INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
BELARUS UPDATE
Edited by Victor Cole
Vol. 2, No. 38
September 1999
IN THIS ISSUE:
-- HUMAN RIGHTS AND OPPOSITION NEWS --
PROMINENT OPPOSITION LEADER DISAPPEARS
On September 16, Victor Gonchar, deputy chair of the disbanded 13th Supreme Soviet, disappeared in Minsk. Gonchar's wife Zinaida told Belapan that he called in the late afternoon to tell her that a friend would drive him home, but he never returned. His wife and other colleagues do not know where he is and are very alarmed, given the disappearances of Yuri Zakharenko (see Belarus Update No. 19) and Tamara Vinnikova (see Belarus Update No. 15), and Gonchar’s past detention (see Belarus Update No. 10, 11). She has called all the known police stations and detention centers in Minsk, but has yet to determine his whereabouts. Neither the police nor the KGB were able to provide any information in this regard. It is thought that Gonchar may have been abducted, or that he could be in a police station somewhere under interrogation. He was supposed to give a major speech on September 19 at a session of the 13th Supreme Soviet. On September 17, Mr. Pashkevich, deputy head of presidential administration, commenting on Gonchar's disappearance told Interfax that "Gonchar disappeared exactly the way Zakharenko did – in order to attract public attention to the opposition activities." (Interfax, Charter 97, September 17)
AUTHORITIES QUESTION MEDIA REPORT ON U.N. INVESTIGATION
On September 9, the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a press release concerning information that appeared in the independent media regarding the investigation of the disappearance of Yuri Zakharenko, the former Minister of Internal Affairs, being conducted by the U.N. Working Group on Forced or Involuntary Disappearances. The press release says that the independent press presented "obviously distorted" information about his case. "The U.N. group should serve as a channel of communication between missing persons' families and governments in order to assist the investigation. It is not supposed to act as an independent investigator, nor should it give political assessments of the consequences of a disappearance," the release reads. The Ministry insists that "it would be incorrect to regard the incident as a special case with a political background." On September 16, the Belarusian democratic forces staged a picket of solidarity with Zakharenko’s relatives. They insisted that Lukashenko's regime bears full responsibility for his abduction. His whereabouts are still unknown. (Belapan, September 9, Charter 97, September 16)
US ENVOY RETURNS TO BELARUS
On September 13, the U.S. State Department announced that Daniel Speckhard, the U.S. Ambassador to Belarus, is returning to Minsk. Speckhard was recalled in June 1998, after being evicted from his residence in Minsk in violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and a bilateral agreement on the lease of the property. James Rubin, U.S. State Department Spokesman, said that progress on these matters was essential before Speckhard’s return would be possible. Rubin stressed that Ambassador Speckhard is returning at an important time when the OSCE is attempting to initiate a dialogue between the Belarusian government and the opposition. He added that it is also a difficult period in Belarus's history, marked by negative trends, which include a clampdown on dissent, on independent political organizations, and intimidation of opposition political leaders and the media. Rubin reiterated that the official term of the Lukashenko’s presidency expired in July. The State Department believes that "having Ambassador Speckhard back in Minsk will enable the U.S. to promote democracy and human rights more effectively and to help those who support and work for the restoration of the rule of law." (Belapan, September 14)
...AFTER SOLVING COMPENSATION ISSUE
"We received compensation for improvements and renovations which we made to our Drozdy residence and for rental payments made since our expulsion. President Lukashenko and Foreign Minister Latypov provided written assurances that Belarus in its future international relations will abide by the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations," James Foley, Deputy Spokesman said at a briefing on September 14. Speckhard’s new residence will be located near the village of Raubichi, in a picturesque part of the Minsk region. Valery Tsepkalo, the Belarusian Ambassador to the U.S. will return to Washington shortly, the Belarusian Foreign Ministry said in a statement released on September 16. (Federal News Service, September 14; Deutsche Presse-Agentur, September 16)
LUKASHENKO PLEDGES TO END "DEMOCRACY GAMES"
On September 16, at a government meeting devoted to combating organized crime and terrorism, Alexander Lukashenko attacked the opposition for its alleged intent to derail the OSCE-mediated dialogue with the authorities. "We are playing democracy games with them while they are trying to disrupt dialogue, to cast slurs upon Hans-Georg Wieck [the head of the OSCE AMG in Belarus]," he said. Lukashenko stressed that he considers the Wieck's position to be constructive, and that any reproaches against him are ungrounded. The Belarusian leader pledged to introduce "real democracy" instead of the "democracy games" which, in his opinion, are being imported from Russia. "There should be no democracy-playing. There should be true democracy. That means order," he said.
