, 2012: Russia vows to secure impartial assessment of Belarusian parliamentary elections, Belarusian Telegraph Agency (2012) Foreign minister of Russian Federation vowed to ensure the objective assessment of the Belarusian parliamentary election in addition to OSCE observational mission.
• Aug 17, 2012: Belarusians’ interest in political parties on the rise, Belarusian Telegraph Agency (2012) Public interest in political parties is rising before the elections. However it is still considerably low and there are still many flaws to fix in the electoral procedures of Belarusian electoral process.
• Aug 14, 2012: Belarus: Macedonia representative to head OSCE/ODIHR mission to Belarus, Belarusian Telegraph Agency (2012) Macedonian Nikolai Lozovik will lead OSCE/ODIHR mission in Belarus parliamentary election observation.
• Aug 14, 2012: CIS election monitors working hard in Belarus, Law.by (2012) CIS election monitors visited Belarus, observed and evaluated preparation process for the upcoming parliamentary elections and made.
• Aug 14, 2012: Belarus: Russia’s CEC to monitor Belarus’ parliamentary elections, Belarusian Telegraph Agency (2012) Central Election Commission of Russia has received an invitiation and will observe the upcoming parliamentary elections in Belarus.
• Aug 09, 2012: Belarus: Election commissions formed in Russia for Belarus’ parliamentary elections, Belarusian Telegraph Agency (2012) Election Commissions are formed in all four polling stations in Russian Federation for the upcoming parliamentary elections in Belarus for citizens residing in Russia.
• Jul 26, 2012: OSCE PA to observe Belarus Parliamentary Elections, OSCE PA (2012) OSCE Parliamentary Assembly is planning to send observational mission to the upcoming Belarus Parliamentary elections on the 23rd of September.
• Jul 26, 2012: Belarusian civil society insisting on transparent vote count in parliamentary elections, Naviny.by (2012) Yuliya Slutskaya, director of Solidarity with Belarus Information Office based in Warsaw, called for a need to implement additional safeguards in securing the transparency in the upcoming parliamentary elections.
• Jun 25, 2012: Belarus: CEC: Nomination of Candidates to Be Possible in a Month, Telegraph.by (2012) Central Election Commission of Belarus established election plan calendar, foreseeing the periods, terms and dates for the upcoming electoral procedures.
• Jun 20, 2012: Parliamentary Elections in Belarus to be Held on September 23, Telegraph.by (2012) President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko announced the date of parliamentary elections, which will be held on 23rd of September this year. He expressed his hopes, that elections will be conducted in a fair manner, but he won’t insist on inviting observers from abroad.
• Jun 20, 2012: Belarus CEC to discuss parliamentary elections on 19 June, Belarus Telegraph Agency (2012) Central Election Commission of Belarus will be holding a session on 19th of June to discuss the fundamental issues of the upcoming parliamentary elections.
• Apr 16, 2012: OSCE Chairperson welcomes release of Belarusian opposition leader, calls on President to free others, OSCE (2012) The OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Eamon Gilmore welcomed decision of Belarusian President to release Belarusian opposition leader Andrei Sannikov from custody. Mr. Eamon Gilmore expects President Aleksandr Lukashenko would free all remaining jailed opponents.
• Apr 02, 2012: CEC Promises to Set Date for Parliamentary Elections in June, telegraf (2012) Belarus parliamentary elections are scheduled for September 2012. The Central Election Commission of Belarus plans to announce the exact date of the parliamentary elections to be held this fall. President of Belarus jointly with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will decide to invite or not the observers from the OSCE ODIHR.
• Feb 13, 2012: Belarusian Opposition in "Status Quo" Survival Mode, belarusdigest (2012) The opposition in Belarus, weakened by government pressure, fails. The opposition has missed a major opportunity being silent during the economic crisis, mismanagement by the government and falling ratings of the President Alexander Lukashenka.
• Feb 13, 2012: Lukashenko Ordered Parliament to Help CEC to Hold Elections, telegraf (2012) President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko said that deputies of Parliament should help the Central Election Commission to organize parliamentary elections in 2012. The Belorussian leader expressed confidence that the new parliament would be "solely from the people" and "talkers will not get there."
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• Feb 02, 2012: BCD Calls for All-Belarus People's Congress, Telegraf (2012) All opposition parties and movements in Belarus are called to cooperate and coordinate their actions for the parliamentary elections in 2012.
• Feb 02, 2012: 2012 Parliamentary Elections: Boycott or Participation?, Belarus Digest (2012) In September 2012, Belorussians will elect a new parliament. The regime opponents choose from two options boycott or participation in the elections to the parliament.
