VZCZCXRO4019
RR RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA
RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHNP RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHSK #0092/01 0781516
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 191516Z MAR 09
FM AMEMBASSY MINSK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0182
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHSK/AMEMBASSY MINSK 0184

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MINSK 000092 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM ECON BO
SUBJECT: BELARUS WEEKLY POL/ECON REPORT - MARCH 20, 2009 
 
MINSK 00000092  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1.  The following are brief items of interest compiled by 
Embassy Minsk. 
 
TABLE OF CONTENTS 
 
Civil Society 
------------- 
 
- Opposition Youth Demonstrate on Solidarity Day (para. 2) 
- Unregistered Union of Poles Member Fined (para. 3) 
- Gomel Belarusian Christian Democrats Fined (para. 4) 
- Vitebsk Belarusian Christian Democrat Briefly Detained (para. 
5) 
- Prosecutors Reject Calls for Investigation into Human Rights 
Advocate's Suicide (para. 6) 
 
Domestic Economy 
---------------- 
 
- January-February Industrial Output Down 2.8 Percent 
Year-on-Year (para. 7) 
- GOB Prohibits Bonuses and Remuneration Payments at Loss-Making 
Businesses (para. 8) 
- Chief of Financial Intelligence: Government Needs to 
Scrutinize Casino Operations Better (para. 9) 
 
Foreign Trade 
------------- 
 
- GOB Cancels Most Export Tariffs (para. 10) 
- Energy Ministry to Rescind Contract with Iranian Equipment 
Supplier (para. 11) 
 
Quote of the Week (para. 12) 
---------------------------- 
 
------------- 
Civil Society 
------------- 
 
¶2.  Opposition Youth Demonstrate on Solidarity Day 
 
Over one hundred opposition youth staged unsanctioned rallies 
March 16 urging to end politically motivated persecution of 
opposition activists and to commemorate the 1999-2000 
disappearances of high profile politicians on the monthly marked 
Solidarity Day.  Malady Front members assembled at the 
parliament building, and Maladaya Belarus and Belarusian Popular 
Front youth group activists protested in downtown Minsk.  Police 
closely observed and filmed rallies but did not interfere.  No 
detentions were reported.  In a separate incident in Soligorsk 
on March 16, police dispersed a demonstration but did not arrest 
any protesters. 
 
¶3.  Unregistered Union of Poles Member Fined 
 
On March 17, a Grodno district court fined Polish Gazeta 
Wyborcza correspondent and unregistered Belarusian NGO Union of 
Poles activist Andrzej Poczobut $180 for participating in an 
unauthorized demonstration on January 17, 2009.  A large group 
of Union members assembled outside of a building where the 
official Union held its meeting and were banned from attending 
it.  Poczobut called the rally "spontaneous" and noted that a 
number of his associates might be facing same administrative 
charges. 
 
¶4.  Gomel Belarusian Christian Democrats Fined 
 
A Gomel district court notified March 14 Belarusian Christian 
Democracy party (BCDP) members Yevgeniy Yakovenko and Dmitriy 
Kutasov that they were fined in absentia $245 and $370 
accordingly March 4.  The court charged the activists with 
participating in an unauthorized demonstration to mark the 
International Mother Language Day February 21. 
 
¶5.  Vitebsk Belarusian Christian Democrat Briefly Detained 
 
Police detained March 15 for two hours BCDP activist Konstantin 
Ivanov over distributing flyers to mark the Day of Constitution 
in downtown Vitebsk.  The flyers featured extracts from the 
Constitution that guarantee Belarusians their right to obtain 
truthful information, assemble freely to express their political 
beliefs and outlined GOB's infringements of fundamental freedoms 
in Belarus.  Police released Ivanov without charge, and he 
appealed his "illegal detention" to court. 
 
