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Belarus Updates, 2000
INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS BELARUS UPDATE

Edited by Victor Cole

Vol. 3, No. 28-29 July 2000

IN THIS ISSUE:
-- Another Disappearance
-- Son of Opposition Activist Sentenced to Five Years in Prison
-- Forth Congress of Democratic Forces Held in Minsk
--U.S. Suspends Trade Benefits for Belarus
-- Belarusian Opposition at OSCE -- Czech Senators Condemn Lukashenko Regime
-- Protska to Stay in Office until September
-- Rights Group Honors Belarusian Journalist
-- IMF Mission Urges Reforms
-- Belarusians Forced to Labor on Farms

--HUMAN RIGHTS AND OPPOSITION NEWS ORT CAMERAMAN DISAPPEARS IN BELARUS
Dmitry Zavadsky, a Belarusian cameraman for ORT, Russia's independent television station, has been missing since July 7, when he failed to appear as scheduled at the Minsk International Airport, about 24 miles from the city. Family and colleagues are distraught and have no knowledge of his whereabouts. Zavadsky, 28, a Belarusian citizen who works for the Russian station in Moscow, had been in Minsk, and was supposed to pick up Pavel Sheremet, head of special projects at ORT, reported Nasha Svaboda, an independent newspaper. Zavadsky's car was found parked at the airport, which is surrounded by fields and dense forest. When Sheremet contacted the police about his colleague's disappearance, they broke the car door open and found no evidence of struggle. The policemen swept the airport area, phoned local hospitals and morgues, but failed to find Zavadsky. The Belarusian Transport Prosecutor's Office, the police station nearest the scene of the crime, has initiated a criminal investigation in connection with the disappearance. .

Zavadsky is the fourth public figure to disappear in Belarus in the last year. "Given the situation in the country, I have no doubts that my friend and colleague was taken by the Belarusian security forcers under order from Lukashenko," Sheremet told NTV on July 8. "It is physically dangerous for politicians and journalists who criticize the regime to work in Belarus," he added. Sheremet, who formerly headed the Belarusian ORT bureau, was arrested together with Zavadsky in July 1997 for illegally crossing the Belarus-Lithuanian border to report on lax border controls. The two spent three months in jail and received an 18-month suspended sentences. After their release, the two went to Moscow to work, returning to Belarus to see their family and colleagues, but not working in the country.

Zavadsky formerly worked for the Belarusian State Television Company and in that capacity, served in the "parquet crew," or as the president's cameraman, filming various state ceremonies and speeches. Lukashenko was reportedly deeply offended by Zavadsky's move to the Russian state-owned ORT television company in 1996. Zavadsky and Sheremet just returned from Chechnya, where they shot a documentary titled "The Chechen Diary" depicting the horrors of combat, which was broadcast by ORT on July 11. However, Sheremet denied any connection between the project and Zavadsky's disappearance, pointing out that the movie did not in any way mention Belarus and that about 14 other cameramen worked on the footage. "I pray Dmitry was kidnapped by a Chechen. Then there is some hope to see him again. Compared to Lukashenko, Chechens are angels," said Sheremet in an interview to Nasha Svaboda.

Zavadsky's wife, Svetlana Zavadskaya, told Nasha Svaboda that immediately upon her husband's return from Chechnya, an unknown man began to call their apartment and Dmitry's mother's numbers, insisting on a meeting with Zavadsky. Zavadsky refused, however, suspecting that the Belarusian secret police, who closely monitor the independent media, were behind the caller.

Belarusian journalists were puzzled by the apparent singling out of Zavadsky, who, unlike some in the Russian journalists' community, was said to favor anti-Chechen coverage of the conflict. Zavadsky was not involved in Minsk opposition groups although he was perceived as an independent journalist. Colleagues told the League that in contrast to the disappearances of opposition politicians Yury Zakharenko and Victor Gonchar last year, it was hard to see who would benefit from Zavadsky's disappearance. But at the same time, as one activist commented, "Lukashenko often does things that can't be explained with common sense" (Belapan, Nasha Svaboda, Interfax, AP, July 9-14)

