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United Civic Party's presidential hopeful can steer Belarus out of crisis, Lyabedzka says

Yaraslaw Ramanchuk, deputy chairman of the United Civic Party (UCP), is capable of steering Belarus out of the economic crisis, UCP leader Anatol Lyabedzka told reporters in Minsk on May 31, as quoted by BelaPAN.

Mr. Lyabedzka said that naming Mr. Ramanchuk as the party's presidential nominee was his personal initiative. "This is my personal decision and if we put on the scales personal ambitions and what we can do in Belarus, where change is long overdue, we must choose responsibility. The main thing that the UCP and all of us are lacking is the possibility of competition. We are for change because we are advocates of political and economic competition. And this system where there is no competition makes it impossible for us to realize our potential," Mr. Lyabedzka said.

Replying to questions about his marital status, Mr. Ramanchuk, a bachelor, said, "I wrote an article on the occasion of International Women's Day on March 8 that focused on what I think is needed by women. Not only flowers once in a year but also a set of economic and social measures. And there were lots of good comments on my blog afterward. I think we must also appeal to women, calling for higher wages, better working conditions and social protection for them - this is what we must do."