July 1999

--HUMAN RIGHTS AND OPPOSITION NEWS

PRESS BIASED ABOUT "PEOPLE’S PRESIDENT"?

On June 30, in an interview with ORT, the Russian television network, President Alexander Lukashenko dismissed as "groundless" all allegations that the current Belarusian government will become illegitimate after July 20. "International organizations are free to believe otherwise, but my presidency is based on the support of the Belarusian people," he said. Lukashenko made reference to the outcome of the illegitimate 1996 referendum, which expanded his personal power and led to the disbanding of the 13^th Supreme Soviet and the creation of a new legislature and Constitutional Court subservient to the executive branch. Lukashenko blamed the Russian media for their "biased opinion" about the dictatorial nature of the Belarusian government. He stressed that former Prime Minister Mikhail Chigir, had been arrested "for large-scale embezzlement and nothing else." "As soon as he gives the money back to the government, he will be released," Lukashenko promised. (Belapan, June 30)

LUKASHENKO: RUSSIA SHOULD STOP SUPPORTING BELARUSIAN OPPOSITION

On July 2, addressing the Parliamentary Assembly of the Russia-Belarus Union in Minsk, President Lukashenko expressed indignation over the alleged financing of the Belarusian opposition from Russia. "Certain figures close to the Russian government and president transferred nearly $1.5 billion for staging the so-called opposition presidential elections in May," he said. " Now they are trying to prevent my visiting Russia," he added. (Interfax, July 2)

800 NGOs APPLY FOR RE-REGISTRATION

According to Mikhail Sukhinin, head of the department of registration of public organizations at the Belarusian Ministry of Justice, 713 out of the 1,300 national-level Belarusian NGOs previously registered with the Ministry of Justice have applied for re-registration. Three hundred public associations have already been re-registered, nine have been denied re-registration, and the rest of the applications are currently reviewed. Three political parties have been granted re-registration: the Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus, the Nadzeya Belarusian Women's Party, and the Party of Labor and Justice. The United Civic Party has in fact been re-registered, but "some technical problems" are yet to be resolved, Sukhinin said. The presidential decree of January 26, 1999 requires all NGOs to re-register by July 1. However, Sukhinin did not rule out that the deadline might be extended until late July. The League has learned that of the 9 groups denied re-registration, most are in the process of re-applying. Other organizations, believing they will be denied legitimacy in any event, are not bothering to re-register. (Belapan; ILHR, June 29

MORE RESTRICTIONS ON NGOs

While NGOs, parties, and trade unions in Belarus are struggling to re-register under the President's January decree, with varying degrees of success, the presidentially-appointed legislature is targeting civic organizations with other legislative amendments to the civil code. On June 30, the House of Representatives of the Belarusian National Assembly adopted several legislative amendments to laws regulating the activities of political parties, trade unions, and public organizations in Belarus. The legislators banned the use of the words "popular," "national," "Belarus," and combinations thereof in the names of Belarusian NGOs, thereby criminalizing such organizations as the Belarusian Popular Front. Other amendments established the minimum number of members required for registering an NGO: 1,000 for political parties, 500 for trade unions. Under the new legislation, person acting on behalf of an unregistered organization will be fined 10-15 minimum monthly wages. Repeated offenses will entail a 50-100 minimum-wage fine or 15 days in jail. A new provision, added to the Law "On Press and other Media", prohibits the dissemination of printed materials on behalf of an unregistered NGO. (Charter 97, June 30)

POLICE DISPERSE OPPOSITION PICKET

On June 29, a joint picket of activists from the United Civil Party and Charter 97 was dispersed by police near Pushkinskaya Metro Station in Minsk after police discovered that the front page of a bulletin distributed free of charge by the human rights activists contained information about the expiration of Lukashenko's term in office after July 20. (Charter 97, June 29)

VITEBSK AUTHORITIES BAN OPPOSITION DEMONSTRATION

The Vitebsk Executive Committee refused to authorize a joint rally which the Belarusian Popular Front, the United Civil Party, and Narodnaya Hramada, or the Belarusian Social Democratic Party were planing to held on July 21 in order to discuss the results of Lukashenko’s five-year rule. The authorities claimed that space was limited due to the Slaviansky Bazaar music festival to be held on the same day. (Belapan, June 30)

