Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Belarus

Belarus Registers Four Presidential Candidates

Pro-democracy demonstrators rallied outside the Belarusian Embassy in Washington on 16 February (RFE/RL)

17 February 2006 -- Election officials have registered four candidates for Belarus' presidential election next month.

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February 17, 2006

The Central Election Commission said today they registered incumbent Alyaksandr Lukashenka, who is seeking a third term; opposition candidate Alyaksandr Milinkevich -- who is backed by the main opposition groups; Liberal Democratic Party leader Syarhey Haydukevich; and Social Democratic Party leader Alyaksandr Kazulin.

European Union and U.S. officials as well as human rights observers have said they do not expect the 19 March election to be democratic due to the Lukashenka regime's crackdown on independent media and the political opposition.

(AFP, Belapan, ITAR-TASS)

Video Roundtable On Belarus/Ukraine

On December 8, 2005, RFE/RL and the Policy Association for an Open Society (PASOS) jointly conducted a roundtable discussion on issues relating to Belarus's post-Soviet transition. To view video of the roundtable, click here.

Can Belarus's Opposition Unite To Challenge Lukashenka?

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Love It (Or Hate It), It's Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day, the Western holiday celebrating love, has become a global phenomenon over the past two decades. The fall of communism and the emergence of the Internet have helped February 14 become something of an unofficial international day of romance. However, not all the passions the holiday stirs are related to love. While some countries have openly embraced the holiday, others are attempting to ban it or replace it with local customs. More

'Police Detain Stuffed Animals' In Minsk Toy Protest

Belarusian youth activists say police have "detained" some stuffed animals used in an antigovernment protest in Minsk, in an echo of similar recent protests in Russia. More

There are frequent reports in the Bulgarian and Ukrainian media about Romanian “pirates” robbing passing transport ships on the Danube. (file photo)

Reports Of 'Pirates Of The Danube' Get The Old Heave-Ho

An attack last month on a Ukrainian barge on the Romanian sector of the Danube River has caused a diplomatic tussle between Bucharest and Kyiv, sparking media reports of possible acts of piracy on Europe's second-largest river. But do “Danube pirates” actually exist? More