CHARTER'97 BELARUS NEWS UPDATE
February 28, 2003
www.charter97.org
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VALERY FROLOV, VLADIMIR PARFENOVICH TO ENGAGE IN PEOPLE'S MARCH
15:35 28/02/2003

Representatives of the deputies' group "Respublika" Valery Frolov and Vladimir
Parfenovich entered the organizing committee for holding the People's March "For
Better Life!", due to take place in Belarus on March 12. Thrice the Olympic champion
in canoeing Vladimir Parfenovich considers his involvement in the protest to
be his duty. "For those, who will take part in that action, indeed want to change
situation for the better. I'm obliged to be with those, who elected me and those,
whose lives are so hard today,"  said Parfenovich in an interview to Charter's
press-center.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/02/28/parfenovich

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LUKASHENKOS REGIME TRADES WITH CASTRO
11:27 28/02/2003

The forth session of the joint Belarusian-Cuban commission on trade-economic
cooperation is taking place these days in Havana. The Belarusian delegation will
be headed by the deputy Foreign Minister of Belarus Alexander Sychev.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/02/28/cuba

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STEPHAN MINIKES: NOW BELARUS MUST CARRY OUT REFORMS
11:19 28/02/2003

The US Ambassador Stephan M. Minikes in OSCE delivered his speech to the Permanent
Council in Vienna on February 27, 2003. The ambassador concentrated on the recent
decision to provide Belarusian parliament with the seats in OSCE PA. "The Belarusian
government has long argued that if its parliament were seated in the OSCE Parliamentary
Assembly, it would be prepared to move forward towards meeting criteria that
reflect OSCE principles and commitments. As a result, the onus is now on Belarus
to take concrete steps that produce progress on criteria established by the international
community, including through cooperation with the OSCE Office in Minsk and with
other OSCE institutions. Belarus now has the opportunity to prove that those
who argued that inclusion would result in reform were indeed correct. We hope
that Belarus seizes that opportunity,"  said Minikes. Following read the full
transcript of his statement.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/02/28/minikes

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SENSATION, WHICH THEY OVERLOOK
17:03 28/02/2003, Dmitry Bondarenko, Charter'97 civil initiative's coordinator

Last November I chanced to visit the meeting of the Belarusian thought factories,
which attracted many famous and respected people  leaders of the political parties,
diplomats, famous journalists and political experts. All participants were handed
in two brochures: "NISEPI News" and "Integration of Belarus and Russia" (thematic
analytical bulletin of the Belarusian thought factories. In the beginning the
floor was given to the head of NISEPI professor Manaev. He said that the public
opinion in Belarus is more inclined to unify with our eastern neighbor. He showed
various figures and diagrams in support of that view and then concluded that
only together with Russia Belarus may build up democracy, market economy and
the rule of law. And the motto of the Belarusian opposition should be this: "Together
with Russia to Europe!" I felt really upset for I don't believe that we can become
democratic with Russia and that our way to Europe stretches through Ural and
Siberia. But what can I say against that, when such a renowned professor generalizes
Belarusians' common desire
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/02/28/sensation

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LUKASHENKO INDULGES IN OPULENCE, WHILE BELARUSIANS SUFFER FROM MISERY
16:28 28/02/2003

US congressman Christopher Smith assumes that Alexander Lukashenko is leading
a luxurious way of living, while Belarusians got to fight for physical survival.
"That resembles Markos from the Philippines or Suharto from Indonesia, which
stole many millions of dollars from their starving nations. It is flagrant that
Lukashenko is living in luxury, while his countrymen have to fight for very survival.
I guess, Lukashenko's personal savings are significant, but I am in no position
to mention any particular figures at this stage. However, the way of earning
the fortunes repeats from dictatorship to dictatorship in all continents," 
said the congressman in an interview to the "Belorusskaya Delovaya Gazeta".
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/02/28/smit

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US EMBASSY OFFICIALS BANNED TO OBSERVE LOCAL ELECTIONS
16:18 28/02/2003

The United States Embassy in Minsk urges the Government of Belarus to abide by
its OSCE commitments in the conduct of elections.  The action follows the Central
Election Commissions denial of access to the upcoming local elections by international
observers.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/02/28/posol

