OSCE SAYS BELARUSIAN ELECTIONS 'SIGNIFICANTLY SHORT' OF DEMOCRATIC STANDARDS...
Published:
20 October 2004 y., Wednesday
OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Vice President Tone Tinsgaard, who led an OSCE short-term monitoring mission for the 17 October legislative ballot, said on 18 October that the elections fell "significantly short" of Belarus's OSCE commitments.
The OSCE refused to monitor the presidential referendum held the same day, even though it was invited to do so by Minsk. According to Tinsgaard, the biased referendum campaign by the Belarusian government "contributed to a highly distorted campaign environment."
Tinsgaard said the authorities raided the campaign offices of opposition candidates, coerced many groups of voters to cast ballots in the 17 October polls, and conducted biased coverage of election-relates issues in the media. OSCE monitors determined that in 60 percent of polling stations they visited the vote count lacked transparency and was practically uncontrollable.
Šaltinis:
RFE/RL's Belarus Service
Copying, publishing, announcing any information from the News.lt portal without written permission of News.lt editorial office is prohibited.
The most popular articles
Two more nails thump into the "Yes" camp in France's upcoming referendum on the European Constitution today
more »
The Chinese Embassy in Kyrgyzstan warned Chinese citizens on Saturday against traveling to the Central Asian state
more »
With far-off Kyrgyzstan in revolt Friday, senior Russian politicians and pro-government analysts voiced concerns for the first time that populist revolutions in the former Soviet Union hold ominous portents for Russia's prestige, stability and security
more »
Rallies organized by opposition supporters in the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek developed into mass disturbances and bloodbaths
more »
Immigration and tourism from Russia boost economy and population of Eastern Finland
more »
Lithuanian workers on Danish farms receive blackmail threats from mafia organizations at home
more »
RESTA is the largest and most popular construction exhibition in the Baltic States. The exhibition will take place on March 22-25, 2005 in the Lithuanian Exhibition Centre LITEXPO.
more »
A high-level Polish delegation headed by former Polish President Lech Walesa arrived here yesterday to thank Crown Prince Abdullah and the Saudi government
more »