• Oct 13, 2011: Protesters in Belarus call for fresh and free elections, Deutsche Welle (2011) Demonstrators in Belarus are demanding free elections and better living conditions. The protesters (cca 1000) rallied in the center of Minsk where they called on the government to halt price inflation, free political prisoners and hold free elections.
• Jun 20, 2011: UN Human Rights Council condemns election-related violence in Belarus, Belarus News (2011) The article reports that: "the United Nations Human Rights Council voted Friday to condemn human rights violations before, during and after the December 2010 presidential election in Belarus, and urged the government to end what called the persecution of opposition leaders." The article touches on other aspects of the election-related violence.
• May 16, 2011: Belarus opposition leader Andrei Sannikov jailed, BBC (2011) The article reports that the main opposition leader in Belarus, Andrei Sannikov, "has been jailed for five years on charges of organising mass protests after last year's presidential poll." The EU and US have responded to the crackdown by imposing harsh sanctions on the current leadership. Political tensions within the country have turned violent.
• Feb 23, 2011: Two Russians Go On Trial In Belarus Over Election Protests, rferl (2011) The trial of two Russian citizens arrested following December protests questioning Belarus's presidential election has begun in Minsk, RFE/RL's Belarus Service reports.
• Feb 23, 2011: "Case of December 19" Undermines Credibility of Belarusian Elections, OSCE, Telegraf.by (2011) OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights issued a final report of the observation mission on February 22 over the last presidential election in Belarus.
• Jan 31, 2011: EU Foreign Ministers to decide on sanctions against dictator today, Charter 97 (2011) The EU Foreign Ministers meet in Brussels on January 31 to adopt sanctions against the Belarusian leadership.
• Jan 31, 2011: US outlines possible punitive measures against Belarus following flawed election, crackdown, The Canadian Press (2011) The United States is outlining punitive steps it is preparing to take against Belarus if the country does not ease its crackdown on the opposition.
• Jan 24, 2011: Elections in Belarus - European Tragedy, Pofalla, Telegraf.by (2011) Presidential elections in Belarus: "European tragedy" as the head of the German Chancellery, Federal Minister for Special Assignments Ronald Pofalla called it.
• Jan 24, 2011: Belarus denies violations during riots probe, Ria Novosti (2011) Post-election arrests in Belarus after 19 December: a conflict that still goes on.
• Jan 24, 2011: Russian Central Election Commission Restricted Report on Belarus Elections (Telegraf, 2011) Russian observers will not publish its report on presidential elections in Belarus, passed on 19th December 2010. Previously it was reported that elections were not recognized by the observers of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). International observers from the CIS countries have recognized the presidential election as legitimate.
• Jan 17, 2011: European Parliament to scrutinize Belarus elections, The Voice of Russia (2011) Debates on the Belarusian presidential elections due to start in the European Parliament on January 17th.
• Jan 11, 2011: UN Secretary General calls on Belarus to release detained journalists and opposition leaders, The Sofia Echo (2011) United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called on January 10 2011 for the release of journalists, opposition candidates and their supporters who are still detained in Belarus following the presidential elections in December 2010.
• Jan 11, 2011: Police Filed Charges against 31 Protesters of December 19, Telegraf.by (2011) Belarusian police filed charges against 31 members of mass protests, taken place in Minsk after the presidential elections in the evening of December 19 and the night of December 20. Alexander Lastovski, Minsk police spokesman told that over 120 people participated actively in the mass actions.
• Jan 11, 2011: Belarus facing unprecedented sanctions, The Telegraph (2011) Belarus' foreign minister, Sergei Martynov will be told that the EU expects "the immediate release of detainees" imprisoned after a wave of beatings and arrests aimed at the opposition following presidential elections in Belarus in December 2010.
• Jan 11, 2011: West Ratchets Up Pressure On Belarus Over Vote, rferl (2011) Western leaders are looking for new ways to pile pressure on Belarus because of its presidential election and detention of hundreds of opposition protesters.
• Jan 11, 2011: EU criticizes post-election clampdowns in Belarus, Deutsche Welle (2011) Belarus closed down the OSCE's local operation, after it called last month's presidential elections in that country "flawed." US and EU diplomats voiced their concern.
• Jan 11, 2011: Belarus Releases Election Protesters From Jail, Interfax Says, Bloomberg (2011) Interfax reported that Belarus released about 150 demonstrators detained after protesting the results of President Alexander Lukashenko’s re-election last month, citing the Interior Ministry.
