CHARTER'97 BELARUS NEWS UPDATE
December 12, 2001
read the details at www.charter97.org/e/index.phtml
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LEADING PARTIES AND MOVEMENTS IN FIGURES

International Republican Institute from USA (IRI) presented to the Charter97
press-center the results of the sociological research, carried out in Belarus
in summer-autumn 2001 by the Wirthlin Worldwide. Today we come up with the results
of the polls, touching upon the countrys leading parties and youth organizations.
more

REPRESSIVE MACHINE PICKS UP SPEED

One of the priorities in the activities of the Belarusian police next year will
be fighting against large-scale economic crimes, Interfax was told on Wednesday
by the countrys Interior Minister Vladimir Naumov.
more

PROCURACY DEPRIVES RAKHMANKO OF MPS IMMUNITY

Belarusian state procuracy withdrew from the republics council a petition
to deprive its member, former head of the Belarusian railway Victor Rakhmanko
of his deputys immunity, Interfax was told by the chair of the procuracy press-center
A.Taranov. Such a conclusion was drawn on the basis of charges of power abuse
and inflicting large damage upon the state, which Rakhmanko faced last week.
Such crimes are qualified by the procuracy as heavy ones and so it doesnt need
the consent of the republics council.

JUSTICE MINISTRY CONFIRMS CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS BY LUKASHENKO
yusnews.info

The Ministry of Justice in its December 5 letter confirmed that Alexander Lukashenko
openly infringes on the state constitution. Presidential decree #19 of January
12, 1998 had never been published in official legislation sources, as far as
it is a normative act of a limited access type,  wrote deputy Minister V.Mitskevich.
more

STATE SERVANT STABBED IN HEART AT HIS WORKING PLACE

Deputy chief of the Partyzansky district department Guard of Minsk M.Rosum
received a stab in the heart with a knife right in his office. At the moment
the wounded official is placed in the hospitals intensive care.

EXHIBITION UNDER THREAT OF CLOSURE

The exhibition Forbidden by Censorship, showing dozens of pieces of art, which
had been hidden from view due to political censorship during the 1990-2001 period,
had suddenly faced closure. Apart from paintings and sculptures, they also exhibit
there the book of the poet Eduard Akulin Radno, which was severely censored,
as well as newspapers with blank gaps.
more

JEWS COMPLAIN TO RUSSIAN MINISTER OF CULTURE OVER ANTI-SEMITISM IN BELARUS

President of the World Association of Belarusian Jews, a stateside organization,
Yakov Gutman forwarded to the Russian Minister of Culture Mikhail Shvydkoi a
letter, in which he complains over the signs of increasing anti-Semitism in Belarus.
more

IMPOVERISHED SPORT

Two Belarusian handball teams, one from Grodno and another from Minsk refused
to play a cup game, due to be held in Gomel. One of the coaches Igor Yudchits
explained that both teams are in the direst financial straits. They found themselves
totally unable to pay for the travel expenses and accommodation. As a result,
both teams were disqualified from the tournament.

PRIVATE TRADE RESTRICTIONS IN BELARUS

Belarusian authorities ruled to launch a broad campaign against the retail trade,
first assistant to the Minister of trade Mikhail Sventitsky told Rosbalt. Deputy
Minister said that it is an absurdity when one third of the whole trade turnover
in the country falls on the shadow sector.
more

SLAVNEFT WIDENS ITS MARKET IN BELARUS

Petroleum company Slavneft plans to build in Belarus by mid-2003 50 gas stations
and 10 petroleum bases. At the moment their affiliated structure Slavneft-Start
is selling in retail the petroleum products at more than 30 countrys gas stations.

