As a result, a member of the “Fair World” Anatol Rodzik and a participant of the latest presidential election campaign Uladzimir Pravalski didn’t manage to get to the joint sitting of the Vitsebsk Region Executive Committee and the Vitsebsk Region Council, though both of them were nominated to constituency election commissions.

“I had a list with 12 signatures of electors in my support”, said Anatol Rodzik. “However, an officer of the department of organizational and personnel work of the Vitsebsk Region Executive Committee Leanid Darafeyenka stated the he wouldn’t accept this paper and wouldn’t include me in the list of the people who were invited to the sitting. However, such lists are illegal, as our elections are open and I have the right to observe the process of nomination. Darafeyenka said that according to the regime of its work, the executive committee has the right to compose restrictive lists. “Do you think that the authorities have no right to it? Are you going to control the power?,” – that’s what he said. I think that my political rights have been violated,” commented Anatol Rodzik.

He also told about the incident with Uladzimir Pravalski, a Vitsebsk entrepreneur who was going to take part in the last presidential election campaign, but wasn’t registered as a candidate by the Central Election Commission:

“Pravalski wasn’t let in and demanded that police be called to register the fact of violation of his right. However, the police refused to compose any documents, telling that nobody swore at him or beat him, that’s why his rights weren’t violated.”

The executive committee decided to invite to the process of nomination only one representative from each party or NGO. Mikalai Selivashka was invited as a representative of the Belarusian Leftist Party “Fair World”. “I can’t understand what was the problem was. There were enough seats in the hall… What secrets can be there?,” asked Mr. Selivashka.

At the official website of the Vitsebsk Region Executive Committee it was written that “representatives of political parties and other structures” had the right to attend the joint sitting without any limitations. At the same time it was written there that “direction of observers to the sitting is not provided for”. It wasn’t explained what people were regarded as “observers”.

“Human Rights Defenders for Free Elections”