• Jan 11, 2011: Germany Calls for EU to Renew Sanctions against Belarus, Telegraf.by (2011) German Government supports the renewal of EU sanctions against Minsk
• Jan 10, 2011: Lukashenko wins by landslide in Belarus, The Voice of Russia (2010) This article reports on the results of the presidential election in Belarus. On December 19, incumbent President Alexander Lukahsenko received almost 80% of the votes cast. Among the other nine candidates, Andrei Sannikov received most of the votes, 2.4%. The Central Elections Commission stated that the official results will be made public in the next days.
• Dec 22, 2010: 5 Belarus candidates in jail, The Moscow Times (2010) This article reports on the arrest of hundred of protesters who marched in the streets of Minsk on Sunday night, right after the results of the presidential elections were announced. Five of the nine opposition candidates were arrested during the protests. Many people were beaten by the security agents before being transported to unknown detention facilities.
• Dec 22, 2010: Hundreds jailed in crackdown over Belarus election dissent, The Irish Times (2010) This article reports on the protests that followed the announcement of results of the presidential elections in Belarus. The police and a security service (called KGB) dispersed the protesters that gathered in the streets on Sunday night, and jailed about 600 people. Some of arrested protesters could face up to 15 years in prison.
• Dec 22, 2010: U.S. State Department doesn't Recognize Elections in Belarus, Telegraf (2010) This article reports on the international reaction to the elections in Belarus. The United States State Department announced that Washington will not accept the results of the presidential poll. The US also asked the government in Belarus to release the detainees.
• Dec 21, 2010: Western observers call Belarus election a 'failure', VOA News (2010) This article reports on the first reports on the integrity of the elections in Belarus. The European Union will likely withdraw its offer of $4 billion in credits to President Lukashenko if he carried out a free and fair election. The election observer team of the OSCE (Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe) stated that the election was a "failure". The main controversy turnout around the secret counting of votes by government employees. 91% of the eligible voters cast their ballots, and Mr. Lukashenko received 79.7% of the votes (in 2006, he received 83%).
• Dec 17, 2010: Belarus' strongman likely to win re-election (AP, 2010) How shall win Sunday elections in Belarus?
• Dec 17, 2010: Observers Feel Almost Like Masters, Lukashenko (Telegraf, 2010) President Lukashenko sais international observers should be more "observing", and not mastering how the election process shall go.
• Dec 17, 2010: All Election Campaign Dramas - Only in Internet, CEC (Telegraf, 2010) Chairman of the Central Election Commission of Belarus Lidia Yermoshina said on December 17 that all the election campaign dramas took place only in the Internet.
• Dec 14, 2010: Early Voting Begins in Belarus (Telegraf.by, 2010) Early voting in the presidential elections of the republic of Belarus begins on Tuesday, December 14. Polling stations will be opened from 10:00 to 19:00. Early voting ends the day before the official election day to be held on 19th of December.
• Dec 03, 2010: CEC Informed about Amount of Money Collected by Presidential Candidates (Telegraf, 2010) Central Election Commission of Belarus promulgated data on the total amount of funds, received by presidential candidates for the election campaign in Belarus, as well as on the total amount, spent as of November 30.
• Dec 03, 2010: Lukashenko: OSCE needs universal election assessment standards (law.by, 2010) he OSCE should develop universal standards for assessing elections, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko said in his speech at the OSCE summit in Astana on 2 December.
• Dec 03, 2010: USA praises Belarus’ decision to invite many international election observers (law.by, 2010) The USA praises Belarus’ decision to invite a considerable number of international observers to monitor the presidential election,
• Dec 01, 2010: Election in Belarus: no alien forces (The Voice of Russia, 2010) Campaign continues in Belarus: an overview.
• Dec 01, 2010: Belarus: The CEC Issued Warning to Statkevich and Rymasheuski (Telegraf, 2010) The Central Election Commission of the Republic of Belarus issued a warning to candidates for the presidency of the country.
• Dec 01, 2010: Belarusian Central Elections Commission head forecasts one-round election (ITAR-TASS, 2010) On how Mrs. Ermoshina, president of the CEC Belarus sees the upcoming elections of December 19.
• Nov 29, 2010: Presidential candidates register for election in Belarus (Deutsche Welle, 2010) In a month's time, voters in Belarus go to the polls to elect a president. While live debates among candidates will be broadcast for the first time, analysts doubt whether the elections will truly be free and fair. 10 candidates are registered to run for the presidency.
• Nov 29, 2010: Lukashenko ahead elections promises very high human development index in Belarus (RIA Novosti, 2010) Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko promised ahead of the country's presidential elections that Belarus will reach a high human development index, Sovetskaya Belarussiya (Soviet Belarus) newspaper reported.
