5 September 2001
Gaidukevich visit to Brest cancelled

 Presidential candidate Sergei Gaidukevich's advertised September 3 meeting with voters in Brest did not take place.
On arriving at the meeting venue, Aleksandr Rabotai, first deputy chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus (LDPB), gave an intriguing explanation for the absence of his boss. According to him, very strong reasons had prevented Mr. Gaidukevich from visiting Brest, as the "country is on the eve of a coup d'etat." Mr. Rabotai referred to correspondence between the LDPB leader and the central election commission. Lidiya Yermoshina, chairwoman of the commission, admitted that Belarusian Television had spread false information about Mr. Gaidukevich, but the top election authorities' order that the presidential candidate be given airtime to refute the slanderous allegations was ignored, Mr. Rabotai said.
He also pointed out that the Belarusian authorities were preparing to falsify the election results, and that Belarus would face an economic collapse in the event of Aleksandr Lukashenko's reelection as president.