Written declaration No. 451 | Doc. 12321 | 14 October 2010

Call for unity on a democratic candidate in the Belarus presidential elections 

Signatories: Mr Pieter OMTZIGT, Netherlands ; Mr Laurent BÉTEILLE, France, EPP/CD ; Mr Piero FASSINO, Italy, SOC ; Mr Jean-Charles GARDETTO, Monaco, EPP/CD ; Mr Marco GATTI, San Marino, EPP/CD ; Mr Andreas GROSS, Switzerland, SOC ; Mr Holger HAIBACH, Germany, EPP/CD ; Mr Andres HERKEL, Estonia, EPP/CD ; Mr Serhiy HOLOVATY, Ukraine, ALDE ; Mr Joachim HÖRSTER, Germany, EPP/CD ; Mr Albrecht KONEČNÝ, Austria, SOC ; Ms Elvira KOVÁCS, Serbia, EPP/CD ; Mr Tiny KOX, Netherlands, UEL ; Ms Sophie LAVAGNA, Monaco, EPP/CD ; Ms Anna LILLIEHÖÖK, Sweden ; Mr Göran LINDBLAD, Sweden, EPP/CD ; Ms Christine MARIN, France, EPP/CD ; Ms Carina OHLSSON, Sweden, SOC ; Ms Marietta de POURBAIX-LUNDIN, Sweden, EPP/CD ; Mr Christos POURGOURIDES, Cyprus, EPP/CD ; Mr Janusz RACHOŃ, Poland, EPP/CD ; Ms Ingjerd SCHOU, Norway, EPP/CD ; Mr Björn von SYDOW, Sweden, SOC ; Mr Egidijus VAREIKIS, Lithuania, EPP/CD ; Mr Luca VOLONTÈ, Italy, EPP/CD ; Mr Piotr WACH, Poland, EPP/CD ; Ms Renate WOHLWEND, Liechtenstein, EPP/CD ; Mr Jordi XUCLÀ, Spain, ALDE

This written declaration commits only those who have signed it.

Belarus has lived under the regime of dictatorship for too long a period. The respect for Human Rights has reached new lows, such that the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in the last part-session decided to suspend high level contacts with the Belarus authorities.

New Presidential elections will take place in the coming year. In the past the democratic opposition in Belarus has been fragmented to the extreme.

The undersigned are of the opinion that the time for democratic change in Belarus has come and support any initiative of the Belarus democratic parties and forces to unite on a strong democratic candidate for the next presidential elections.