• Nov 29, 2010: Belarus Needs No Experiments, Lukashenko (Telegraf, 2010 Acting head of state Alexander Lukashenko will run again for presidency. What can we know about his program?
• Nov 19, 2010: OSCE / ODIHR Long-Term Observers to Arrive in Belarus on November 17, Telegraf.By (2010) This article reports on the arrival of the OSCE/ODIHR observer mission to monitor the upcoming elections in Belarus. On November 17, the long-term observers arrived in the country, and they will set up they base in Minsk.
• Nov 19, 2010: Presidential candidates register for election in Belarus, Deutsche Welle (2010) This article reports on the preparations for the forthcoming elections in Belarus. The Electoral Commission has completed the registration of a record number presidential candidate (10). The latest opinion polls show that incumbent president Lukashenko maintains his popularity (31% - an historic low), while the other candidates do not pose a serious challenge (between 2 and 11%). The presidential election is scheduled for December 19.
• Oct 21, 2010: Medvedev wades into Belarus election (The Moscow News, 2010) Few outside observers believe that the Belarusian presidential elections are anything more than a one-horse race – but Russia’s Dmitry Medvedev is doing his best to turn Alexander Lukashenko’s procession into a political campaign.
• Oct 21, 2010: Belarus’ presidential election will largely determine Russian-Belarusian relations, says head of Russian president’s administration (Belarus News, 2010) Russia does care what choice the Belarusians will make in the forthcoming presidential election, as this will largely determine the future of the relationship between the two countries, Sergei Naryshkin, head of the Russian president’s administration, told a gathered group of Belarusian journalists in the Kremlin on Wednesday.
• Oct 21, 2010: OSCE to start observe elections in November (Charter97, 2010) 40 long-term observers of the OSCE mission to start work in Belarus.
• Oct 21, 2010: CIS observers arrive in Belarus (Charter97, 2010) The CIS observation mission headed by CIS Executive Secretary Sergey Lebedev started monitoring presidential election in Belarus.
• Oct 05, 2010: Russian observers to give their opinion of Belarus polls Russian observers will give their own opinion of Belarus' presidential elections, a Kremlin official told Itar-Tass on Monday. "The Russian observers' work will become the most adequate evaluation of the election of the Belarusian president," he said.
• Sep 29, 2010: Andrei Sannikov: Opposition ready to defend the results of the election in the street (Chareter97, 2010) Changes in Belarus are necessary for everyone, from workers to officials. The leader of the civil campaign “European Belarus” Andrei Sannikov has given an interview to a Russian edition “Segodnia.ru”.
• Sep 29, 2010: EU preparing to renew Belarus sanctions as election looms (EUobserver, 2010) Belarus' hardy autocratic ruler, Aleksander Lukashenko, is set to suffer a small blow to his image ahead of upcoming elections when the EU renews its travel ban on the President and 35 of his officials next month.
• Sep 29, 2010: Seventeen would-be-candidates plan to run for president in Belarus (RIA Novosti, 2010) Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and sixteen other people may run for the presidency in Belarus, the Belarusian Central Election Commission (CEC) said on Monday. The Belarusian parliament has set presidential elections for December 19. On Monday, the CEC registered the would-be candidates' action groups.
• Sep 24, 2010: Belarus: Jerzy Buzek: Democracy is not a staged play (Charter 97, 2010) The election in Belarus looks like a farce of democracy, the President of the European Parliament thinks.
• Sep 22, 2010: CIS long-term observers for Belarus’ presidential election expected to arrive within next few days (Belorusskie Novosti, 2010) A five-member long-term observation mission of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) for Belarus’ December 19 presidential election is expected to arrive within the next few days, Lidziya Yarmoshyna, head of the central election commission, told reporters in Minsk on Monday.
• Sep 22, 2010: Belarus elections: Alexander Milinkevich gives up presidential bid (Demotix, 2010) Belarussian opposition politician and presidential candidate Alexandr Milinkevich refuses to participate in the poll to be held 19th December claiming that current electoral law doesn't insure fair, free and open elections.
• Sep 15, 2010: ODIHR OSCE mission ready to arrive to Belarus (Charter 97, 2010) There is no deadline for inviting the OSCE mission to Belarus. It has been stated in an interview to BelaPAN by Spokesperson of the ODIHR Election Observation Mission and the OSCE Office in Minsk Jens Eschenbaecher.
• Sep 15, 2010: EU hopes for Belarus’ presidential race to be in line with European and international standards for democratic elections (Belorusskie Novosti, 2010) The European Union hopes for Belarus’ presidential election that has been set for December 19 to be in line with European and international standards for democratic elections, Maja Kocijancic, spokesperson for Catherine Ashton, the European Union’s high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, told BelaPAN.