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CANDIDATE BLAMED OVER DEFAMING LUKASHENKO
16:14 28/02/2003

Candidate for the deputies from the Eseninsky voting constituency of the Minsk
city hall Sergei Chislov was dismissed from the race for alleged defamation of
the president. Deprivation of his candidate's status was caused by the fact that
during his meetings with voters he showed to them forbidden movies "Ordinary
president" (filmmaker Yuri Khaschevatsky) and "Wild Manhunt" (Pavel Sheremet).
Moreover, at his meetings with voters, the floor has been given to major-general,
deputy of the "house of representatives" Valery Frolov and 12th Supreme Soviet
deputy Sergei Antonchik.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/02/28/chislov

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WHO COINED "EARLY VOTING" TERM
14:44 28/02/2003, Alexander Klaskovsky, Belorusskiye Novosti

Official media are widely advertising the early voting campaign. And zealously
safeguard the idea from opposition's attacks. They claim that the practice is
popular in Estonia, Britain and States, which are considered the citadels of
democracy. Moreover, in some western societies one can vote even through mail.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/02/28/dosrochno

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OLGA IPATOVA: WE GOT TO RECOGNIZE RESPONSIBILITY
12:37 28/02/2003

"The writer must have a solid civil position. Our society catastrophically lacks
citizenship. Intelligentsia's one task is to make our people feel responsible
for the society's civil condition. Not until every nurse, farmer and engineer
feel responsible for the destiny of the country, will our society cease being
so reserved and inert,"  said in an interview to Charter's press-center the
Belarusian writer Olga Ipatova.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/02/28/ipatova

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"WE'LL REPLACE REGIMES ELSEWHERE IF NEED BE"
12:33 28/02/2003, Mikhail Chepelov, "Izvestia"

"We replaced regime in Afghanistan and will do it in Iraq too. If there arises
a need, we will replace regimes in other countries,"  these phrases belong to
the US analyst Joshua Muravchik of the Institute of International Politics in
Washington, which he shared during the recent propagandistic tour in Eastern
Europe. He assumes that war, waged against Baghdad is an anti-terrorist liberation
war, within the framework of which the States plan to put the situation in Middle
East back in order in compliance with the general values of the mankind."
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/02/28/usa

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"CLEANSING" AT FINISH
11:35 28/02/2003, UCP press-service

Electoral commission of the Moskovsky district of Minsk embarked on Thursday
on a real cleansing of the pre-election field from the opposition candidates
into the deputies. They paid particular attention to those nominees for the city
hall, who, according to the polls, had best chances of qualifying. Among those,
who received red light, were deputy chairman of UCP Sergei Alfer and member of
the UCP political council Evgeny Lobanovich.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/02/28/ucpb

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VOTERS FORCED TO ENGAGE IN ADVANCE VOTING AGAINST WILL
11:33 28/02/2003

Belarusian Helsinki Committee receives data on the regime's attempts to force
the voters to engage in the early voting. Sergei Kolpakov, trustee of the candidate
Valery Schukin reports that on February 26 the polling office in the constituency
#10 was visited by the director of the dorm of the pedagogical university Nadezhda
Lisovskaya, who arbitrarily checked the lists of voters, found out who of the
students voted before time and who abstained from casting their votes. Shortly
after that incident many students turned up at the ballot-station. In private
conversations the students confessed that they voted ahead of time from fear
of administration's retaliation.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/02/28/local

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SUPREME COURT TURNS DOWN PAVEL MOZHEIKO'S COMPLAINT
11:29 28/02/2003, Alesya Sidlyarevich, www.pahonia.promedia.by

The Supreme court of Belarus left the verdict against Pavel Mozheiko, passed
by the Leninsky district court of Grodno in June 2002 in effect.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/02/28/pahonia

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"PARLIAMENTARIANS" TO RENDEZVOUS WITH GADDAFI
11:22 28/02/2003

On March 2-5, 2003 the delegation of the "national assembly" of Belarus, headed
by the chairman of the "house of representatives" Vadim Popov, will pay visit
to Libya upon the official invitation of the secretary of the Supreme People's
Congress (parliament's chairman) of Libya Az-Zanati Muhammed Az-Zanati, said
at the briefing deputy chief of the information department of the Belarusian
Foreign Ministry Andrei Savinykh.
http://www.charter97.org/eng/news/2003/02/28/gaddafi
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CHARTER'97 BELARUS NEWS UPDATE
February 28, 2003
www.charter97.org