BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

19/03/2006

President claims victory in Belarus

MINSK, Belarus (UPI) -- Official results in Belarus give President Alexander Lukashenko more than 80 percent of the vote in Sunday's election, a victory opponents say was rigged.

The Central Election Commission reported a turnout of 92.6 percent, with 82.6 percent voting for Lukashenko, the BBC reported.

About 10,000 people assembled in Oktyabrskaya Square in Minsk for a protest rally. They endured freezing weather while braving the president's warnings against opposition to the election results.

Alexander Milinkevich, an opposition candidate who got 6 percent of the vote in the official tally, said the results were a lie.

"We demand new, honest elections. This was a complete farce," he told the crowd.

Lukashenko in speeches before the election accused the United States and European Union of trying to overthrow his government. Belarus, once part of the Soviet Union, has kept close ties to Moscow during Lukashenko's two five-year terms.

Source:

http://www.dailyindia.com/show/9825.php/President-claims-victory-in-Belarus