English

Eight parliamentary contenders of United Civic Party withdraw from the race

Eight parliamentary contenders of the United Civic Party (UCP), who were nominated as the party’s “speakers,” have already pulled out, UCP Chairman Anatol Lyabedzka told reporters in Minsk on Tuesday.

Therefore only 49 “speakers” out of the 57 nominated ones still plan to take part in the campaign stage of the House of Representatives elections.

“Since the very beginning we have told our people that they will encounter intimidation, persecution and pressure, which may be even severer than against the representatives of pro-democracy forces who plan to stay in the parliamentary race until the end,” Mr. Lyabedzka said. “This is because of our tough message that Lukashenka is a dead-end, and that to break out of this dead-end, we need free and fair elections.”

According to him, after the authorities formed district and precinct election commissions, two speakers said that the results of their formation were a sufficient reason not to take part in the elections. “After representatives of pro-democracy forces were not admitted to the commissions, they realized what kind of elections these would be,” Mr. Lyabedzka said.

According to him, six other people withdrew because their parents had been subjected to pressure. “The case of Syarhey Lis, who was to run in an electoral district in Hrodnam is very illustrative,” he said. “Yesterday Syarhey and his father were warned that if he didn’t withdraw his registration application from the district election commission, they both would have problems. Lis reported today that he had withdrawn his application.”

According to Mr. Lyabedzka, some other UCP members were “recommended” by their employers not to take part in the election campaign. //BelaPAN