REGIME SPOKESMAN SAYS CAMERAMAN "KIDNAPPED BY OPPOSITION"
On July 8, Vladimir Zametalin, deputy head of the Lukashenko administration, accused the opposition of kidnapping Zavadsky. "The incident involves political forces who are trying to destabilize the situation in the country," he said in an interview to Interfax. "Opposition activity has become a rather profitable business in Belarus and many of the opposition figures have put this business on a professional footing," he continued. "The opposition are just trying to make money by spinning political intrigues and slandering their homeland to please the people with moneybags who order such provocations," Zametalin speculated. He dismissed as absurd the assertions that Belarusian special services are behind the incident. "Who needs a cameraman working for one of the numerous TV stations broadcasting in Belarus? He has never been a political figure. But even if he were, what could be the reason to abduct him?" said Zametalin. He blamed Sheremet for setting the whole thing up. "The disappearance can be explained by the desire of ORT employee Pavel Sheremet to remind Belarus of his existence, to organize around his name another panic and on this wave to try to run for a seat in parliament in the elections scheduled for this fall," Zametalin said on July 10 at the opening of memorial to Holocaust victims in Minsk. (Interfax, July 9)

ORT DIRECTOR: ZAMETALIN'S ACCUSATION "DEEPLY INSULTING"
In a statement issued on July 10, ORT director Konstantin Ernst called Zametalin's accusation "deeply insulting," adding that he was not convinced that the Belarusian authorities were taking all possible measures to find Zavadsky and urged Lukashenko to intensify the search. "We would not like to think that the mysterious, disappearance of an ORT journalist without a trace is a continuation of actions directed toward blocking the free activity of representatives of Russian media in Belarus," Ernst said. "On the other hand, we do not have any reason to put the incident in the category of the recent mysterious disappearances of a few opposition politicians and businessmen, although the Russian and foreign press are making these suggestions." (Interfax, July 10)

SECURITY AGENCY DENIES ALL ALLEGATIONS OF MASTERMINDING ABDUCTION
The investigation into the criminal case concerning the disappearance of Zavadsky is being personally controlled by Lukashenko, Mikhail Udovikov, acting Belarusian Interior Minister, told the press on July 13. He categorically denied the reports alleging that Zavadsky may have been kidnapped by the Belarusian security services. Udovikov met with Svetlana Zavadskaya and told her that the authorities are doing everything possible to find her husband. Interfax reported on July 14 that Vladimir Matskevich, chair of the Committee for State Security (KGB), has also denied any involvement of his agency in the recent disappearances. "We have absolutely nothing to do with them," he said. In an interview to Moskovsky Komsomolets, a Moscow independent daily, he scolded the Belarusian opposition for "perceiving the KGB as a repression machine that 'blindly follows Lukashenko's orders'." (Interfax, Moskovsky Komsomolets, July 14)

ILHR CONCERNED ABOUT DISAPPEARANCE
In a public statement July 10 about Zavadsky's disappearance, the League called on the Belarusian Prosecutor General, the Interior Minister, the Chair of the Committee for State Security, and the Chair of the National Security Council "to take personal responsibility for ordering a good-faith, thorough investigation for Zavadsky and other disappeared persons in Belarus." In the release, Catherine A. Fitzpatrick, Executive Director of the League, commented, "If a person already under surveillance attempts to go into hiding due to enormous fear, and has not been abducted, that does not change the seriousness of the case. The opposition has no motivation to abduct people. In each case of last year's disappearances, the opposition figures were under regular KGB surveillance. We urge the security authorities to come forward with what they know," said the League. The ILHR urged all the parties involved in investigating Zavadsky's disappearance to refrain from speculation on the content of his character or the content of his broadcasts, which may have been controversial for some. "Such second-guessing has slowed down the search for disappeared persons in the past. The point is to look for Zavadsky in earnest before the trail goes cold because no public figure is safe when a journalist or a politician can disappear in broad daylight," Fitzpatrick emphasized.

