BHC Reports of Illicit Formation of Electoral Constituencies :: Charter'97 :: News

Due to the violations, which occurred in course of the local elections’ preparatory stage, the Molodechno affiliate of the Belarusian Helsinki Committee addressed the Central Electoral Commission for Belarus, Minsk regional electoral commission and Molodechno inter-district procuracy with the complaint over the occurring violations of legislation.

On the basis of articles 15 and 40 of the country’s Electoral code the electoral commission for Molodechno formed on the town’s territory the voting constituencies. Under article 15, these constituencies must have roughly the same number of voters: any deviations from the norm cannot exceed 10%. An electoral constituency represents a single territory: one isn’t supposed to form voting constituencies out of the territories, which aren’t bordering on one another.

Molodechno BHC branch claims that voting constituencies have been set up with flagrant violations of the law. Out of the total number (31 electoral constituencies) 18 have more than 10% deviation from the established norm of residents. In the constituencies #3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 13, 15, 17, 27, 28, 31 this deviation constitutes over 20%, in the constituencies #4, 8, 15 and 31 – around 30%, while in the 4th – 36%.

And not only that but some constituencies don’t even form the common territory. For instance, voting constituency #6 is composed of the non-adjacent territories. It includes the Central town’s hospital and maternity home, which is located in the opposite part of the town. Both places are included into the territory of the same constituency.

No wonder the only candidate for the deputy’s seat from the 6th constituency was registered D.B. Zhouk. She is current deputy chair of the town executive committee, which is personally in charge of defining the borders of voting constituencies.

Molodechno BHC branch assumes that the borders of voting constituencies this year have been intentionally set up in breach of the legislation in order to get the state-favored deputies pass through the voting procedure most successfully with the assistance of the mighty administrative resource.

Human rights advocates appealed to the higher electoral commissions and procuracy with the request to apply measures on canceling the decision of the town’s electoral commission on the formation of the voting constituencies. The decision’s invalidation may entail withdrawal of candidates, running in the constituencies, which had been formed in breach of the Electoral code’s provisions. Same evidence can be used in court for canceling the voting’s results.