The Organizing Committee of the party Belarusian Christian Democracy has started an online initiative group to nominate political prisoner Mikalai Statkevich presidential candidate.
Christian Democrats suggest that people leave their contact information in the petition, specially created for Internet platform change.org. Persons who sign this electronic document will be included in the initiative group of Mr Statkevich. At the same time, the petition calls on the Belarusian authorities to release political prisoners, among whom are also mentioned Yauhen Vaskovich, Ihar Alinevich, Mikalai Dzyadok, Artsiom Prakapenka and Yury Rubtsou, BelaPAN reports.
“Without the release and full restitution of all political prisoners in Belarus, no election can be considered free and fair,” the press service of the BCD reports.
In late May, one of the leaders of the Belarusian Social Democratic Party (Narodnaya Hramada) Syarhei Skrabets declared the creation of the initiative group of Mikalai Statkevich, who is serving a sentence in the Mahiliou prison #4.
Meanwhile, the Central Election Commission declared the impossibility of registration of the initiative groups of Mikalai Statkevich. “I can say unequivocally that it will not be registered, as Statkevich cannot become a candidate for presidency – said earlier the CEC secretary Mikalai Lazavik. The Central Commission cannot register groups only in order to carry out an act which has no legal force.
Mr Lazavik also noted that first of all, during the registration of the initiative group, the CEC is considering the person the group will nominate, whether that person can be a candidate. “In accordance with the current legislation, Mikalai Statkevich cannot be a candidate for presidency, because he has a conviction,” said the CEC secretary.
Ex-presidential candidate Mikalai Statkevich was sentenced to six years’ imprisonment in a strict regime colony in May 2011. International organizations have recognized him as a political prisoner. Mr Statkevich was twice transferred from the Shklou colony into the Mahiliou prison: first, at the beginning of 2012, the second – in May. Both times the official reason for tightening the regime was violation of the colony regime by Mr Statkevich. According to the final judgment, in prison the politician will be held by the end of the sentence in December 2016.
International human rights organizations, the EU and the United States have repeatedly urged the Belarusian authorities to release Mikalai Statkevich.
Zakhar Shcharbakou, BelaPAN, belsat.eu/en/