The League also called on the U.S. Embassy and the OSCE AMG in Belarus to make public statements on the Zavadsky case as quickly as possible, to interview all those concerned and publicize their findings, and also to raise the case of Dmitry Zavadsky in bilateral meetings with the Russian government. "In this climate of terror and intimidation, it is clearly impossible to conduct free and fair parliament elections this fall, which require freedom of association and assembly for NGOs and parties and freedom for the independent media as the fundamental background," noted Fitzpatrick. She called on international bodies such as OSCE and the Council of Europe to refrain from sending observation teams to "this fall's illegitimate balloting exercise, which will only serve to legitimize it, until the conditions set by these bodies are met, investigations are made for the disappeared, and there is an end to government persecution for a significant period before the elections." (ILHR, July 10)

WORSE THAN STALINISM
Viasna Human Rights Center reported on July 12 that Dmitry Obodovsky, 26, son of Sergei Obodovsky, director of the Mogilev Human Rights Center and lawyer of the Mogilev Branch of the Free Trade Union, has been on a hunger strike since late June in an attempt to draw the public's attention to his case. Dmitry's persecution started soon after his father was elected to the local electoral committee of the opposition-staged presidential election. [See Belarus Update, Vol. 3, No. 5] On July 10, 1999, Dmitry was arrested and charged with rape. He has already spent six months in pre-trial detention, when the prosecution realized that it didn't have enough evidence to substantiate the charge. The authorities got Dmitry's cellmate to agree to a plea bargain, which contained a confession of larceny allegedly committed with Dmitry. As a result of the "confession," Dmitry was sentenced to five years and three months in prison. His lawyers insists that serious irregularities occurred during the preliminary investigation and the trial, which was closed to the public. The defense has appealed the sentence, but the Mogilev City Court refused to hear the case. Local observers believe that by persecuting Dmitry, the local authorities are trying to impede the opposition activities of his father. In an open letter, the Belarusian Helsinki Committee, Viasna Human Rights Center, and the Public Legal Aid Association urge the Mogilev Regional prosecutor, the chair of the Mogilev Regional court, and the chief of correctional institution, where Dmitry Obodovsky has been held, to ensure respect for the prisoner's rights, which are guaranteed by Belarusian legislation and international conventions. The human rights activists demand an immediate and impartial examination of the case and medical assistance to Dmitry. The League urge those concerned to join us in writing protest letters about this pattern of harassment and retaliation to the Prosecutor General and to the Prosecutor of the Mogilev region (Anatoly Dudkin, fax: 011-375-222-257-355), the Ministry of Internal Affairs and to the regional Mogilev branch (Svyataslav Kurel, fax: 011-375-222-395-101), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and to the Belarusian Embassy. (Viasna Human Rights Center, July 12)

FOURTH CONGRESS OF DEMOCRATIC FORCES HELD IN MINSK
On July 2, the Forth Congress of the Belarusian Democratic Forces was held on the outskirts of Minsk, reported Charter 97. About 900 delegates from different opposition parties voted to boycott the fall parliamentary election unless Lukashenko meets their conditions for a fair contest. The vote was a sign of unity among the opposition, which is divided into at least eight parties and has no single leader: the delegates passed a boycott resolution by a show of hands, without dissent. "Under Lukashenko, Belarus has grown steadily more repressive toward independent media and political opposition. Anti-Lukashenko demonstrations have been broken up by truncheon-wielding police, and opposition figures have disappeared in what their colleagues say are police abductions," said the delegates. They reminded the Belarusian leader about his failed promises to 1) amend the Electoral Code, 2) grant effective authority to parliament, 3) give the opposition access to mass media, and 4) respect the freedom of assembly and speech -- all conditions which OSCE has promoted. Otherwise, opposition representatives said, "we would urge European countries not to send election observers and not to consider the election valid." Meanwhile, few local observers seem to think that Lukashenko would comply. "We have already decided that we will not take part in the election, because it will be a farce," said Stanislav Shushkevich, former chair of the 12th Supreme Soviet, independent Belarus's first Head of State. (Charter 97, July 2)

