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RR RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA
RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHNP RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSL RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHSK #0287/01 2331616
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 211616Z AUG 09
FM AMEMBASSY MINSK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0434
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHSK/AMEMBASSY MINSK 0441

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 MINSK 000287 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM ECON BO
SUBJECT: BELARUS WEEKLY POL/ECON REPORT - AUGUST 21, 2009 
 
MINSK 00000287  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
¶1.  The following are brief items of interest compiled by 
Embassy Minsk. 
 
TABLE OF CONTENTS 
 
Civil Society 
------------- 
 
- Yuri Leonov Attributes His Release to High Attention of Media 
and Foreign Embassies (para. 2) 
- "For Freedom" Activist in Gomel Fined For White-Red-White, EU 
Flags and a Banner  (para. 3) 
- Case 14 Participant Ales Streltsov Seeking Amnesty (para. 4) 
- "For Freedom" Coordinator Fined $493 for Watching Flash Mob in 
Central Brest (para. 5) 
- Malady Front Activists Fined for Anti-Corruption Protest 
(para. 6) 
- BPF Activists Dismissed or Fined over Celebration of Banned 
Independence Day (para. 7) 
- First Positives for H1N1 Flu Virus Accounted for in Belarus 
(para. 8) 
 
Domestic Economy 
---------------- 
 
- IMF Mission Comes to Minsk for SBA Review and Consultations 
(para. 9) 
- Belarusian-Venezuelan Oil Extracting JV Given Three More Oil 
Fields in Venezuela (para. 10) 
- World Bank to Issue Loan for the Construction of Waste 
Recycling Factory in Grodno  (para. 11) 
- Lukashenka Amends His Edict on Ecological Tax  (para. 12) 
- Through-July Production of Mineral Fertilizers Down 51.7 
Percent (para. 13) 
- Belarus Posts 8.8 Percent On-The-Year Increase in Agricultural 
Production (para. 14) 
 
Quote of the Week (para. 15) 
--------------------------- 
 
------------- 
Civil Society 
------------- 
 
¶2.  Yuri Leonov Attributes His Release to High Attention of 
Media and Foreign Embassies 
 
Yury Leonov, one of the three Volkovysk activists arrested in 
February 2009, commented August 19 on his release from a 
pre-trial detention center.  He attributed his release to the 
"practical completion" of the investigation into his case.   He 
also linked his release to the high level of attention paid to 
his case by the media, along with EU and U.S. embassies.  Leonov 
dismissed all accusations against him, Nikolai Avtukhovich and 
Vlarimir Osipenko as absurd and groundless but did not elaborate 
as he had signed a non-disclosure agreement.  He faulted the 
Belarusian Court system and law enforcement agencies for failure 
to abide by the provisions of international law, lack of 
independence and disregard for citizens' rights.  He urged 
Belarusian entrepreneurs  to speak up, unite and fight for their 
rights.  Raisa Mikhailovskaya, Head of the Human Rights Center, 
informed that Belarusian Human Rights defenders plan to appeal 
to the world leaders to hold an independent international 
investigation into this criminal case as they view the three 
activists "prisoners of conscience". 
 
¶3. "For Freedom" Activist in Gomel Fined For White-Red-White, EU 
Flags and a Banner 
 
According to media reports, "For Freedom" activist Zinaida 
Shumilina was fined August 18 by the Administrative Commission 
of Sovetsky district in Gomel the equivalent of $62 for 
attaching Belarus' historic white-red-white and EU flags, as 
well as a "Hunger Protest" banner to her private house in Gomel. 
 The flags and the banner were on display in June when she was 
showing solidarity with Vladimir Katsora and other opposition 
activists in Gomel who were on a hunger-strike to protest fines 
and a sentence imposed for an action in commemoration of the 
disappearance of former Interior Minister Yuri Zakharenko. 
 
¶4. Case 14 Participant Ales Streltsov Seeking Amnesty 
 
According to media reports, Case 14 participant Ales Streltsov, 
who was not granted amnesty under the law passed on May 5, 2009, 
was sentenced to correctional labor in June 2009 as a softer 
substitute for his house arrest, to which he was sentenced in 
April 2008.  Seeking to be included in the amnesty, he appealed 
the mitigation of his original sentence to the Minsk City Court 
but was denied in July 2009.  Post contacted Mr. Streltsov on 
August 20 to check on the status of his case.  He clarified that 
he forwarded an appeal to the Supreme Court on August 13. 
 
¶5. "For Freedom" Coordinator Fined $493 for Watching a Flash Mob 
 
MINSK 00000287  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
in Central Brest 
 
Belapan carries a report of "For Freedom" Coordinator Denis 
Turchenyak being fined $493 on August 17.  Denis saw Malady 
Front activist Mikhail Ilyin being arrested by plain-clothed 
officers as the two activists were watching a flash mob staged 
by democratic youth in central Brest.  Denis followed the 
officers and Mikhail, was arrested too and was later charged 
with defying police requirements.  He was released later during 
the day, while Mikhail spent the night in the police office and 
will be tried on August 25. 
 
¶6. Malady Front Activists Fined for Anti-Corruption Protest 
 
According to media reports, the court in the city of Baranovichi 
fined Malady Front activists Pyotr Ruzov ($86), Yuri Bogdanovich 
($61), Semyon Bylinsky and Artyom Lastovetsky ($49 each) for an 
anti-corruption picket in front of the city government building. 
 They applied for formal permission to picket the building well 
in advance but were not allowed to protest near the government 
building.  The young people spent the night in a temporary 
detention center before the trial on the next day. 
 