SUPREME COURT VOIDS WARNING TO INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER

On June 30, the Belarusian Supreme Economic Court rendered void the State Press Committee’s April 22 warning to the Belaruskaya Delovaya Gazeta for publishing a series of articles in the column "Legislation Monitor" and "Legal Review." According to the State Press Committee and the Ministry of Justice, these articles were a combination of abridged legislative materials, and thus violated the restrictions on dissemination of official legal information, promulgated by Decree #565 of December 1, 1998. Justice Valery Shopik held that the warning was invalid and ordered the State Press Committee to reimburse the BDG’s court filing fee. The ruling was seen as a victory for the press freedom lobby in Belarus, but other opposition papers such as Navyny and Imya still face closure after the Press Committee's content-related warnings. (Charter 97, July 2)

BELARUSIAN POET ASKS FOR POLITICAL ASYLUM IN POLAND

On June 24, in an interview to the Narodnaya Volya independent newspaper, Vladimir Neklyaev, Chair of the Union of Belarusian Writers, confirmed his intention to ask for political asylum in Poland. Explaining the reasons for this decision, he recalled his 1998 speech at a parliamentary hearing on cultural issues, in which he criticized the anti-Belarusian language policy initiated by Vladimir Zametalin, then Deputy Prime Minister in charge of culture and education. Relationships with the authorities worsened after the Writers’ Union board issued a statement condemning Lukashenko's policy of unification with Russia.

Neklyaev said that while visiting Poland at the invitation of the local branch of the international Pen Club, he received further confirmation of the government’s plans to arrest him. The pretext for his arrest may have been an audit of the Krynitsa magazine, where he was the editor-in-chief, which allegedly revealed embezzlement of $1,000. In his opinion, Neklyaev’s opponents employed well-tested tactics against him; they wanted to charge him with a criminal offense to convince the public that his prosecution was not politically motivated.

According to unofficial information from Warsaw, Lukashenko ordered Neklyaev to be returned to Minsk by any possible means. On June 24, Pavel Yakubovich, editor-in-chief of Sovetskaya Belarusiya and a staunch supporter of Lukashenko, left for Warsaw in order to convince his friend Neklyaev to return. Other friends of Neklyaev informed him that "forgiveness would be granted by vice-premier Zametalin upon return to Belarus." (Belapan, June 29)

KAZAKH COMMUNIST LEADER APPLIES FOR POLITICAL ASYLUM IN BELARUS

Utegen Kabaziyev, leader of the Kazakh Communist Party, applied for political asylum at the Belarusian Embassy in Almaty. On July 1, at a press conference, he said that since 1992 he had been persecuted for his political ideas by the Kazakh authorities. He added that he was arrested nine times. Stating that he could no longer live in Kazakhstan, Kabaziyev said that Belarus was his second homeland, as he had fought in Belarus during World War II. Another reason for Kabaziyev’s asylum application in Belarus was the presence of a large Communist Party, where he intends to find work. The Embassy staff said they would consider his application, but noted that "it's a very complicated issue." (Interfax, July 1)

HUNDREDS OBJECT TO RENAMING SKARYNA AVENUE IN MINSK

On June 29, the Belarusian Language Association organized a picket of 50 persons in Mikhailovski Park in Minsk to protest President Lukashenko’s proposal to rename the main avenue in Belarus’s capital. Formerly named "Stalin Avenue" and later "Lenin Avenue," after Belarus gained its independence from the USSR, the main thoroughfare was renamed "Skaryna Avenue" after Francisk Skaryna, the Belarusian thinker and Slavic pioneer of the printing press. The BLA’s members believe that any attempts to remove the name of Skaryna, the publisher of the first Bible in Belarus, from a main street of the capital, is nothing other than an assault on the Belarusian national patrimony. Hundreds of signatures were collected in support of the current name and establishing of the national university. Picketers carried posters with slogans such as: "Start with Yourself – Speak Belarusian!", "Belarusian Language – To Higher Education!" and "Stop Imposing Russian Language!" (Charter 97, June 29)

