Authoritarian Belarus votes amid boycott calls

Belarus strongman Alexander Lukashenko is set to maintain his forces in power on Sunday in a parliamentary ballot boycotted by most of the opposition amid growing isolation from the West. Lukashenko, whose 18-year rule seemed to teeter last year as an economic crisis devalued people's savings and left store shelves bare, has managed to regain confidence after securing loans and trade advantages from Russia. Nearly two years after unleashing an ugly crackdown on demonstrators who dared question the scale of his election to a fourth term, the former collective farm boss faces hardly a challenge from his scattered and weakened political foes. But the authorities still appear to be taking no chances in the ex-Soviet country of 9.5 million, viewed as Europe's most isolated nation, with about a dozen picketers against the ballot getting arrested in the past week. The last legislative polls in 2008 were swept by pro-Lukashenko forces, a scenario expected to play itself out again, unless a turnout of less than 50 percent forces a repeat vote. Only a handful of opposition candidates remain on the ballot after the two main opposition parties pulled out a week before the vote, and even those planning to cast ballots conceded they had no idea who the candidates were. "I don't know any of the deputies in my district," said retired university worker Nikolai, who said he would vote out of habit. "Of course I will go to vote, it is our duty," he told AFP. Polls show that Lukashenko, who has key support from retirees and state workers who are grateful for their stable jobs and pensions, has seen his popularity erode since the economic crisis of 2011, when the local currency was devalued twice. His approval rating fell to less than 30 percent during summer 2012 from the 53 percent he enjoyed going into his last election in December 2010, according to the independent Institute of Socio-Economic and Political Studies. Facing economic sanctions and a travel ban from the West over rights abuses, his regime has become even more dependent on historic but at times uneasy ally Russia, resisting calls for economic and electoral reforms. Sixteen people held in jail since 2010 and recognised by local groups as political prisoners include one of the top presidential rivals of the man whom supporters tenderly call "Batka," or Dad. Reflecting their dismal morale, the opposition says it will not call for street protests on this occasion because it cannot expect to effect change through the system set up by Lukashenko's team. However they proclaimed the turnout in Sunday's ballot a "referendum" on Lukashenko's rule, calling on people to either stay home or possibly even go fishing. More than 270 observers from the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly are to monitor the polls, although two European lawmakers who planned to be part of the mission were unexpectedly denied visas. The OSCE said a week before the vote that it could see "few signs that elections are taking place," and would watch closely for signs of a repeat crackdown after the polls. "We hope this weekend's elections will be conducted to international standards with no repeat of violence against peaceful protesters," British Foreign Secretary William Hague said separately on Wednesday. Nearly 20 percent of registered voters had already cast their ballots by Saturday afternoon under an early voting scheme that the opposition says is being used to manipulate the results because of the scant monitoring entailed.