TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — A top trans-Atlantic security and rights watchdog has criticized Belarus’ refusal to allow the group to observe its parliamentary vote, saying that it defies the country’s international obligations.
The Belarusian government announced on Monday that it would invite observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe to monitor parliamentary and local elections in February.
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Belarus is a member of the OSCE and the group’s observers have been foreign observers of Belarusian elections for decades.
The OSCE’s move violated the commitments Belarus had made as a member of the group.
Matteo Mecacci, the director of the OSCE’s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, said that Belarus’ refusal “will prevent the country’s citizens and institutions from benefiting from an impartial, transparent and comprehensive assessment.”
“This is contrary to the commitments made by Belarus, and goes against both the letter and the spirit of collaboration on which the OSCE is based,” he added.
Belarus’ refusal to allow OSCE monitoring is the latest move by authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko to further consolidate his nearly three-decade rule.
The Feb. 25 parliamentary vote will be the first election since the disputed 2020 presidential election that gave Lukashenko his sixth term and sparked an unprecedented wave of mass protests across the country.
Lukashenko responded with a harsh crackdown, arresting more than 35,000 people. Many were brutally beaten by police and forced to leave the country.
This year’s election will take place amid continued repression and as some 1,500 political prisoners remain behind bars, including leaders of opposition parties and renowned human rights advocate and 2022 Nobel Peace Prize winner Ales Bialiatski.
The Belarusian government has proceeded to “re-register” political parties operating in the country of 9. 5 million people, granting accreditation to only 4 of the 15 pro-government parties operating in the country early last year. Opposition politicians are expected to be registered to vote.
Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who is in exile in neighboring Lithuania, suggested Belarusians boycott the vote, calling it a “farce of foreign supervision. “
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