• Sep 15, 2010: Presidential election date set in Belarus (CNN, 2010) Belarussian lawmakers have set December 19 as the date for the country's next presidential election, the state-owned BelTA news agency said Tuesday.
• Sep 15, 2010: Belarus’ CEC prepares for presidential election (National Legal Internet Portal, 2010) The Central Election Commission (CEC) of Belarus is actively preparing for the forthcoming presidential election, BelTA learnt from Secretary of the Central Election Commission Nikolai Lozovik.
• Sep 15, 2010: Belarus Politician to Run for Presidency via Internet (CRIENGLISH.com, 2010) An opposition candidate for the presidential elections in Belarus, Yaroslav Romanchuk, planned to conduct his election campaign sole on the Internet, Russian media reported Tuesday.
• Sep 15, 2010: Belarus sets presidential elections for December, Deutsche Welle (2010) This article reports on the announcement of the elections date in Belarus. As a matter of fact, the Parliament approved the new date for the next presidential election, December 19. President Alexander Lukashenko, who has been in power ever since 1994, will likely run for a fourth term.
• Aug 23, 2010: Belarus: Pole to run against Lukashenko in presidential race (Rianovosti, 2010) An ethnic Pole has announced plans to compete with Belarusian authoritarian ruler Alexander Lukashenko in next year's presidential election, the Polish Radio External Service reported on Monday.
• Aug 23, 2010: Presidential Elections in Belarus (Turkish Weekly, 2010) Yesterday it became known that President Alexander Lukashenko signed a decree for an extraordinary session of parliament on September 7th. Experts in Minsk do not exclude that the date of presidential elections will be assigned in this session, which can pass ahead of schedule. Meanwhile, the main discussions in the Belarusian political arena are about who Moscow would support during the upcoming election campaign. On the other hand, according to deputies, the extraordinary session should be devoted to consideration of the laws of the country's budget, the budget of State Social Protection Fund, on making amendments and additions to tax and budget codes.
• Jul 02, 2010: Belarus:Nominating candidate to become president, Charter 97 (2010) In this interview with possible presidential candidate Andrei Sannikov discusses a number of concerns surrounding upcoming elections including the possible of influence of Russia on the process.
• May 05, 2010: Belarus: Lukashenka considers holding next presidential election in early 2011 (NAVINY.BY, 2010) Alyaksandr Lukashenka on Tuesday said that he was inclined to hold Belarus’ next presidential election at the beginning of 2011, noting that there were no factors that would force him to refuse to participate.
• May 05, 2010: It is not unlikely that presidential election will be held this fall (NAVINY.BY, 2010) The central election commission does not rule out that the nest presidential election may be held in the fall of 2010, Lidziya Yarmoshyna, head of the commission, said in an interview with BelaPAN on Monday.
• Apr 30, 2010: Main polling day starts in Belarus` local elections (Naviny, 2010) Polling stations opened in Belarus` local elections on Sunday morning to select 21,300 members of the country`s local councils called soviets.
• Oct 27, 2008: General Elections in Belarus, 28th September 2008, Robert Schuman Foundation (2008) Analysis on General Elections in Belarus, to be held 28th September 2008 by Robert Schuman Foundation.
• Sep 03, 2008: Just 0.07 per cent of oppositionists in precinct election commissions. Rigging is being prepared?, Charter 97 (2008) Only 3 per cent of nominated representatives of democratic parties have become members of precinct election commissions.
• Aug 11, 2008: Belarusians declare boycott to electoral farce, Charter97 (2008) In the run-up to the so-called “parliamentary elections” actions under “Boycott!” title are held all over Belarus.
• Jul 03, 2008: Most Belarusian Opposition Leaders to Run in Parliamentary Elections, Office for Democratic Belarus (2008) Most Belarusian opposition politicians plan to run personally or indirectly in the parliamentary elections set by presidential decree for September 28.
• May 23, 2008: Belarus - Reaction to Belarus elections, BBC (2006) This article is about the reaction to Belarus elections held in March, 2006, when the victory of President Alexander Lukashenko in the Belarussian presidential elections has prompted mixed reactions. Mr Lukashenko won a landslide victory in Sunday's elections, securing a third five-year term in office. However, the opposition say the vote was unfair.
• May 23, 2008: Number of observers at elections in Belarus may be reduced, BELTA (2008) An official statement was made by Secretary of the Central Election Commission of Belarus Nikolai Lozovik, who believes it is possible to consider the possibility of reducing the number of international observers sent to monitor elections in Belarus.