Central Election Commission wants Russian-speaking mission of international observers

ODIHR/OSCE and the Belarusian Central Election Commission (CEC) began negotiations on visit of a mission of international observers to the Belarusian parliamentary “elections.”

As “Narodnaya Volya” newspaper has learnt, European experts were surprised to know the Belarusian CEC want Russian as a working language of the mission. As Mikalai Lazovik said at a meeting with Hans Johan Schmidt, head of the OSCE Office in Minsk, the reason for the suggestion was that the Belarusian side wants that “work of the mission will be open and transparent and exclude secrecy.”

“Narodnaya Volya” asked Mechyslau Hryb, who has great experience in independent observation of elections, to comment on the position of the Belarusian side.

– It is a very unusual desire, – Mechyslau Hryb tells. – A question arouses: why was Russian, not Belarusian, language chosen? Even according to the current Constitution, Belarusian is the first state language of the country.

Speaking seriously, it is nonsense, which I have never met in my work. International observers have interpreters all over the world, so there are no difficulties and language barriers. The CEC is likely to limit the number of international observers, coming to the elections, so it puts a language barrier. It is Belarusians, who may be expelled from electoral districts, be arrested and fined. It is far more difficult for Belarusian officials to deal with international observers. So they are looking for various by-passes. However, I hope the desire of the Belarusian side won’t be turned into a demand. The OSCE can take it into consideration, but not fulfil.