Lukashenko directed the law-enforcement agencies to promptly inform the nation about the sources "from which the opposition gets money to destabilize the country." "We’ve got to take immediate countermeasures, as tough as possible," he added. Lukashenko ordered the law-enforcers to clean the streets of "the opposition and other ragtag" and give them one particular place for mass gatherings. He also suggested closing all the opposition newspapers which have recently published information about the personal property of Victor Sheiman, secretary of the State Security Council. He thinks that Sheiman, having been "defamed by journalists," should sue them all. (Belapan, September 17)
EIGHT PARTIES WILL REPRESENT OPPOSITION
On September 14, after a meeting of the Consultative Council, opposition political parties announced the list of the members of the opposition delegation to the forthcoming negotiations with the government. Hans-Georg Wieck said that the OSCE agreed to increase the opposition delegation from six to eight members. According to Wieck, the government side likewise did not oppose this decision. The opposition delegation will include Sergei Kalyakin and Elena Skrigan from the Belarusian Communist Party, Stanislav Bogdankevich and Anatoly Lebedko from the United Civil Party, Stanislav Shushkevich and Oleg Trusov from the Belarusian Social Democratic Party, Yuri Belenki, deputy chair of the Belarusian Popular Front, and Sergei Gaidukevich, chair of the Belarusian Liberal Democratic Party. The list of delegation members will be confirmed at a meeting of the 13th Supreme Soviet on September 18. During the first two meetings with the authorities the delegation will be headed by Anatoly Lebedko. (Belapan, September 14)
DIALOGUE, WHAT DIALOGUE?
"No meaningful dialogue is yet underway," Semyon Sharetski, chair of the disbanded 13th Supreme Soviet, told Interfax in Vilnius on September 14, commenting on the start of the consultations between the authorities and the opposition. "Such talks may drag on ad infinitum," he added. Sharetski hopes that "the Belarusian people, who have been brought to despair by misery and repression, will not keep silent for long and will force Lukashenko to start meaningful talks with the opposition." He also expressed his regrets that Russia supports the current authorities in Belarus. Commenting on Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's recent visit to Belarus, Sharetski said that he "began discussing the unification of states with a person who is no longer legitimate to carry out such negotiations on behalf of Belarus." (Interfax, September 14)
POLICE BREAK INTO APARTMENT OF BPF LEADER
On September 14, two police officers broke into the apartment of Yuri Khadyka, deputy chair of the Belarusian Popular Front, in an attempt to bring him to court for his participation in two unauthorized demonstrations on July 21 and July 27 in Minsk. They claimed to have seen Khadyka from a window, though he was not in the city. Khadyka's sons resisted the policemen’s attempts to enter the apartment. They consider this incident an attempt to humiliate their father. (Radio 101.2, September 14)
ADIEU, IMYA
Pyotr Marzev, president of Belaruskaya Delovaya Gazeta Inc., announced his decision to close the Imya independent newspaper, which is a subsidiary of his company. Marzev mentioned that among the reasons for the closure were his inability to protect the journalists who have faced harsh persecution for the range of publications about the private affairs of top Belarusian officials. "Imya's staff will be able to join the Belaruskaya Delovaya Gazeta," Marzev promised. "It's not their fault that we failed to save our paper. I'm sure that in time Imya will be resurrected again," he added. (Charter 97, September 17)
OPPOSITION ACTIVIST ACQUITTED