U.S. SUSPENDS GSP BENEFITS FOR BELARUS OVER WORKER RIGHTS
On July 3, Ambassador Charlene Barshefsky, U.S. Trade Representative, announced that President Clinton had decided to suspend Belarus's benefits under the trade privilege called Generalized System of Preferences (GSP). The GSP provides tariff exemptions for developing countries to encourage developing economies. This decision was based on a finding by an interagency committee, chaired by Barshefsky, that Belarus had not taken sufficient steps to conform to internationally recognized labor rights. In 1999, the value of duty-free imports from Belarus amounted to $26.7 million. "One of the fundamental criteria for GSP eligibility is the evidence that a country is taking steps to provide internationally recognized worker rights," Amb. Barshefsky said. "We have, for some time, been reviewing worker rights issues in Belarus, namely, the freedom of association and the right to organize and bargain collectively. Unfortunately, the Government of Belarus continues to suppress trade union rights and harass union leaders. We therefore recommended that Belarus be suspended from the GSP." In 1997, the AFL-CIO filed a petition with the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to remove Belarus from the GSP list. "As written, the Constitution of Belarus upholds the right of workers to form and join independent unions on a voluntary basis and to carry out actions, including the right to strike, in defense of their rights. These rights, however, are not respected in practice, and independent trade unions are suppressed," Barshefsky said. On July 7, State Department Spokesman Richard Boucher pointed out that the suspension of the GSP benefits does not have to be permanent and the U.S. is prepared to restore those benefits once Belarus makes substantial progress toward ensuring respect for internationally recognized worker rights. In follow-up questions to U.S. officials, ILHR determined that no other country is losing GSP this year due to workers' rights violations, although several African and East European countries are graduating from this status intended for poorer developing countries. (USIA, July 3-7; ILHR July 6)

LUKASHENKO OUTRAGED
"By suspending the GSP benefits for Belarus, the U.S. has deprived our country, the primary victim of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, of about $1 million," Lukashenko told Interfax. "Give that million to Clinton to supplement his pension," he scoffed. (Interfax, July 5-10)

LUKASHENKO OPPOSES EARLY PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS
On July 5, Alexander Lukashenko said that he is against holding an early presidential elections. "From the legal viewpoint, they will be illegitimate because under the current Belarusian Constitution a presidential election must be held next year," Lukashenko told journalists in Vitebsk, where he arrived to open the Slaviansky Bazaar music festival. "I will not let the opposition to destabilize the country," he warned, adding that he fervently believes that opposition leaders will never win the elections. Belaruskaya delovaya gazeta reported on July 14 that Lukashenko had set October 15, 2000, as the date for this year's parliamentary elections. (Interfax, BDG, July 5, 14)

OSCE TROIKA: NO DEMOCRACY IN BELARUS
On July 5, the Foreign Ministers of the OSCE Troika ­ Benita Ferrero-Waldner of Austria, Petre Roman of Romania, and Espen Barth Eide of Norway ­ met in Bucharest to discuss the continuing political crisis in Belarus. Jan Kubis, Secretary General of the OSCE, attended the meeting as well. Other participants included: Helle Degn, President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly; Max van Der Stoel, OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities; Gerard Stoudmann, Director of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights; and Freimut Duve, OSCE Representative on Freedom of Media. The Ministers were concerned that only a few months ahead of the parliamentary elections in Belarus and in spite of the assistance and advice provided by the OSCE AMG and the Parliamentary Troika, the political conditions have not changed. The Ministers emphasized the necessity to take concrete steps toward establishing a more democratic society and ensuring free and fair election. Such step should at least include: a more democratic electoral code to ensure transparency of the electoral process; access of the opposition to the state-run mass media; separation of powers between the legislature, judiciary and executive branch. Participation of the Belarus democratic forces in the elections and the presence of international observers depend on whether the Lukashenko administration is actually willing to take those steps. Urging the Belarusian government to intensify efforts in improving the country's political conditions, the Ministers believed that the limited time available until the election could still be used to achieve certain progress. They have also commended the work of the OSCE AMG in Minsk. (OSCE, July 7)

BELARUSIAN OPPOSITION TAKES PART IN OSCE PA
On July 6-10, a delegation of the 13th Supreme Soviet, headed by its Chair Semyon Sharetski, took part in the ninth session of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly in Bucharest, Nasha Svaboda reported. Adrian Severin, chair of the OSCE PA Ad Hoc Working Group on Belarus, has been elected the new President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly. During the session, Severin presented a Resolution on Belarus, adopted by the Annual Session as part of its Final Declaration. The resolution urges the Belarusian authorities to undertake all necessary measures to have a free and fair parliamentary election this coming fall. It emphasizes the necessity to establish conditions for sending international observers and to ensure participation of Belarus democratic forces in the election, including a more democratic electoral code, access of the opposition to the state-run mass media, and abstaining from political repression before the vote. The resolution calls on the Lukashenko government to respect the freedom of assembly to facilitate the climate of trust in the country, and make use of the limited time available to continue negotiations with the opposition. (Nasha Svaboda, July 11)

