IV 
108TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. RES. 652 
Urging the Government of the Republic of Belarus to ensure a democratic, 
transparent, and fair election process for its parliamentary elections 
in the fall of 2004. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 20, 2004 
Mr. BEREUTER (for himself and Mr. WEXLER) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations 
RESOLUTION 
Urging the Government of the Republic of Belarus to ensure 
a democratic, transparent, and fair election process for 
its parliamentary elections in the fall of 2004. 
Whereas the establishment of a democratic, transparent, and 
fair election process for the 2004 parliamentary elections 
in the Republic of Belarus and of a genuinely democratic 
political system are prerequisites for that country’s inte-
gration into the Western community of nations; 
Whereas the Government of Belarus has accepted numerous 
specific commitments governing the conduct of elections 
as a participating State of the Organization for Security 
and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), including provisions 
of the Copenhagen Document;
•HRES 652 IH 
Whereas the election in the fall of 2004 of Belarus’s next 
parliament will provide an unambiguous test of the extent 
of the Belarusian authorities’ commitment to implement 
these standards and build a democratic society based on 
free elections and the rule of law; 
Whereas previous parliamentary elections in Belarus have not 
fully met international standards; 
Whereas it is the duty of government and public authorities 
at all levels to act in a manner consistent with all laws 
and regulations governing election procedures and to en-
sure free and fair elections throughout the entire country, 
including preventing activities aimed at undermining the 
free exercise of political rights; 
Whereas a genuinely free and fair election requires a period 
of political campaigning conducted in an environment in 
which neither administrative action nor violence, intimi-
dation, or detention hinder the parties, political associa-
tions, and the candidates from presenting their views and 
qualifications to the citizenry, including organizing sup-
porters, conducting public meetings and events through-
out the country, and enjoying unimpeded access to tele-
vision, radio, print, and Internet media on a non-dis-
criminatory basis; 
Whereas a genuinely free and fair election requires that citi-
zens be guaranteed the right and effective opportunity to 
exercise their civil and political rights, including the right 
to vote free from intimidation, threats of political retribu-
tion, or other forms of coercion by national or local au-
thorities or others; 
Whereas a genuinely free and fair election requires the full 
transparency of laws and regulations governing elections,
•HRES 652 IH 
multiparty representation on election commissions, and 
unobstructed access by candidates, political parties, and 
domestic and international observers to all election proce-
dures, including voting and vote-counting in all areas of 
the country; 
Whereas control and manipulation of the media by national 
and local officials and others acting at their behest could 
raise grave concerns regarding the commitment of the 
Belarusian authorities to free and fair elections; 
Whereas efforts by national and local officials and others act-
ing at their behest to impose obstacles to free assembly, 
free speech, and a free and fair political campaign could 
call into question the fairness of the upcoming elections; 
and 
Whereas the arrest or intimidation of opposition political par-
ties and candidates such as the leader of the United Civic 
Party and others involved with the opposition including 
those associated with the Coalition Five Plus represents 
a deliberate assault on the democratic process: Now, 
therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) looks forward to the development of cordial 
relations between the United States and the Repub-
lic of Belarus; 
(2) emphasizes that a precondition for the inte-
gration of Belarus into the Western community of 
nations is its establishment of a genuinely demo-
cratic political system;
•HRES 652 IH 
(3) expresses its strong and continuing support 
for the efforts of the Belarusian people to establish 
a full democracy, the rule of law, and respect for 
human rights in Belarus; 
(4) urges the Government of Belarus to guar-
antee freedom of association and assembly, including 
the right of candidates, members of political parties, 
and others to freely assemble, to organize and con-
duct public events, and to exercise these and other 
rights free from intimidation or harassment by local 
or national officials or others acting at their behest; 
(5) urges the Government of Belarus to meet 
its Organization for Security and Cooperation in Eu-
rope (OSCE) commitments on democratic elections; 
(6) urges the Belarusian authorities to en-
sure— 
(A) the full transparency of election proce-
dures before, during, and after the 2004 par-
liamentary elections; 
(B) free access for Belarusian and inter-
national election observers; 
(C) multiparty representation on all elec-
tion commissions;
•HRES 652 IH 
(D) unimpeded access by all parties and 
candidates to print, radio, television, and Inter-
net media on a non-discriminatory basis; 
(E) freedom of candidates, members of op-
position parties, and independent media organi-
zations from intimidation or harassment by 
government officials at all levels via selective 
tax audits and other regulatory procedures, and 
in the case of media, license revocations and 
libel suits, among other measures; 
(F) a transparent process for complaint 
and appeals through electoral commissions and 
within the court system that provides timely 
and effective remedies; and 
(G) vigorous prosecution of any individual 
or organization responsible for violations of 
election laws or regulations, including the appli-
cation of appropriate administrative or criminal 
penalties; 
(7) further calls upon the Government of 
Belarus to guarantee election monitors from the Of-
fice of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights 
(ODIHR), other participating States of the OSCE, 
Belarusian political parties, candidates’ representa-
tives, nongovernmental organizations, and other pri-
•HRES 652 IH 
vate institutions and organizations, both foreign and 
domestic, unobstructed access to all aspects of the 
election process, including unimpeded access to pub-
lic campaign events, candidates, news media, voting, 
and post-election tabulation of results and proc-
essing of election challenges and complaints; 
(8) encourages the international community, in-
cluding the Council of Europe, the OSCE, and the 
OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, to continue their ef-
forts to support democracy in Belarus and urges 
countries such as Lithuania and other Baltic coun-
tries and Nordic countries to continue to provide as-
sistance to nongovernmental organizations and other 
Belarusian organizations involved in promoting de-
mocracy and fair elections in Belarus; and 
(9) pledges its support to the Belarusian peo-
ple, their commitment to a fully free and open demo-
cratic system, their creation of a prosperous free 
market economy, and their country’s assumption of 
its rightful place as a full and equal member of the 
Western community of democracies. 
Æ