subject: Belarus' CEC to specify procedures for declaring incomes of presidential candidates on 14 October [print this page] MINSK, 12 October (BelTA) The Central Election Commission of Belarus intends to consider procedures for declaring incomes of presidential candidates and for using mass media during elections at its session on 14 October, BelTA learned from Secretary of the Central Election Commission (CEC) of Belarus Nikolai Lozovik.
The CEC is expected to give the candidates a 20% leeway for calculating their income and incomes of their relatives. The 20% deviation from actual data will be considered inessential and will not result in denied registration of the candidate. Following amendments to Belarusian legislation laws, candidates no longer have to provide income declarations of their relatives that live separately. Before the amendments presidential candidates had to provide information about incomes of all their immediate relatives.
The session is expected to pass a resolution that will regulate the use of state-run mass media during the election campaign. In line with the law presidential candidates are entitled to free of charge broadcasts on radio and television as well as free publications in printed mass media. Several state-run mass media are available for them. The number includes the First Channel of the Belarusian Radio, the First National TV Channel, the central newspapers Narodnaya Gazeta, Respublika, Zvyazda, SB and oblast newspapers. They can pay for their appearance in other mass media. It is the first time that presidential candidates will be able to participate in televised debates.
A special monitoring council will make sure that rules of pre-election campaigning in mass media are observed. The forthcoming session of the Central Election Commission is supposed to pass the resolution to set up the monitoring council. In addition, the CEC session will regulate the organization of voting abroad.
Belarus' CEC to specify procedures for declaring incomes of presidential candidates on 14 October