BOTH SIDES VISIT GERMANY
On July 5-8, two separate delegations, one representing the Belarusian government and the other from the political opposition, visited Berlin to meet members of the Bundestag, reported Belapan. The official delegation included Anatoly Krasutski, chair of the National Assembly's Commission on Constitutionalism, Sergei Posokhov, who is responsible for public liaison and work with parties, trade unions, and all public associations in the Lukashenko administration, and Pavel Yakubovich, editor-in-chief of Sovetskaya Belarusiya, a state-owned newspaper. The opposition was represented by deputies of the 13th Supreme Soviet: Semyon Sharetski, Mechislav Grib, Stanislav Shushkevich, Gennady Terenya as well as Vintsuk Viachorka, chair of the Belarusian Popular Front Adradzhenne, Yury Belenki, deputy chair of the Conservative Christian Party of the Belarusian Popular Front, Alexander Dobrovolsky, deputy chair of the United Civic Party, and Leonid Lemeshonok, Executive Secretary of the Belarusian Labor Party. The German parliamentarians expressed solidarity with the 13th Supreme Soviet and reaffirmed that it is regarded as the only legitimate parliament in Belarus. They stressed that the legitimacy of Belarusian government institutions can only be restored through political dialogue between the authorities and opposition, which should culminate in democratic elections. The German parliamentarians assured the visitors that they will continue their efforts to resolve the crisis in Belarus and lend its support to the democratic forces in the country. (Belapan, July 10)

CZECH SENATORS CONDEMN LUKASHENKO REGIME
On July 12, the Czech Senate adopted a resolution criticizing violations of human rights in Belarus, reported CTK New Service. The resolution, which was sponsored by Sen. Mikhail Zhantovsky and Sen. Jan Ruml, condemns the persecution of the Lukashenko regime's opponents. Czech Senators expressed deep concern at the disappearance of political opponents in the country, pointing out that the exercise of freedom of expression, assembly, and association is severely restricted and that neither judiciary nor the bar is independent. The authors of the resolution called on the Czech government to place pressure on the Belarusian government to honor its pledge to hold free and fair parliamentary election this year and presidential election in 2001. (CTK, July 12)

MALADY FRONT ACTIVIST CHARGED WITH ANTI-LUKASHENKO GRAFFITI
Viasna Human Rights Center reported on July 5 that Valery Kisel, an activist of the Malady Front from Grodno, was arrested by police on the territory of trolleybus depot No. 5 in Minsk for allegedly painting graffiti "Long Live Belarus!" and "Russians Go Home!" on trolleybuses. The opposition activist was taken to the Partizansky District Department of the Interior and interrogated. He was not released until the afternoon of the following day. (Viasna Human Rights Center, July 9)

OSCE OFFICIAL DENIED MEETING WITH JAILED PROFESSOR
Representatives of the OSCE AMG in Belarus were denied permission to meet Vladimir Revkov, former deputy rector of the Gomel State Medical Institute, who is being held in a local pre-trial jail on bribery charges, reported Nasha Svaboda. The criminal case against Revkov and Professor Yury Bandazhevsky, ex-rector of the Institute, was initiated in July 1999. Although the prosecution has failed to produce any evidence, it claims the two took a total of $200,000 in bribes. Local observers fear that some of the testimony from students and parents may have been forced and that the charges against Bandazhevsky and Revkov are in retaliation for their outspoken criticism of the government's handling of Chernobyl issues. On December 28, 1999, Professor Bandazhevsky was released from a pre-trial detention center on the condition that he not leave the city without permission from the authorities. Despite numerous petitions from the defense for medical examination of Revkov, who remains in detention, the former deputy rector has not receive any medical attention. (Nasha Svaboda, July 5)

