Belarus president re-elected

2006-03-20 10:18

Minsk - Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko has been re-elected with 82.6% of all votes, says the Central Election Commission on Monday.

The commission said after counting all the ballots that Lukashenko had received 82.6% of all votes and that his opponent Alexander Milinkevich had received six percent.

Commission head Lidiya Yermoshina said: "Alexander Lukashenko has been elected for a third term in office. Following the procession of 100% of the ballots, Lukashenko collected 82.6% of the votes."

The full results were announced hours after some 10 000 people rallied in heavy snow in the central October Square of the capital after polls closed on Sunday, a protest unmatched in recent years.

Mass intimidation

Lukashenko had pledged to "wring the necks" of anyone threatening public order, but police took no action.

The opposition rejected the returns as blatant fraud and said campaigning was marred by the arrests of dozens of opposition activists and mass intimidation.

Protesters stood in bitter winds waving flags and placards reading: "We believe! We can do it! We shall win!"

Milinkevich urged his supporters to regroup again on Monday night.

He said: "We have already achieved a colossal victory. People have overcome their fear. Our objective is new and fair elections."

Mass protest

His calls were reminiscent of events in the former Soviet republics of Georgia and Ukraine, where opposition activists mounted campaigns of mass protest against election results they said were fraudulent.

In both countries, leaders were ultimately forced from power and replaced by pro-Western opponents.

Those events clearly disturbed Russian President Vladimir Putin, who had been at pains to restore as much as he could of Moscow's influence in former Soviet republics.

While having little personal affection for the outspoken Lukashenko, he might see his success in Belarus as serving Kremlin interests.

Economic organisation

Lukashenko could draw on strong domestic support especially in rural areas, where many saw his 12-year rule as having spared them the turmoil, hardship and "wild" capitalism seen in many ex-Soviet republics.

But in the West, Belarus was seen widely as a last bastion of Soviet-style government and economic organisation. He had been described by Washington as Europe's last true dictator.

The Belarus election was likely to top the agenda of a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday.

The EU had vowed to punish any vote rigging with sanctions such as visa bans targeting those officials deemed responsible. If evidence pointed to vote-rigging, EU ministers could agree on a list Belarussian officials to face visa bans in coming weeks.

The bloc was reluctant to impose harsher measures such as economic sanctions for fear they would hit the Belarussian people rather than Lukashenko's government.

- Reuters