Maja Kocijancic, Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations, has commented on the local elections in Belarus, which took place on 18 February.
According to the EU top official, were an opportunity to enhance the legitimacy of local representatives in the country; however, a number of key recommendations made and systemic shortcomings identified by the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s (OSCE) Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights and the Council of Europe’s Venice Commission following previous elections remained unaddressed.
“The European Union continues to expect the Belarusian authorities to, without delay, resume work on a serious and comprehensive reform of the election law and processes. Such a reform should be undertaken as soon as possible ahead of the next elections so as to address the longstanding recommendations and to ensure a level playing field. The reform process should be transparent and inclusive. This would also be an additional step towards reaching the full potential of EU-Belarus relations, building on positive cooperation that has been recently enriched by several local initiatives,” the statement reads.
Belsat journalists and independent observers uncovered massive violations of the electoral code during the Sunday elections. Belsat TV cameraman Andrus Kozel was severely beaten by the police at a polling station in Minsk. Our colleague, an observer at the elections to local councils of deputies, was livestreaming the process of voting on his Facebook.
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18,110 deputies were elected to the local councils of Belarus on February, 18. Early voting kicked off in Belarus on February, 13. There might have been many rigged votes from Tuesday till Saturday, observers warn.
КА, belsat.eu, following EEAS