POLISH PARLIAMENT CONCERNED ABOUT POLISH MINORITY

A delegation of Polish Sejm deputies led by Ryszard Czarniecki, Chairman of the Diaspora Commission, visited Belarus last week. Polish deputies met with representatives of the Belarusian Union of Poles in Grodno, Minsk, and Vitebsk, and had talks with the State Committee for Religions and Ethnic Minorities. Following the meetings, Czarniecki described the status of the Polish ethnic minority as "not satisfactory", and said that the rights of Poles are often violated. He said that the Polish parliament should urge the Belarusian side to respect the rights of Belarusian Poles. (Radio 101.2, June 30)

SUMMER VACATION FOR CHILDREN OF POLITICAL PRISONERS

On June 4, Charter 97 appealed to Polish citizens and organizations to help in organizing summer vacations for the children of political prisoners who have been kept in custody for an extended period. "Your assistance would not only be a humanitarian action but also an action of solidarity with the democratic forces of Belarus," read the appeal. The appeal was followed by a photo and list of children of political prisoners, which was also published in Gazeta Wyborcza. On July 1, Gazeta Wyborcza , SOS Foundation, and Charter 97 started an action of solidarity with all democratic forces in Belarus aimed to organize summer vacations in Poland for children of Belarusian political prisoners. Two dozen boys and girls will go for a few weeks to the neighboring country in mid-August. (Charter 97, July 2)

LEAGUE FOR FREEDOM OF SEXUAL MINORITIES DEMONSTRATES IN MINSK

On June 28, the Belarusian League for Freedom of Sexual Minorities held an authorized picket in front of the Belarusian Ministry of Health in Minsk to protest against the official policy of allowing the state to decide who may have access to transsexual surgery. Currently a state commission, composed of 15 officials, including officers of the Ministry of Defense, Ministry of Justice, and Ministry of Internal Affairs, decides whether to allow a person to surgically change his/her gender. The commission’s decision is final. The League for Freedom of Sexual Minorities advocates that the decision whether to undergo surgery should be left to the individual alone. The League has also called for making the permission procedure more transparent and allowing for the right to appeal the state commission’s decision. According to the League, there are about 60 Belarusians who have already underwent sex-change operations or who wish to do so. (Belapan, June 28)

--AT HOME IN BELARUS--

OFFICIALS ARRESTED IN GOVERNMENT PURGE

Writing in Moscow News, Alexander Feduta, a popular Belarusian columnist who formerly served as a close aide to Lukashenko, writes of purges underway in the Belarusian government as rival officials jockey for position in the worsening economic crisis. Following the arrest of economic advisor Eduard Eidin in June (see Update No. 26), Yuri Feoktistov, director of the famous Zhlobin iron and steel factory (BMZ), was detained this month on accusations of economic offenses. The BMZ is one of the largest plants in the region, supplying Belarusian state coffers with 10 percent of all its foreign currency profits. Feoktistov was accused of buying scrap metal in neighboring Russia at less than market rates. On June 21, Viktor Logvinets, head of the Konta Group, well known in Belarus, was arrested on charges of trucking perishable goods through Belarus to Russia without a customs permit, and with selling virtually ready-made cars and trucks on the Russian market under the guise of delivering spare parts from Belarus. Also caught in the net was Vasily Starovoitov, head of a major collective farm, who was sentenced last month to two years of prison and is appealing the sentence.

All of the men arrested were top managers of the largely state-run economy, and all had close ties either to Lukashenko personally, or to his chief deputies. Most of the cases relate to the lucrative routes of trade between or through Belarus and Russia. Feduta speculates that the latest purges are related to a power struggle to divide up economic influence, and to remove various economic managers with the cash and industrial resources needed to back rival political leaders. "The directors of industrial giants famous throughout the former Soviet Union are now appearing in the role of playing cards, or more likely the first ‘snacks’ in a process already being called ‘the big feed’ in Belarus.’

The International League for Human Rights has called for international organizations such as the OSCE to monitor the cases of the men arrested and press for humane conditions of detention and fair trials. In all of these instances, the charges were made swiftly, and access to counsel was limited. The sudden cluster of economic cases involving officials formerly in favor suggests a political motivation for the arrests possibly tied to future elections. Given the intense harassment of Starovoitov’s lawyer, Vera Stremkovskaya, who is still battling libel charges, the chances of getting a decent defense, let alone a fair trial in Belarus, are almost nil. (Moscow News Stolichinye Novosti, June 29-July 6, 1999; ILHR).

