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To the members of the Central commission of the
Republic of Belarus on the election and realisation of referendums To the members of the district and local elective
commissions To the chairmen of municipal and regional executive
committees, administrations, councils The open letter. Dear
members of elective commissions. According to the
current legislation of the Republic of Belarus you are included in the
structure of elective commissions. Because of the imperfection of the
Elective code and the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus the formation
of the elective commissions was completely given to the "payoff" to
the local executive authority which formed these commissions basically from
those people who are to some extent dependent from them taking into account
their mercenary interests. Thus through the representatives the authority
actually controlled the work of the elective commissions. The majority of you
have a role "of the mass meeting" at the acceptance of the
decisions. It is not a secret for you that the managing bodies in your
commissions were not elected and were nominated. You have been permitted only
to legalise the people nominated to these posts by voting. Being based on the private instructions
of the higher officials, the aim of such commissions is to “filter” those
candidates in the deputies who disagree with the politics of the government,
the president, local bodies of authority. The chairmen of elective
commissions constantly test "pressure" from the part of the local authorities
and they should co-ordinate the elementary questions which are in the
competence of the elective commissions with the local executive committees.
They should almost daily come into the local executive committee and to
"report" about the done work. There are numerous facts confirming
this. I understand that any display "of
independence" for a member of a elective commission can further finish
in the removal from the post, and it is in our uneasy time is a serious
threat. Nevertheless, I address to you with a reminder that according to
article 11 of the Elective code «the commissions … are independent of state
bodies … ». I remind you also that it is not a task
of commissions to “filter” the candidates who do not satisfy the authority,
and their task is the maintenance of the constitutional right of the citizens
to choose and to be elected. Besides, according to article 42, item 5
of the Elective code the elective commissions: «help to organise the
promotion of the candidates, and according to article 64 of the Constitution
of the Republic of Belarus: “A direct or an indirect restriction of the
suffrage of the citizens … is inadmissible and is punished according to the
law”. I understand, that each of you has the
belief and sympathies to any political figures, but you work in the structure
of electoral commissions, your ideas should not influence honour and open
fulfilment of the task of the state importance by you, namely: to ensure the
right of a free choice to the people of Belarus. I ask you to show a firm civil position,
honesty and adherence of principles and to not to be pressed by the corrupted
officials. Even today we know the facts when some
chairmen of the elective commissions to please the local officials
consciously break the Elective code and they can be qualified as criminal
offences. So, for example, V. A. Khlyabich, the chairman of the district
elective commission of the Grodno - Zanemansky constituency #51 said that the
sufficient basis for the refusal to register the initiative group is the fact
that the legal address of the private businessman is not specified whereas
this businessman does not have such legal address at all. In Grodno -
Northern constituency #53 Zhebrun, a representative of the executive
committee "convinced" the commission that the sufficient basis for
the refusal to register is that the number of the certificate of the
registration of the businessman is not specified. On these facts the
applications in the office of the public prosecutor are sent. Some officials
from the present authority who are included in the commissions try to create
the preferential terms for "their" candidates, and for all others
they create possible obstacles. They "legalise" the illegal actions
by voting in which you participate and they use the absence of legal skills
at the majority of the members of the commission. Then they declare: «And
this decision was not accepted by me, it was the commission». It is very
convenient. But it is very dishonourable. You should invite those people on
whom the decisions are taken out to the sessions of commissions, give them an
opportunity to result the arguments. The commission should accept the weighed
decision based on the law, having listened to all "for" and
"«against", but it should not be based on the conclusion of one
member of the commission who is a representative of the executive or about
the executive authority. As a rule, he, this member of the commission, is
ruled by personal, mercenary interests, by the desire to report to "a
chief", that he ”had filtered" an unnecessary candidate in the
deputies. Dear members of commissions. Some of you
are pleased with the present situation in Belarus, probably, you feel deep
love and respect for the president A. G. Lukashenko and his policy? This is
your right. We build a civil society and are obliged to respect opinions of
all citizens of our republic. But the society can develop only then when
there is a healthy competition of ideas, programs, politicians. It is necessary to give an opportunity
to all our citizens to answer a question: «What to do in further? On what
ways of development should we go through the elected representatives? The
parliament will work only in that case if there competition of minds,
programs and offers be, but not the general “we approve”. Make it in the interests of the people
of Belarus, make it in the interests of the future, make it in the interests
of the future of Belarus! Yours
faithfully Valery Levonevsky
6.09.2000 I ask to publish this letter in
MASS-MEDIA and to show its contents to all members of electoral commissions,
workers of executive committees, administrations, councils etc. |
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