¶6.  Prosecutors Reject Calls for Investigation into Human Rights 
Advocate's Suicide 
 
On March 17, Soligorsk prosecutors denied opening a criminal 
investigation into local human rights advocate Yana Polyakova's 
March 7 suicide, citing lack of evidence.  Polyakova's 
associates will appeal the denial to the court over prosecutors 
 
MINSK 00000092  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
violating investigative regulations.  Polyakova's mother had not 
been reportedly questioned over the incident.  Fellow activists 
had been concerned about her emotional state: the human rights 
advocate committed suicide after a court sentenced her March 3 
to two and one-half years of partial house arrest for filing a 
false report against a police officer. 
 
---------------- 
Domestic Economy 
---------------- 
 
¶7.  January-February Industrial Output Down 2.8% Year-on-Year 
 
According to the data posted by the National Statistics 
Committee March 16, the country's industrial production in 
January-February dropped 2.3% year-on-year to the equivalent of 
$6.2 billion.  The largest fall of 20% was at machine-building 
and metalworking factories.  Chemical enterprises, however, even 
increased their aggregate production by 27.6%.  Nevertheless, 
more than 30% of all industrial businesses in the country 
reported losses in January and February, while a year ago the 
number was only 20%. 
 
¶8.  GOB Prohibits Bonuses and Remuneration Payments at 
Loss-Making Businesses 
 
According to press reports, the GOB issued Resolution 288 March 
6 to prohibit payments of bonuses and remunerations at 
loss-making businesses regardless of ownership.  In addition, 
top managers will not be eligible for any premium payments if 
their businesses have arrears in salary payments to workers. 
The resolution also increased the multiplier of managers' 
salaries.  From now on, their average salary can be up to five 
and more times higher (previously four times) than the average 
salary paid in companies, which they head. 
 
¶9.  Chief of Financial Intelligence: Government Needs to 
Scrutinize Casino Operations Better 
 
Valeriy Yaroshevskiy, Director of the Department of Financial 
Monitoring (Financial Intelligence) of the State Control 
Committee, told the journalists March 17 that the GOB plans more 
rigorous inspections of casino operations as it has reasons to 
believe that casinos are involved in money laundering.  He gave 
an example of an individual who was routinely winning $35,000 
day in and day out but law enforcement officers accounted for no 
law violations. 
 
------------- 
Foreign Trade 
------------- 
 
¶10.  GOB Cancels Most Export Tariffs 
 
According to media reports, President Lukashenka signed Edict 
135 March 17 to cancel almost all tariffs on exported Belarusian 
products.  The GOB left export tariffs on oil and oil products 
intact as Belarus has a corresponding agreement with Russia.  An 
anonymous source in the government told Prime-TASS news agency 
that the country's central budget did not benefit much from 
export tariffs and it was an extra burden on major exporters 
too.  The move is expected to help boost exports, which fell 50% 
on the year in January. 
 
¶11.  Energy Ministry to Rescind Contract with Iranian Equipment 
Supplier 
 
According to the media, the Energy Ministry approached the GOB 
March 13 with a request to help rescind a contract with Iran's 
Marvestan Group signed in July 2008 over the company's failure 
to supply the necessary equipment for the construction of an 
$8.6 million 17 MW hydropower station in the Grodno region.  The 
final decision on the contract has to be made by Lukashenka.  In 
the meantime, the Energy Ministry is looking for new and more 
reliable suppliers. 
 
----------------- 
Quote of the Week 
----------------- 
 
¶12.  During his working visit to Vitebsk region Lukashenka said: 
"We know what actions these people (opposition) require from 
European and American officials -- cause a terrible damage to 
our state~  This is the position of our lousy opposition 
[pozitsiya vshivoy oppozitsii].  Let me stress again -- they are 
lousy.  They are not an opposition.  They are enemies of the 
Belarusian people and I state that with responsibility because I 
know what they say and what they want.  They are ready to be 
sold to anybody in order to twist Lukashenka's neck, take his 
chair and destabilize the situation in the country.  They are 
not going to do it as long as I live. " 
MOORE