Gaidukevich accepts invitation to Lukashenko's reinauguration

2001-09-19 18:45:00

Minsk, 19 September. Liberal Democratic Party leader Sergei Gaidukevich, who was one of the three candidates in Belarus' recent presidential election, has accepted an official invitation to attend Aleksandr Lukashenko's reinauguration on September 20. Mr. Gaidukevich commented to BelaPAN on Wednesday that, invited or not, he intended to congratulate Mr. Lukashenko on his reelection. On September 10, as soon as the incumbent claimed a landslide victory over his two rivals, Mr. Gaidukevich declared that he considered himself defeated by a stronger opponent in a fair fight. The third presidential candidate, Vladimir Goncharik, who was nominated by a broad opposition coalition, refuses to concede defeat, saying that the election was rigged.