LUKASHENKO ORDERS KGB TO STEP UP FIGHT AGAINST ORGANIZED CRIME

On June 23, Vladimir Matskevich, Chairman of the Belarusian KGB, reported to Lukashenko on the current activities of the Belarusian intelligence and counter-intelligence agencies and joint actions of the Belarusian KGB and the Russian Federal Security Service. Matskevich also informed the president about the implementation of a presidential order to develop a modern encryption system for Belarusian governmental agencies. Lukashenko instructed the KGB head to enhance KGB operations in fighting organized crime and corruption in cooperation with other law-enforcement bodies. (BBC, June 28)

18 BELARUSIANS HURT IN SHELL EXPLOSION

On June 25, eighteen Belarusian soldiers were wounded, three of them seriously, when a shell exploded during cleaning operations at the Baranovichi military base southwest of Minsk. (Itar-Tass, June 25)

TRUCK DRIVERS BLOCK ROAD TO PROTEST BORDER JAM

On June 30, about 500 trucks blocked access to the Kozlovichi checkpoint on the Belarusian border with Poland to protest against a 20-kilometer (12-mile) line of trucks near the city of Brest. The protesters demanded that the authorities speed up customs procedures, particulalry because living conditions in the heat wave were intolerable. There was no immediate reaction to the drivers' action from the Belarusian government. Belarus has been the main transit route linking Russia and other former Soviet republics with Europe, and truck traffic has been growing steadily. As of July 1, the back-up on the Belarusian-Polish border had been cut in half . (AP, June 30 – Belapan, July 1)

--BELARUSIAN ECONOMY—

BANKING SYSTEM ON VERGE OF COLLAPSE

The Belarusian banking system may soon collapse after years of being forced to finance unprofitable government investment projects, Pyotr Prokopovich, Chief of the National bank, informed the Belarusian parliament on June 25. Financial resources have been sapped by requirements to fund governmental programs against a backdrop of an otherwise fairly strict credit policy, he added. The central bank has been forced to cut reserve requirements and allow banks to form reserves in any currency they can. Thanks to a large emission, the banking system has managed to keep some liquidity, he added. (Reuters, June 28)

QUARTER OF BELARUSIAN ENTERPRISES OPERATE AT LOSS

As of May 1, 23.4 per cent of all Belarusian enterprises are operating at a loss, the Belarusian Ministry of Statistic and Analysis reported. The most unprofitable enterprises belong to the communications sector (52.8 per cent of the total number of enterprises), consumer services (41.1 per cent), agriculture (40.3 per cent), and transportation (25 per cent). The number of industrial enterprises operating at a loss has reached 13 per cent. (Belapan, June 28)

CAR OWNERS ALARMED BY FUEL SHORTAGES

The shortage of gasoline has reached the point where it is almost impossible to buy gas in Belarus - neither for Belarusian rubles nor even for hard currency. Long lines of cars are forming at gas stations still selling gas or diesel fuel. Lukashenko has berated government officials who failed to respond adequately to the current situation in the domestic fuel market, and has ordered Premier Sergei Ling to resolve the problem within a week. (Novye Izvestiya, June 28)

-- BROTHER SLAVS --

RUSSIA, BELARUS INTENSIFY EFFORTS TO CREATE CONFEDERATION

Activity to promote the Russia-Belarus confederation has somewhat accelerated in recent days. The new Russian Prime Minister, Sergei Stepashin, traveled to Belarus in early June to meet Lukashenko and discuss plans for a confederation treaty. It was his first trip outside Russia since becoming Prime Minister.

Last week, Stepashin telephoned Lukashenko to further discuss the plans for a confederation. From June 26 to June 27, Nikolai Aksyonenko, Russian Deputy Prime Minister, visited the Belarusian strongman. Russia and Belarus will form a confederation and not a merger into a single state, he announced on June 27. "There will be no limits on the sovereignty of each country and the powers of their presidents," he said, while adding that joint institutions could emerge, as in Europe. Aksyonenko stressed that no matters had been left unresolved following his trip to Minsk, but the process of forming the Union could still take several years. (Agence France Presse, June 27)

On June 29, Russian and Belarusian officials met in Moscow to discuss details of the proposed confederation. According to the leader of a pro-Russian group in Minsk, the countries could sign a confederation treaty next month to create the Union of Sovereign Republics -- a name deliberately chosen for its echoes of the Soviet Union. There is mounting speculation that Yeltsin will use the confederation to prolong his rule in the Kremlin, despite a constitutional two-term limit that forces him out of his office next year. Although he would cease to be the Russian president next summer, Yeltsin could become a leader of the new Russia-Belarus entity. He could then transfer most of his powers to the new post.