ATTACKER OF BPF ACTIVIST FINED
On July 12, the Brest City court heard the case of Ales Pikula, chair of the Baranovichi branch of the BPF Adradzhenne, who on June 20 was attacked by the Belarusian followers of Eduard Limonov, a notorious Russian chauvinist, reported BPF Press service. [See BU, Vol. 3, No. 26] The opposition activist was alone in the office, when he opened the door to three youngsters, who started beating him up. Pikula managed to escape and called his friends from the office of one of the local independent newspapers. Nikolai Savitski, the only one of the three attackers who stood the trial, was fined 2 minimal wages (about $5). He boldly told everyone in the courtroom that by assaulting Pikula he was fulfilling his duty: "to clear up Belarus from BPF activists." (BPF Press service, July 12)

BHC CHAIR TO STAY IN OFFICE UNTIL SEPTEMBER
In the Belarus Update Vol. 3, No. 25, we wrote that the Board of the Belarusian Helsinki Committee, a Minsk-based NGO affiliated with the International Helsinki Federation, has urged its Chair Tatyana Protska to resign, accusing her of having discredited the organization by joining the spurious "national dialogue" initiated by Lukashenko. The Board members said that the BHC should not participate in a dialogue whose only purpose is the legitimization of the regime. Meanwhile, Protska has suspended her service as the chair. The Belarusian State TV reported on June 17, however, that at the June 13' meeting of the BHC Advisory Council, several members of the BHC Board "changed their minds and asked Protska to revoke her resignation notice" until the Assembly, the organization's highest body, scheduled for September 16 takes place. (BBC, June 23)

EXPERTS PROPOSE TO LIFT RESTRICTIONS ON STREET ACTIONS
A group of experts on constitutional rights of assembly, demonstrations, and rallies, which participates in the Lukashenko-initiated dialogue with NGOs, has proposed several recommendations to soften procedures concerning the regulation of street actions, reported the Belarusian Association of Journalists. They suggested shorting the periods required to process applications for protest actions from 15 days to 10 days for demonstrations and street rallies, from 15 to 5 days for assemblies and demonstrations without street rallies, and to 2 days ­ for pickets attended by up to 50 people. The experts also proposed to repeal the decrees issued by Lukashenko that restrict the street demonstrations and rallies. (BAJ, June 6)

BELARUSIAN JOURNALIST HONORED
On July 5, Human Rights Watch announced a diverse group of writers from 22 countries to receive awards in recognition of their courage in the face of political persecution. The program began in 1989 when the estates of American authors Lillian Hellman and Dashiell Hammett asked HRW to design a program for writers who found themselves in distress as a result of expressing their views. Pavel Zhuk, editor-in-chief of Nasha Svaboda, a Belarusian independent newspaper, has become one of the recipients in 2000. He has struggled to provide an independent source of news and analysis in the face of government efforts to silence all alternative views in Belarus. In November 1997, Svaboda, an independent periodical, launched by Zhuk, was shut down by the Lukashenko regime in retaliation for espousing political opposition. Zhuk and his staff continued to produce an Internet version and resumed publishing hard copy in January 1998 under a new name, Naviny. In September 1999, after losing a libel suit to Victor Sheiman, secretary of the Belarusian State Security Council, Naviny was forced to close. Police raided Zhuk's home in an effort to collect an exorbitant fine of 15 billion old Belarusian rubles (about $15,000) (See Belarus Update Vol. 2, No. 39). He again turned to the Internet. In October, 1999, the regime suspended registration of nine new independent publications, including Nasha Svaboda, which had not yet published its first issue but was Zhuk's intended replacement for Naviny. Zhuk's coverage of an anti- government demonstration in mid-October 1999 prompted the regime to order tax inspectors to audit Naviny's advertisers and its printer. The police issued an arrest warrant for Zhuk; he spent several weeks in hiding. International pressure caused the regime to suspend its Zhuk hunt and helped restore registration for Nasha Svaboda, which is publishing five days a week and is posted on the Internet since June 2000. (Human Rights Watch, July 4)

MISSING FORMER BELARUSIAN BANKER FOUND IN UK
Belapan reported on July 4, Leonid Glukhovsky, head of the Investigative Committee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, told the news conference in Minsk that Interpol has officially confirmed that Tamara Vinnikova, former head of the Belarusian National Bank, is in London. Vinnikova, who joined Lukashenko's team as central banker at the end of 1995, was arrested on January 14, 1997, on charges of abuse of power, forgery, and large-scale embezzlement. After being held in a KGB detention center for 10 months, she was released due to illness. She mysteriously vanished while under de facto house arrest on April 8, 1999. Eight months later, she reappeared abroad under equally murky circumstances, denouncing Lukashenko in her interviews. She said, in particular, that her arrest was brought about by her unwillingness to go along with some shady deals that she claims cost the country $300 million. The Belarusian authorities intend to demand her extradition. (Belapan, July 4)

