CHARTER'97 BELARUS NEWS UPDATE
January 14, 2003
www.charter97.org
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BELARUS WAS CAUGHT WHILE DELIVERING PROHIBITED CARGO TO IRAQ
14:39 14/01/2003, Reuters

Lebanon officials arrested two persons suspected in organizing of illegal delivery
of battle-tank equipment to Iraq.
As representative of police said their names were printed in documentation of
cargo that was delivered from Belarus. It's destination was Iraq. There were
tank hems and communication equipment in containers. Both types of cargo are
prohibited to deliver to Iraq.

http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/01/14/tank

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"MARKET SOCIALISM'S" RESOURCE EXHAUSTED
12:05 14/01/2003, Julia Sharova, "Belorusskiye Novosti"

The year 2002 became a real test for the Belarusian economic strategists: they
had to prove that the economic model, picked by the president, is effective enough.
That was the first year since the last presidential ballot, when Alexander Lukashenko's
opponents waited on him to make mistakes and foretold economic collapse. What
happened in reality? We posed this question to the president of the public organization
"Belarusian Association "Business Initiative" Mikhail Marinich.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/01/14/marinich

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OUTCOMES OF THE YEAR: OUR VERSION
11:55 14/01/2003

On the New Year eve Charter'97 press-center drew the conclusions of the year
2002. Throughout the year our news updates recorded everything worth attention,
which was taking place in our country. One could hardly call political and public
life in the country in the past year dull and quiet. Here's what we got at the
end.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/01/14/newyear

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BUSINESSMEN CALL ON LUKASHENKO'S RESIGNATION, JOURNALISTS' LIBERATION
11:43 14/01/2003

National action of civil insubordination is still underway in Belarus. It was
caused by Alexander Lukashenko's decree of July 25, 2002 #18 "On certain issues
of social protection of citizens", which maintains that individual entrepreneurs
are subject to mandatory state social insurance and pay obligatory insurance
fines, which constitute no less than 36% of the size of the minimal living budget
per capita.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/01/14/zabastovka

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DEMOCRATIC FORCES UNABLE TO CONTROL VOTE COUNT AT POLLING STATIONS
12:44 14/01/2003

In Vitebsk and Brest representatives of "Narodnaya Gromada" refused to nominate
their deputies into the district electoral commissions in protest against the
regime's arbitrary policy.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/01/14/local

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PARTIES DESPERATE TO DIVIDE CONSTITUENCIES IN MINSK
12:42 14/01/2003, Vladimir Glod, Radio Svaboda

In Minsk, where they will elect 55 deputies of the city council, there are constituencies,
such as, say, Slobodskaya, where they already registered 12 initiative groups
of candidates. And there's also the Malinovka district with only two such groups.
Although the political parties can nominate their candidates under the Electoral
code until January 20, one can barely count on serious changes. Nominees from
opposition parties, except the Liberal-Democratic one, have already registered
their initiative groups and presently operate in concrete constituencies.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/01/14/minsk

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REGIME READYING FOR ELECTIONS, OPENS UP LETTERS
11:45 14/01/2003, UCP press-center

A parcel with documents, necessary for the registration of UCP candidates into
the local councils, which was posted to the chairman of the Mogilev regional
UCP branch Vladimir Shantsev, turned out 120 grams lighter than it was supposed
to be. The cover of the parcel, the inviolability of which is safeguarded by
the Constitution, showed the signs of one's curiosity: the cover was torn and
badly duck-taped. Out of the set of documents, sent by the UCP executive committee,
there vanished the verified copies of the party's statute.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/01/14/ucpb

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LUKOMOL PROMISED STATE SUPPORT
11:41 14/01/2003

On January 13, 2002 Alexander Lukashenko issued his decree #16 "On state support
of the public association "Belarusian Republic's Youth Union". The document envisages
financial assistance to the BRYU till the year 2006, as well as contains necessary
legal and other measures for "setting up a powerful youth organization in the
country, heightening its role in the solution of problems of the state youth
policy,"  reports the presidential press-service.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/01/14/lukomol
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CHARTER'97 BELARUS NEWS UPDATE
January 14, 2003
www.charter97.org