On September 10, Judge Anatoly Borisenok of the Tsentralny District Court in Minsk acquitted Slavamir Adamovich, a prominent Belarusian poet, who had been arrested and brutally beaten by police on September 7 during an unsanctioned protest organized by the Belarusian Party of Freedom, a recently formed and still unregistered political party. The protest marked the 485th anniversary of the Orsha battle, in which the united Belarusian-Lithuanian-Polish troops defeated the Russian army. (Charter 97, September 13)
OPPOSITION COMMEMORATES GENNADY KARPENKO
On September 17, Gennady Karpenko, deputy chair of 13th Supreme Soviet, would have turned 50. A commemoration gathering in his honor was held in Minsk. On September 16, US Ambassador Daniel Speckhard met with Gennady Karpenko's widow and with Yuri Zakharenko’s wife. (Charter 97, September 17)
SUPREME SOVIET DELEGATION VISITS LITHUANIA
About 10 members of the 13th Supreme Soviet, led by Semyon Domash, visited Lithuania on the invitation of the Lithuanian parliament’s Committee on the Economy. For two days Belarusian deputies studied Lithuania’s experience in establishing a market economy. (Belapan, September 16)
BPF REJECTS LEADER'S IDEA TO SPLIT
On September 12, the Soim of the Belarusian Popular Front rejected the proposal of the BPF chair Zyanon Paznyak to divide the party into two organizations. A Soim resolution entitled "No splitting!" says that such a division would be artificial, because the representatives of the different positions in the party "have no ideological differences." It was decided that the second session of the party's Congress would take place from October 30-31. (Belapan, September 12)
WORKERS GO ON STRIKE IN GOMEL REGION
On September 9, workers of the Krichev (in the Gomel region) rubber factory went on strike, protesting low wages and poor working conditions. The local branch of the official trade union failed to support the workers' demands to set up a strike committee. (Charter 97, September 13)
NO RELIGIOUS FREEDOM IN BELARUS
On September 9, the Bureau for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor at the State Department published its first report concerning the state of religious freedom worldwide. The Belarus section of the report is lengthy and states that "the Constitution provides for freedom of religion, although the Government restricts this right in practice. Article 16 of the 1996 Constitution, which is a product of an illegal referendum used by Alexander Lukashenko to broaden his powers, contains restrictive language that stipulates that cooperation between the State and religious organizations ‘is regulated with regard to their influence on the formation of spiritual, cultural, and country traditions of the Belarusian people.’ Since his election as the country's first president in July 1994, President Lukashenko has pursued a deliberate policy of favoring the Orthodox Church as the country's chief religion. The Government and the President encourage a greater role for the Orthodox Church, largely as part of an overall strategy to strengthen Slavic unity in the region and promote greater political unification between Belarus and Russia." Speaking about NGO involvement in Belarus the report says that "most local human rights NGO's do not focus significant resources on the issue. However, the Embassy was in contact a number of times during 1998 with the Belarusian Interconfessional Association, a small human rights NGO located in Minsk that has looked into some topics related to religious freedom in Belarus." The complete report can be found at http://www.state.gov/www/global/human_rights/irf/irf_rpt/1999/irf_belarus99.html
PRO-LUKASHENKO JOURNALIST RECEIVES ANOTHER AWARD
Alexander Zimovsky, news anchor of the program "Resonance," who is well-known for his pro-government stance and for his harsh commentary about opposition leaders, was recently decorated by Alexander Lukashenko with the order "For Serving the Motherland." On September 15, the Svaboda radio station claimed that the award followed an appeal submitted by the opposition asking the authorities to stop slandering them on TV.
