CIS observation mission: election campaign organisation ensured at high level in Belarus

The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) observation mission is monitoring preparations for the upcoming elections of deputies to the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus of the eighth convocation (scheduled for February 25th, 2024) at the invitation of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and it has published an interim report on its observations. 

The mission began monitoring the election campaign on January 22nd, 2024, and operates freely and independently, guided by the legislation of the Republic of Belarus, documents adopted within the framework of the Commonwealth, without interfering in the electoral process and in the internal affairs of the state. As of February 19th, 228 observers representing the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Republic of Armenia, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Russian Federation, the Republic of Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, the Republic of Uzbekistan, the Interparliamentary Assembly of Member Nations of the CIS, the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) Parliamentary Assembly, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union of Belarus and Russia, the Standing Committee of the Union State, and the Executive Committee of the CIS have been accredited to the mission. Fifty observers work on a long-term basis and their activities are co-ordinated by the mission's headquarters in Minsk.

“The CIS observers discussed the conduct of the election campaign with the leadership of the Supreme Court, the Prosecutor General's Office, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Belarus. Meetings were held with the election headquarters of the Belaya Rus Party, the Communist Party of Belarus, the Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus, the Republican Labour and Justice Party,” the interim report says. “The mission works openly and publicly. The mission headquarters issues news releases on the progress of monitoring the preparations for the elections. Long-term observers from the Commonwealth are open to communication with media representatives, including in the regions of the republic.” 

The international observers stressed that the elections are held on the basis of the norms of the Constitution, the Electoral Code of the Republic of Belarus, a number of other legislative acts, as well as resolutions of the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Belarus, clarifying certain provisions of the electoral legislation. Experts from the mission headquarters and the International Institute for Monitoring Democracy Development, Parliamentarism, and Suffrage Protection of Citizens of the IPA CIS Member Nations (IPA CIS IIMDD) are completing their analysis of the electoral legislation of the Republic of Belarus. Guided by Article 13 of the Code, the mission will present its opinion on the electoral legislation of the Republic of Belarus after the voting day in the final document. 

As part of the long-term observation, the mission attended meetings of the administrations of the Leninsky and Moskovsky districts of Minsk on the formation of precinct election commissions, where it noted that they were held in accordance with the requirements of the Code, in the presence of representatives of political parties, other public associations, labour collectives, and citizens who nominated their candidates for the commissions. International observers note that the Central Election Commission (CEC) is working on organising the election campaign systematically and in a planned manner. 

“The CIS observers note that the work of the Central Election Commission is based on the principles of collegiality and openness. CEC meetings are held with the participation of observers, representatives of the media, and are broadcast online on its official website. As part of the long-term monitoring of the election campaign, mission members visit territorial, district, and precinct commissions in all regions of Belarus and in Minsk,” the interim report says. 

The CIS observers state that the commissions are provided with means of communication, office appliances, equipment necessary for organising the voting, legal and methodological literature. Information about the candidates and the voting procedure is available at the precinct election commissions. According to the mission, the Central and lower election commissions are taking the necessary measures to prepare and hold the elections at a high organisational level and in strict accordance with the country's legislation. 

The mission notes that the campaign is progressing smoothly and in an organised manner, in strict accordance with the requirements of the electoral legislation. According to CIS observers, candidates have equal conditions for campaigning. Electoral commissions of all levels and the media provide comprehensive information support for the election campaign. 

“The mission headquarters appealed to the Central Election Commission, the Prosecutor General's Office, the Supreme Court, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Belarus with a request to provide information on the results of consideration of appeals received from citizens regarding violations during the election campaign. After studying and summarising the incoming responses, the relevant information will be set out in the mission's final statement,” the CIS observation mission's interim report notes. 

The mission will reflect its conclusions and assessments in the final document based on the results of monitoring the preparation and conduct of the elections.