AT HOME IN BELARUS IMF MISSION TO BELARUS URGES SPEEDY REFORMS
An International Monetary Fund monitoring mission urged the Belarusian government to implement further structural reforms. The mission praised a tighter monetary policy pursued by the National Bank since the beginning of the year, but said that the pace of current reform is too slow. The Fund's recommendations for Belarus, however, are in conflict with those of the government. Alexander Lukashenko, a firm advocate of a "socially oriented" economy with strong government supervision, reiterated recently that he had no intention to remove rigid state controls. "We count only on ourselves," Lukashenko announced in a televised address to the nation broadcast on July 2. "The chosen model of a socially oriented market economy, already known as the Belarussian way, makes us confident in tomorrow," the Belarusian leader told his compatriots. The mission discussed no loans during its visit. The Fund froze financing to the country in 1996 and recalled its representative in 1998 to protest against the slow pace of reforms. Liberalization of financial markets, less state intervention in the economy, fewer price controls, a tighter budget policy, and large-scale privatization are the key terms set by the IMF to start loan talks with Belarus. IMF experts said they did not see how Belarus and Russia could possibly pursue a unified financial policy after eventually forming a planned "union state." (Reuters, July 3)

BELARUSIANS FORCED TO LABOR ON FARMS
Belapan reported on July 12 that the authorities of the town of Ivatsevichy, Brest Region, have sent letters to local industrial enterprises and state institutions, demanding that their employees increase participation by 20 percent in the harvest of forage grasses. Those workers who refuse to harvest forage are forced to bail themselves out by paying 5,000 rubles (about $5) into the budget of the collective or state farm that is assigned to their enterprise or organization. (Belapan, July 12)

BELARUS COMES TO GRIPS WITH BURYING GERMAN WAR DEAD
Belarus remains the only country in the world which has not signed an agreement with Germany on military reburials. Although the war ended more than half a century ago, the idea of arranging orderly military cemeteries for German soldiers still finds very few enthusiasts in Belarus. The country, renowned for its massive partisan movement during the 1941-44 German occupation, suffered some of the worst Nazi atrocities and lost every fourth resident [about 2.5 million people] in WW2. Many of the older generation still cry and shudder with horror when recalling the occupation and are impervious to arguments in favor of reconciliation. War historians say Germany lost about two million servicemen in the former Soviet Union, including up to one million in Belarus. In Soviet days, the communist authorities showed scant respect for the German dead, often building apartment blocks, kindergartens, or sports arenas on the sites of German graves. The only German military cemetery which officially exists in Belarus is in the Minsk suburb of Tarasov, where soldiers who died in a Soviet concentration camp for military prisoners were buried after the war. That cemetery, which was officially opened under the aegis of the United Nations during the Gorbachev era, is often desecrated by locals who view the burials as a betrayal of the memory of their countrymen. (Reuters, July 14)

BELARUS ARMY RECRUITS DOGS
The Belarusian military, dogged by a falling number of conscripts willing to fulfil their "patriotic duty" and by flagging morale among its servicemen, appears to have found a novel remedy - it enrolls dogs to do the job, reported Reuters. The exact number of these "soldiers" is confidential. But it is clear that all of them are devoted, never go on AWOL and won't sell a submachine gun for a bottle of vodka. "The army shares the same problems with civilians. But our dogs, in contrast to soldiers, do not have to be ordered twice to fulfil a command," says Colonel Vladimir Katsnelson, head of the Defense Ministry's dog training center. Military officers, who put the number of four-legged soldiers at 800 to 1,000, say that Belarus holds second place in Europe after France for the number of its trained dogs. (Reuters, July 11)

--CALENDAR OF UPCOMING EVENTS--
July 29 - the All-Belarusian Congress to hold its first session on in Minsk
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The 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 59th year, is New York-based human rights NGO in consultative status with the United Nations and ILO.

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 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) 661-0480 or fax (212) 684-1696 or visit our web site at www.ilhr.org

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