Zimovsky was nominated by the opposition Belarusian Association of Journalists for the Honorary Raven Award in 1997. On July 15 of this year, at the Annual General Meeting of the Belarusian State TV Company, he was nominated for the company's internal Medal of Honor. Several opposition leaders have already tried to sue Zimovsky for his biased commentaries. (Charter 97, September 16)
DIASPORA CALLS FOR AID TO BELARUS
On September 15 in New York, a session of the Presidium of the Belarusian Democratic Republic Council, which unites the Belarusian diaspora in the West, adopted an appeal "On Financial Assistance to the Republic of Belarus," RFE/RL's Belarusian Service reported. The forum urged Western governments and international financial organizations to make financial assistance to Belarus conditional on the country's compliance with international human rights standards, the release of political prisoners, and the return to the rule of law. (RFE/RL, September 16)
--AT HOME IN BELARUS-
FORMER BANKER SENTENCED TO THREE YEARS IN JAIL
The Frunzensky District Court in Minsk has sentenced Vladimir Hilko, ex-chair of the State Savings Bank, to three years in jail for abuse of power and large-scale embezzlement. The court also ruled that he has to repay $3 million. The banker was arrested on October 6, 1998, and spent almost one year in a pre-trial detention center. Hilko pleaded not guilty. The persecution insisted that he should be sentenced to 5 years of hard labor. However, because of Hilko’s poor health, the court decided on a three-year term. Hilko plans to appeal the verdict. (Charter 97, September 13)
BELARUS STRENGTHEN SECURITY
The transparency of the Russian-Belarusian border has made Belarusian authorities take additional security measures in an attempt to prevent terrorist acts of the kind that have recently shocked Russia. Particular attention is being paid to channels through which weapons and explosives might be smuggled into Belarus. Likewise, control over the transportation of explosives, radioactive and poisonous substances across the border has tightened. (Izvestia, September 16)
SHORTAGE OF ROAD TRANSPORT FUEL
The Belarusian Mass Transit Authorities receive only 40-50% of their gasoline needs. As a result, up to 20% of buses will be taken off the road. The Ministry of Transportation attributes this situation to the lack of funds to purchase fuel from Belarusian refineries. Government officials say that after the end of the harvest the gasoline crisis should ease up. The government is developing measures to convert buses to less expensive diesel fuel and to increase the profitability of public transportation enterprises. (Belaruskaya Delovaya Gazeta, September 13)
BELARUS TO BOOST COOPERATION WITH GERMANY?
Belarus aims to boost economic cooperation with Germany and the West, Minsk officials stated at the opening session of the Europe 99 Belarusian-German three-day economic forum. Ural Latypov, Belarusian Foreign Minister, told its participants that the government would do everything possible to have fair 2000 parliamentary and 2001 presidential elections and to ease tensions between Western democracies and Belarus. "We hope that obstacles will be removed, and that Belarus will soon attain West European economic and political standards," Horst Winkelman, German Ambassador to Belarus, said. In his letter to the forum, Lukashenko guaranteed his "personal support" to German firms in Belarus. Latypov claimed that Minsk has introduced a special investment-friendly "national regime" granting tax and investment privileges to foreign investors. (Deutsche Presse-Agentur, September 13)
--BROTHER SLAVS-
YUGOSLAVIA AND BELARUS WANT TO UNITE WITH RUSSIA
On September 14, Tomislav Nikolic, the Yugoslav Deputy Prime Minister, received Valery Brylyov, the Belarusian Ambassador to Yugoslavia, in Belgrade. They discussed the current situation in Yugoslavia and the further development of friendly relations and cooperation between the two states, focusing in particular on Yugoslavia's joining the Russia-Belarus Union. They agreed that considerable benefits could be derived from the trilateral alliance. (Tanjug, September 14)
--CALENDAR OF UPCOMING EVENTS-
September 30- The Federation of Trade Unions will hold a nationwide protest
October 17 - Freedom March in Minsk
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Belarus Update is a regular news bulletin of the Belarus Human Rights Support Project of the International League for Human Rights. The League, now in its 58th year, is a New York-based human rights NGO in consultative status with the United Nations and ILO.
The Belarus project is a part of Human Rights Defenders' Project, originally launched in 1982 to defend individuals and groups who suffer reprisals for promoting human rights in their societies. Among those the League defended were Andrei Sakharov, Kim Dae Jung and Jaime Castillo Velasco.
The Belarus project was established to support Belarusian citizens in making their cases before the U.S. government and public and international fora and intergovernmental organizations regarding President Alexander Lukashenko's wholesale assault on human rights and the rule of law in Belarus.
For more information e-mail belarus@ilhr.org or call (212) 684-1221 or fax (212) 684-1696 or visit our web site at www.ilhr.org.