LITHUANIA DEMANDS EXTRADITION OF WAR CRIMINAL FROM BELARUS

PACE special delegation, set to analyze the political situation in Belarus, will
pay a visit to Minsk soon, Radio Svaboda was told by deputy chair of the Committee
for foreign affairs of the Lithuanian Parliament Alvidas Medalinskas. A decision
to forward a special PACE delegation to Belarus had been passed a month ago in
Vilnius.
more

WEST MUST DEAL WITH MINSK AS ONCE IT DEALT WITH USSR SAYS CATHY FITZPATRICK

US foreign policy after September 11 mostly concentrated on combating terrorism.
However, in the near future the American Senate will draw closer attention to
Alexander Lukashenkos regime. As we had previously reported, the American senator
J.Helms proposed for consideration a draft law On democracy in Belarus. Expectedly
its passage will take place in January next year.
more

BELARUSIAN FM DISLIKES OSCE AMG ACTIVITIES

The appointment of the new head of the OSCE Advisory-Monitoring Group in Belarus,
operating in Minsk, is solely possible after the coordination of the groups
mandate with the OSCE secretariat, said December 11 during the meeting with press
Belarusian Foreign Minister Mikhail Khvostov.
more

LUKASHENKO DECLINES TO PARDON PROFESSOR BANDAZHEVSKY

Alexander Lukashenko refused to pardon incarcerated professor Bandazhevsky, who
addressed him with such a plea a month ago. Yuri Bandazhevsky received a negative
response to his request in the Minsk colony, where he has already served five
months ostensibly for bribery. Bandazhevskys relatives assert that Lukashenkos
letter laconically reads that the pardoning petition wont be satisfied, not
presenting any explanations on the matter.
more

PROSECUTOR GENERAL TO DEPRIVE RAKHMANKO OF MP IMMUNITY

 ,         It can
well happen that the plea to deprive former head of the Belarusian railway Viktor
Rakhmanko of his deputys immunity will be withdrawn by the procuracy from the
republics council, which Rakhmanko is a member of. BelaPAN was told this by
the well-informed sources from the upper chamber of the Belarusian parliament.
more

CORPSE OF PINSK MARINE FROM SUNK KURSK SUB IDENTIFIED

In the military hospital of Severomorsk medics identified the dead body of the
senior assistant of the Kursk atomic sub commander, 2 rank commander S.Dudko,
a native of Pinsk, Belarus.

SUPPLIES OF BELARUSIAN FOODSTUFFS TO MOSCOW COMPANIES ENLARGED

The Ministry of agriculture of Belarus and the Department of food resources of
the Government of Moscow signed an Accord on cooperation for the year 2002. The
size of the Belarusian provisions consignment to the Russian capital will be
significantly increased, for the exclusion of meat products, BELTA correspondent
was told by the head of the department of exterior policy and foreign investments
of the Ministry of agriculture Tamara Usacheva.
more

UNEMPLOYMENT GOES UPHILL IN BELARUS

By December 1, 2001 the employment services of Belarus registered 104,5 thousand
citizens in need of labor. This index exceeds the analogous last years, constituting
1,83% of the total amount of the able-bodied population. The lowest unemployment
rate is recorded in Minsk, while the biggest  in Mogilev. There are 3 jobless
persons per each available vacancy in the country, reports BELTA.
more

PUBLIC TRANSPORT FARES GROW THREEFOLD

Transport organizations of Belarus plan to cover 50% of their expenses on their
own next year. To do so they will have to step up such an unpopular measure as
lifting the travel fares to a new height. Experts calculated that one ride in
urban transport must cost roughly 280 rubles, says head of the transportation
department of the Minsk city hall Vladimir Sosnovsky. The official adds that
this year the real cost of the bus ticket was three times its actual price.
more

CUSTOMS OFFICERS SEIZE 50T LITERS OF ALCOHOL

A record lot of the contraband spirits was intercepted by the frontier guards
at the Lithuanian-Belarusian border. Over 50 thousand liters of spirits were
confiscated by the customs officers as a result of the Saturday operation in
the countrys South-East. Interfax reports from the Lithuanian Border Protection
Department that the customs services had been notified well in advance about
the arrival of smuggled commodity. From the helicopter they spied out the exact
location of the consignment  a garden 8 km away from the border. There the frontier
police found two trailers with alcohol, which had no proper registration certificate.
This is the second big portion of illegal contraband, arrested at the border
with Belarus last week. On Thursday there was seized in the same place over 15
thousand liters of alcohol.
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CHARTER'97 BELARUS NEWS UPDATE
December 12, 2001
read the details at www.charter97.org/e/index.phtml