A similar tactic was followed by Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic, who retained all of his powers by becoming President of Yugoslavia at the end of his Serbian term. The Kremlin has denied that Yeltsin is planning such a move. But several leading Russian politicians and analysts have warned that the Kremlin is almost certainly considering the idea. "The Milosevic variant is a very attractive model for the Russian President, since it possesses that extremely vague legal gray area that Boris Yeltsin is so fond of," political analyst Sergei Markov told a Russian news agency last week.

A union of the two countries would be popular among most Russians and Belarusians, who often feel nostalgia for the glory days of the Soviet empire. Polls show that 80 per cent of Russians support a merger with Belarus.

The parliaments of the two countries have already agreed to adopt the tune of the Soviet Union's

national anthem, with new lyrics, as the anthem of their confederation. But many liberals in Moscow are worried about a confederation because it could allow Yeltsin and Lukashenko to extend their powers without elections.

Despite the popularity of the confederation proposal in both countries, most analysts believe that it is largely a symbolic gesture. The two countries have vastly different economic policies, and neither government seems willing to surrender power to an integrated entity. After the financial collapse of last year, Russia cannot afford to prop up the declining Belarusian economy and its fast-sinking currency, analysts say. (The Globe, June 29)

LUKASHENKO PRESSURES RUSSIA FOR CONFEDERATION

On July 2, Alexander Lukashenko announced plans to improve his nation's frosty relations with the West if Russia continues to drag out implementation of a confederation between the two Slavic neighbors. The Belarusian President has long been pushing for union with Russia, its giant eastern neighbor and a fellow ex-Soviet republic. Russia and Belarus have signed a deal that brings them closer together, but plans for a complete merger have stalled, partly because Belarus' moribund economy could be a further burden on Russia. Lukashenko appears to be growing increasingly frustrated with the delay. "I have ordered the Foreign Ministry to establish the kindest, closest relations with western nations," Lukashenko told the Parliamentary Assembly of the Russia-Belarus Union in Minsk. "We had made a big mistake. We had been leaning toward the East for too long. Consider this my last appeal for integration with Russia," he told the meeting.

Western democracies are not likely to welcome Lukashenko's overture. He has a history of troubled relations with the West, and his harsh suppression of human rights has subjected him to frequent and strong criticism by western governments and organizations. Lukashenko also criticized Moscow for failing to heed his call for closer ties with international pariahs such as Iran and Iraq. "We will soon lose even these states. It doesn't matter what kind of leaders they have there," he said. (AP, July 2)

…AND CONFIRMS HIS READINESS TO RUN FOR UNION PRESIDENCY

On June 30, in an interview to ORT, President Lukashenko made it clear that he may just as well run for the presidency of the Union if such a position is created. "If there is a union, and its president is elected by the people, why should I not run against Boris Yeltsin for that position?" he said. However, Lukashenko ruled out the possibility of participating in the presidential race in Russia. "It might, however, be possible if the Union were formed by that time," Lukashenko added. (Belapan, June 30)

BPF LEADER OPPOSES CLOSER UNION WITH RUSSIA

On June 28, Zyanon Paznyak, Chair of the Belarusian Popular Front, issued a statement titled "Destabilizing Plans of Russian Politicians." "The hasty plans by the Russian Duma and Boris Yeltsin to sign by July 20 an illegal agreement with Lukashenko on a Russia-Belarus confederation are a harsh demonstration of hatred toward the Belarusian nation, against the sovereignty of Belarus, and Belarusian democracy," Paznyak said. The BPF leader called on Russian politicians to stop their plans to annex Belarus. (Interfax, June 28)

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-- CALENDAR OF -UPCOMING EVENTS --

July 9 – Forum sponsored by ILHR and Citizens’ Watch in St. Petersburg for OSCE PA

July 20- Lukashenko’s term in office expires

July 21- Belarusian Social Democratic Party, the Belarusian Popular Front and the United Civic Party plan mass rally to mark five years of Lukashenko's presidency