CHARTER'97 BELARUS NEWS UPDATE
January 20, 2003
www.charter97.org
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MINSK WELCOMES PUTIN WITH ANTI-RUSSIAN PROTESTS
11:47 20/01/2003

Yesterday the Russian president Vladimir Putin arrived in Minsk in order to engage
in the session of the Supreme state council of the "Union state", which was supposed
to take place in the afternoon. Yesterday all Minsk police were operating in
an emergency regime. They stopped traffic on two main prospects of Minsk to ease
movement of the presidential cortege.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/01/20/putin

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RUSSIA DEMANDS FROM BELARUS INTRODUCTION OF COMMON CURRENCY IN JANUARY 2005
16:42 20/01/2003

Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko confirmed that on January 1, 2005 Russian
ruble must turn into a common means of payment on the territory of Russia and
Belarus. RIA "Novosti" correspondent reports that the president of Russia said
at the final press-conference that the issue had been discussed at the session
of the Supreme State Council. At the same time the Russian leader underscored
that this requires serious preparatory activities.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/01/20/rub

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RELATIVES OF MISSING OPPOSITION MEMBERS RUN PROTEST ACTION
16:42 20/01/2003

On the same day when the presidents of Russia and Belarus convened for a meeting
of the Supreme Council of Russia and Belarus, relatives of the missing Belarusian
opposition members went for an action of protest in central city. Olga Zavadskaya,
Zinaida Gonchar, Nina Korban, as well as representatives of opposition parties
stood for some half an hour opposite the Minsk city circus, collecting signatures
under a special plea, which was then passed over to ONT, Capital TV and State
radio's central offices and also to the Palace of press, where "Sovietskaya Belorussiya"
is headquartered.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/01/20/action

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ACADEMICIAN RADIM GORETSKY BEATEN UP
14:23 20/01/2003

Delegates of the assembly of Minsk intelligentsia, which convened on January
19 in the Palace of arts, demanded resignation of the Minsk law-enforcement brass
in connection with the repeated acts of violence over the prominent cultural
and scientific figures of Belarus. In their statement the participants of the
assembly raise "indignation and deep concern" over the beating on January 17
in Minsk of a famous Belarusian geologist, academician of the National Academy
of arts of Belarus and Russia Radim Goretsky.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/01/20/radim

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PUTIN TRAVELS TO MERGE LUKASHENKO WITH RUSSIA
11:57 20/01/2003, Ekaterina Grigorieva, Elena Daneiko, Izvestia

On Monday Minsk will host negotiations between Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko.
The main official event is the session of the Supreme state council of the union
states, accompanied by a private conversation between the two incumbents. All
disputed issues are presented in the most delicate form  nobody feels like breaking
the truce, proclaimed between the heads of the two countries after a loud scandal.
However, none of the problems will really come closer to a solution.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/01/20/russia

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BELARUSIAN PROCURACY CONSIDERS NEMTSOV'S COMPLAINT UNGROUNDED
11:55 20/01/2003

Deportation from Belarus of the leader of the Russian parliamentary faction "Union
of right-wing forces" Boris Nemtsov "has never been applied in practice. He was
simply denied entrance to the country's territory". This is said in the letter
of deputy prosecutor general of Belarus, which he forwarded to the country's
Cabinet of Ministers in response to Nemtsov's plea to recognize his October 23,
2002 deportation from Belarus as arbitrary.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/01/20/nemzov

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PUGACHEV RUNS CONSULTATIONS IN BEIRUT
11:53 20/01/2003

On January 20-21 Beirut will host a round of consultations between deputies Foreign
Minister of Belarus and Lebanon, reports RIA "Novosti". The press-secretary of
the Belarusian FM Andrei Savinyh said that the Belarusian delegation will be
headed by first deputy Foreign Minister of Belarus Vasily Pugachev. The Lebanese
FM will be represented by the Ministry's secretary general Mussa Issa.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/01/20/beirut

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IHF ANNOUNCES YEAR OF JOINT ACTIONS AGAINST WAR IN CHECHNYA
11:52 20/01/2003, Anatoly Dotsenko, Deutche Welle

Representatives of the Russian and foreign human rights organizations upheld
the initiative of the International Helsinki Federation to announce this year
as the year of joint actions against war in Chechnya. The human rights defenders
said that on Friday during a press-conference in Moscow.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/01/20/ihf

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UKRAINIAN OPPOSITION READYING TO PICKET CIS SUMMIT
11:51 20/01/2003

Representative of the parliamentary faction "Nasha Ukraina" (Our Ukraine), leader
of the Lvov regional organization of the Ukrainian National "Ruh" (Front) Alexander
Gudyma said that they are going to hold a protest against the meeting of CIS
heads of states in the Ivano-Frankovsky region.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/01/20/sng
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CHARTER'97 BELARUS NEWS UPDATE
January 20, 2003
www.charter97.org