OSCE PA Belarus ad hoc working group visits Minsk

MINSK, 27 November 2001 - Two members of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly ad hoc Working Group, Uta Zapf (MP, Germany), the newly appointed head of the Working Group, and Urban Ahlin (MP, Sweden) visited Minsk from 25 to 27 November.

The goal of this first preliminary visit in the post-presidential election period was to assess the situation in the country and to discuss ways in which the Working Group could play a role in promoting democratization in the country. The delegation took as its starting point the fact that the recent presidential elections in Belarus did not comply with international standards for free and fair elections, as concluded by the OSCE Limited Election Observation Mission. It was equally guided by the conclusions that isolation is not in the best interest of the Belarusian people and is not conducive to strengthening democratic development and that a dynamic civil society is developing in the country. The delegation hopes that this visit could serve as a step towards reinvigorating a dialogue between the OSCE PA and the Belarus authorities, on the continued basis of the four criteria established in the pre-election period, which could serve to strengthen democratic institutions in the country. Such a dialogue would seek to include all political and social forces in the country.

During the course of the visit, the delegation met with Mr. Voitovich, Chairman of the Council of the Republic, Mr. Popov, Chairman of the House of Representatives, as well as other parliamentarians from the two chambers of the National Assembly. The delegation also met with Mr. Knyazev, Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration, Mr. Podgainy, Minister of Information, representatives of the Advisory Council of Opposition Political Parties, Republican Coordinating Council of Political Parties, research institutes, the Belarusian Association of Journalists, as well as OSCE Ambassadors.

The delegation regrets that it was not possible to meet with Mr. Khvostov, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, as originally planned, because of his objection to the fact that Ambassador Hans-Georg Wieck, Head of the OSCE Advisory and Monitoring Group (AMG), was to accompany the delegation to the meeting. In accordance with international diplomatic norms, the Working Group has always been accompanied by the Head of the OSCE AMG during official visits.

During the discussions, the delegation stressed that it would continue to work closely with the OSCE AMG and encourage the authorities to deepen its co-operation with the Group. Ms. Zapf and Mr. Ahlin also discussed priority areas of the Working Group's future work in Belarus, which include, inter alia, the powers of Parliament, the media situation and the electoral framework. It was noted that meaningful progress on these issues could help to resolve the problem of lack of representation of Belarus in the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly.

The delegation saw a positive sign in the plans by the Parliament to alter the electoral code within the framework of the recommendations of the CIS Inter-Parliamentary Assembly since such changes could address some of the legislative shortcomings which were mentioned in the final report of the OSCE Limited Election Observation Mission. The delegation also saw discussions on the media law as an opportunity to involve civil society in the legislative process and to ultimately pass a law which meets international standards.

However, the delegation was seriously concerned by what appears to be repressive measures against certain opposition-oriented media outlets and certain political figures who played a role in the electoral campaigns of opposition candidates. The Working Group will continue to closely monitor these and other cases.

Ms. Zapf and Mr. Ahlin appreciated the open discussions they had with most of their interlocutors and expressed the hope that a dialogue with all segments of society would continue during the next visit - this time of the entire Working Group - tentatively planned for early next year.