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Parliamentary Troika issues statement on Belarus
MINSK 7 March 2001
MINSK, 7 March 2001 -The Parliamentary Troika, composed of members of the European Parliament and the Parliamentary Assemblies of the Council of Europe and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, visited Belarus 5-7 March 2001.
The delegation was chaired by Mr. Adrian Severin, President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly; Mr. Jan Marinus Wiersm, Chairman of the European Parliament delegation for relations with Belarus, and Mr. Terry Davis, Chairman of the Political Affairs Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. Other members of the European Parliament and the Parliamentary Assembly of the OSCE and the Council of Europe were also part of the delegation.
The visit of the delegation took place as part of a continuing, joint effort of the three Parliamentary institutions to further democratic developments in Belarus and on the basis of a profound wish to integrate Belarus and its people in the democratic structures of Europe.
The members of the delegation held several meetings with representatives of the Government and the institutions of the Republic of Belarus, as well as with representatives of the political opposition and civil society, in order to be informed about the situation in the country after the Parliamentary Elections of October 2000 and in the run-up to the Presidential Elections which will take place later this year. They met with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Khvostov; the Head of the Presidential Administration, Mr. Myasnikovick; the President of the Electoral Committee, Ms. Ermoshina; the Speaker, Mr. Popov, and the Leadership of Chamber of Representatives, the Speaker Mr. Voitovich and the Leadership of the Council of the Republic. They also met with potential candidates for the upcoming Presidential Elections, the Advisory Council of Political Parties and the 13th Supreme Soviet Presidium, representatives of trade unions and women organizations and with representatives of human rights groups and NGOs as well as with relatives of disappeared persons.
During the preparation for the Parliamentary Elections, the Parliamentary Troika and its institutions had formulated four criteria, regarding transparency of the electoral process, access to the mass media, meaningful powers for the new Parliament and the observance of a "peace period". These criteria were considered as necessary conditions for the elections to be free and fair. In October 2000, the Parliamentary Troika had to conclude that insufficient progress had been achieved to satisfy the four criteria and that normal relations with the Parliamentary body resulting from these elections could therefore not be recommended. The Parliamentary Troika will be closely watching further developments, in particular the conditions governing the by-elections taking place on 18 March 2001, before taking any further steps on this issue.
With a view to the Presidential Elections, which will take place later this year, the Parliamentary Troika stressed that free and democratic conduct of these elections would be considered as a major progress in the process of democratization in Belarus, and would therefore contribute to ending the international isolation of the country. It must come as no surprise that the Troika will apply the same criteria to those Presidential Elections.
In order for the Presidential Elections to be recognized as free and democratic the Parliamentary Troika expects:
The Parliamentary Troika stresses that it is part of the democratization process that the people of Belarus will have a true possibility of choice when electing their president.
The Parliamentary Troika points out that the organization of the elections according to international standards as formulated by the OSCE, is only part of the democratization process.
The Parliamentary Troika expresses its continuing concern about the human rights situation and at the lack of progress in investigating the disappearances of political opponents, Mr Zakharenko, Mr Gonchar, Mr Krasovsky as well as the journalist Mr Zavadsky.
The Parliamentary Troika expresses once again its full commitment to improve relations with the people of Belarus as part of the process to increase peace and stability in the whole of Europe. It will therefore continue to offer its support, and the support of the institutions it represents, to all those interested in the strengthening of the democratic process in Belarus, be they opposition or administration.
For further information, please contact Andrew Carpenter, Political Counsellor, OSCE Advisory and Monitoring Group in Belarus, Prospekt Gasety Pravda 11, 220116 Minsk, Belarus; Jan Jooren, OSCE PA Press Counsellor, International Secretariat in Copenhagen, tel.: +45 33 37 80 40, fax: +45 33 37 80 30, e-mail: [email protected]
The delegation was chaired by Mr. Adrian Severin, President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly; Mr. Jan Marinus Wiersm, Chairman of the European Parliament delegation for relations with Belarus, and Mr. Terry Davis, Chairman of the Political Affairs Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. Other members of the European Parliament and the Parliamentary Assembly of the OSCE and the Council of Europe were also part of the delegation.
