Belarus has a defined date of presidential elections. Members of the house of representatives (the lower chamber of the Belarusian Parliament) on Friday endorsed the proposal of the head of the CEC Lidziya Yarmoshyna to hold elections on 9 August. In connection with the pandemic COVID-19 elections will be held in extreme conditions.
In particular, as Yarmoshyna said that signature collectors will be obliged to follow the recommendations of the Ministry of health and they will be provided with personal protective equipment. To observe social distance and use of PPE will oblige and observers who venture to arrive to the polls in the midst of a pandemic. Meetings of the Executive bodies at all levels of elections will be held without representatives of parties and public associations. However, these measures will be insufficient, and experts predict a new surge of the epidemic of the coronavirus during the election campaign.
Belarusian – telegram-TV joked: “the Parliament of Belarus called for the election of President Lukashenko on August 9,” – laughing Director of the International Institute of the newest States Alexey Martynov. – As a rule, elections in Belarus are uncontested character, competitors out there is very questionable. But the upcoming elections for Lukashenka will be quite severe. A lot of problems. Including failed personally plan on expanding the format of the Union state. The whole of last year there were talks about it, and at the initiative of the Russian leadership. An intergovernmental Commission. Lukashenko has personally blocked a number of efforts, including the introduction of the single currency. It is obvious that he just didn’t see a place in the leadership of the Union state. I think he understands that the further you postpone the election, the more voters will have questions and the harder it will be to answer them. That is why Lukashenko did not go according to pan-European format of the pandemic and adopted the Swedish model. Lukashenka is afraid of losing power in Belarus. It is not excluded that for the sake of legitimizing the process, this time he will allow the elections someone from a strong opposition.
But during the election campaign, a possible outbreak? How about this?
– She’s bound to be. But Lukashenko is quarantine is not imposed. The big question in international observation. Most likely, it will not, none of these conditions will not dare to come. By August, all of Europe will come out of this story, and we get out. And Belarus will be infected with an island, and everything outside will back the border around it smaller to run hither and spread this infection. I don’t know how Lukashenko will be out of this situation out. It takes a lot of risks, very.
Belarusian political scientist Alexander feduca believes that “father” had no other option.
– Elections were appointed in the last year, when neither of which coronavirus was out of the question. – he recalls. August is the last month when the election can be held according to the Constitution. The question was the date, but the date did not solve anything. However, in late August, the electorate would return home with the cottages and get ready for the new academic year. Parents of students after what we have going on in education, are in power is quite critical. And in early August, everyone will sit at the cottages. Not all gardeners will want to take the effort to get to the site and vote. Everything else was known last year. In addition to the coronavirus.
– Maybe in these circumstances it would be worthwhile to postpone the election date?
– This question was not. This term, which the Constitution requires.
– the campaign involves meeting people, crowded meeting. Whether it will lead to the outbreak of the epidemic?
– we Have to the outbreak have already led Easter. In those religious centers, where the abbots did not want to limit the arrival of the faithful, now a lot of cases. Also, foci of infection are homes of people with disabilities in a number of district centres where no one ever went to Italy or China. All of this is happening now, so the authorities do not change anything. In this case, she does not think of people and about necessity of prolongation of its powers. Now, of course, all the horror waiting for the parade. Lukashenko said that waiting for the parade the winners of the coronavirus. That is, is unclear: ill or doctors. Because the real winners of the coronavirus is, of course, the doctors. We expect that the parade will come to the workers of budgetary sphere. And spreading information, though here and there some kind of kindergarten, University, school foci distribution COVID-19. Official figures of the population does not believe, simply because maps them with the data on incidence in other countries.
