BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

22/02/2006

Russia denounces OSCE election-monitoring work in Belarus

MOSCOW (AP) - Russia's Foreign Ministry on Wednesday claimed the OSCE's election observer mission in Belarus was showing severe bias ahead of next month's presidential election, in which authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko is seeking a third term.

The election observer missions of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights have frequently labeled elections in post-Soviet states as severely flawed and Russia often bristles at the reports as Western attempts to interfere in countries that the Kremlin regards as within Russia's sphere of influence.

Lukashenko, widely criticized for repressing the opposition and journalists, is an ally of Russia and has sought to bring the country into a loose union with Russia. He contends that Western governments aim to undermine his government by stirring up opposition around the elections and he has vowed a heavy police presence on election day to prevent protests similar to those in Georgia and Ukraine after disputed elections.

In Belarus, where an observer mission began its work this month, "our worst fears have been realized," ministry spokesman Mikhail Kamynin said in a statement. "According to unnamed 'interlocutors,' they are already making far-reaching conclusions about the absence of the necessary conditions in the republic for conducting of democratic elections.

"We more than once have seen such conduct by representatives of the office, when assessments of an election have been put forward before they occurred. This cannot be called anything other than prejudice," he said. The missions routinely issue reports on preparations for elections. Both Russia and Belarus are members of the OSCE.

A spokeswoman for the OSCE's election monitoring operations, Urdur Gunnarsdottir, told The Associated Press in Warsaw that she had not seen the ministry statement. But, she said, "this is not the first time that they have criticized us."

"We are monitoring the Belarusian election activities in an objective and transparent manner, as we have done in other places. We have observed over 150 elections and we think our methodology is well-tested by now," she said.

Source:

http://www.kyivpost.com/bn/23902/