The visit of the delegation took place as part of a continuing, joint effort of the three Parliamentary institutions to further democratic developments in Belarus and on the basis of a profound wish to integrate Belarus and its people in the democratic structures of Europe.
The members of the delegation held several meetings with representatives of the Government and the institutions of the Republic of Belarus, as well as with representatives of the political opposition and civil society, in order to be informed about the situation in the country after the Parliamentary Elections of October 2000 and in the run-up to the Presidential Elections which will take place later this year. They met with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Khvostov; the Head of the Presidential Administration, Mr. Myasnikovick; the President of the Electoral Committee, Ms. Ermoshina; the Speaker, Mr. Popov, and the Leadership of Chamber of Representatives, the Speaker Mr. Voitovich and the Leadership of the Council of the Republic. They also met with potential candidates for the upcoming Presidential Elections, the Advisory Council of Political Parties and the 13th Supreme Soviet Presidium, representatives of trade unions and women organizations and with representatives of human rights groups and NGOs as well as with relatives of disappeared persons.
During the preparation for the Parliamentary Elections, the Parliamentary Troika and its institutions had formulated four criteria, regarding transparency of the electoral process, access to the mass media, meaningful powers for the new Parliament and the observance of a "peace period". These criteria were considered as necessary conditions for the elections to be free and fair. In October 2000, the Parliamentary Troika had to conclude that insufficient progress had been achieved to satisfy the four criteria and that normal relations with the Parliamentary body resulting from these elections could therefore not be recommended. The Parliamentary Troika will be closely watching further developments, in particular the conditions governing the by-elections taking place on 18 March 2001, before taking any further steps on this issue.
With a view to the Presidential Elections, which will take place later this year, the Parliamentary Troika stressed that free and democratic conduct of these elections would be considered as a major progress in the process of democratization in Belarus, and would therefore contribute to ending the international isolation of the country. It must come as no surprise that the Troika will apply the same criteria to those Presidential Elections.
In order for the Presidential Elections to be recognized as free and democratic the Parliamentary Troika expects:
- that the process of preparation and implementation of these elections will be fully transparent and democratic in all its aspects, in particular as regards the process of registration of the candidates, the composition of the electoral commissions and the counting of the votes;
- that the conditions of access to the mass media, in particular to the electronic media, and other possibilities for organising their election campaign will be equal for all candidates;
- that all bodies of the State and the Government will completely refrain from any act that may be considered as harassment of candidates, their relatives or their supporters;
- that all those engaged in (especially non-candidate related) domestic election observation and the recruitment and training for these activities will be completely free in carrying out their work, also in cooperation with international institutions, which constitutes an essential element in guaranteeing the transparency and verifiability of the electoral process.
The Parliamentary Troika stresses that it is part of the democratization process that the people of Belarus will have a true possibility of choice when electing their president.
The Parliamentary Troika points out that the organization of the elections according to international standards as formulated by the OSCE, is only part of the democratization process.
The Parliamentary Troika expresses its continuing concern about the human rights situation and at the lack of progress in investigating the disappearances of political opponents, Mr Zakharenko, Mr Gonchar, Mr Krasovsky as well as the journalist Mr Zavadsky.
The Parliamentary Troika expresses once again its full commitment to improve relations with the people of Belarus as part of the process to increase peace and stability in the whole of Europe. It will therefore continue to offer its support, and the support of the institutions it represents, to all those interested in the strengthening of the democratic process in Belarus, be they opposition or administration.
For further information, please contact Andrew Carpenter, Political Counsellor, OSCE Advisory and Monitoring Group in Belarus, Prospekt Gasety Pravda 11, 220116 Minsk, Belarus; Jan Jooren, OSCE PA Press Counsellor, International Secretariat in Copenhagen, tel.: +45 33 37 80 40, fax: +45 33 37 80 30, e-mail: [email protected]