17 December, Grodno /Elena Stasyukevich - BELTA/. The election campaign for the President of Belarus is proceeding calmly and in an organised manner. This opinion was expressed to journalists by the head of the CIS observer mission for the Presidential elections of the Republic of Belarus, Sergey Lebedev, who is visiting the Grodno region today, BELTA correspondent reports. The CIS observer mission has been working in Belarus for over a month. It is expected that on election day, 19 December, 334 mission observers will monitor the election campaign in all parts of the country. Representatives from all CIS countries will arrive in Belarus. "Overall, the mission observers have positive impressions of the election campaign's progress," said Sergey Lebedev. "It is proceeding calmly and in an organised manner." Naturally, there are appeals to the central and territorial election commissions from political parties and associations, as well as from voters. "But, as far as we are informed, these appeals are promptly considered, responses are given, and requests are granted or rejected when there are grounds for doing so," the observer noted. He also stressed that the organisation of the electoral process in CIS countries is similar, with certain shortcomings rooted in the Soviet electoral system. However, progress is also noticeable. Changes are being introduced into the election process, bringing it closer to world standards. Moreover, Belarus's organisation of its election campaign today surpasses that of many countries, and these positive aspects are noted by international observers from various countries, Sergey Lebedev emphasised. The head of the CIS observer mission met with the regional governor, Semyon Shapiro, familiarised himself with the work of the regional election commission, the Leninsky district commission of the city of Grodno, and also visited a polling station in the agro-town of Vertelishki.-0-

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