¶7. BPF Activists Dismissed or Fined over Celebration of Banned 
Independence Day 
 
According to the press service of the Party of the Belarusian 
Popular Front (BPF), activist of the "BPF Youth" group, Sergei 
Zvyozdochkin, was dismissed from work and the  leader of the 
group, Aleksanr Kuznetsov, is facing a threat of dismissal over 
their participation July 27 in an informal celebration in the 
city of Gorodok (Vitebsk region) of Independence Day, which was 
banned  following Lukashenka's controversial 1996 referendum. 
The two youth and the head of the Party office in Gorodok, 
Leonid Avtukhov, came to the central square of the city with 
Belarus' historic white-red-white flags and were chanting "Long 
live Belarus."  The city court found Mr. Avtukhov guilty of 
organizing the unauthorized celebration and fined him $491. 
 
¶8. First Cases Tests Positive for H1N1 Flu Virus in Belarus 
 
According to information aired by the Health Ministry press 
service on August 19, the first positive case of H1N1 Flu Virus, 
a citizen of China, was accounted for in Belarus on the same 
day.  Interestingly, a few hours earlier Deputy Health Minister 
Valentina Kachan told reporters that no other people have tested 
positive for the virus in the country so far.  The citizen of 
China came to Belarus on August 10, started feeling bad two days 
later and tested positive on August 19.  Meanwhile, Russia's 
Chief Medical Sanitation Officer Gennadiy Onishchenko opined on 
August 13 that Belarus must have instances of swine flu because 
the country is located in the center of Europe. 
 
Additionally, three Belarusian children, who have returned from 
a respite program in Great Britain, tested positive for the H1N1 
flu virus. They have received adequate treatment in their native 
city of Osipovichi (Mogilev region) and their condition is 
satisfactory. Belarus Health Ministry issued an order requiring 
that all Belarusian children (more than 13 thousand) returning 
in August from their respite programs in the UK, Italy, Ireland, 
Spain, Germany, Belgium and Austria will be quarantined for one 
week.  The Head of the Health Ministry Hygiene, Epidemiology and 
Sickness Prevention Department, Yuri Fyodorov, told a news 
service that Belarus possesses all necessary medicines for virus 
treatment and the sick children were hospitalized not because 
their health condition was serious, but to comply with WHO 
recommendations and to avoid spreading the virus. 
 
---------------- 
Domestic Economy 
---------------- 
 
¶9.  IMF Mission Comes to Minsk for SBA Review and Consultations 
 
According to the IMF Resident Representative in Belarus, 
Nataliya Kolyadina, the IMF mission led by the IMF Mission Chief 
to Belarus, Chris Jarvis, came to Minsk on August 18 and will 
stay until September 2 to conduct the second review of Belarus' 
compliance with the IMF's $3.52 billion Stand-By Arrangement 
(SBA.)  The GOB is seeking to receive two more tranches under 
the SBA totaling $1.35 billion before the end of the year.  In 
addition, the mission will hold consultations with the GOB, the 
National Bank and the Presidential Administration on Belarus' 
economic development over the last year and its prospects in the 
years to come.  The Director of the IMF's European Department, 
Marek Belka, is expected to join the mission for his August 
24-26 meetings with Belarus' senior officials. 
 
¶10. Belarusian-Venezuelan Oil Extracting JV Given Three More Oil 
Fields in Venezuela 
 
According to media reports, members of the Belarusian-Venezuelan 
high-level commission co-chaired by Lukashenka's aide Viktor 
 
MINSK 00000287  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
Sheiman and Venezuela's Vice President Ramon Karrisales have 
agreed at their meeting in Minsk August 17 that the 
Belarusian-Venezuelan oil extracting JV will be given three more 
oil fields in Venezuela.  Thus, the JV is expected to double its 
oil extraction in Venezuela next year bringing it to one million 
barrels.  The Commission members have also agreed on a joint 
development of natural gas fields and cooperation in metallurgy. 
 According to Viktor Sheiman, cooperation plans also include 
establishing Belarusian wheel tractor and truck assemblies in 
Venezuela, as well as "hundreds of millions of USD" Venezuelan 
investments in Belarus. 
 
¶11. World Bank to Issue Loan for the Construction of Waste 
Recycling Factory in Grodno 
 
Prime-TASS news agency quotes the Head of the Municipal Services 
Department of the Grodno city government Nikolai Rusakevich as 
saying during public hearings in Grodno on August 19 that the 
World Bank will issue $41 million loan for the construction of 
the first part of the solid household waste recycling factory 
outside the city of Grodno.  The loan, which will be paid for 
from the local and central budgets, is expected to help reduce 
the number of waste landfills in Grodno region.  Ultimately, the 
factory, when the second part is commissioned, will produce 
biogas, which will be burned to produce electricity.  However, 
the second part of the factory is not ready yet. 
 
¶12. Lukashenka Amends His Edict on Ecological Tax 
 
According to the presidential press service, Lukashenka signed 
decree 421 on August 14 to amend his own decree signed in May 
2007 on ecological tax.  The amendments include an exemption 
from the ecological tax for businesses whose non-hazardous waste 
during the year does not exceed 50 tons.  In addition, the tax 
will not be levied on products destroyed over the loss of their 
consumer qualities as well as the waste generated in the 
production of liquor, beer and soft drinks.  The tax will start 
to be levied on products that contain 50 and more percent of 
volatile substances.  The press service noted that the edict is 
a part of a consistent plan implemented by the GOB to liberalize 
the economy. 
 
¶13. Through-July Production of Mineral Fertilizers Down 51.7 
Percent 
 
According to data posted by the National Statistics Committee on 
August 15, production of mineral fertilizers plummeted on the 
year through July by 51.7 percent.  The fall in the production 
of Belarus' major export item, potassium fertilizers, was the 
deepest at 58.9 percent.   Production of nitrogen and phosphate 
fertilizers were down 5.6 percent and up 7.2 percent 
respectively. 
 
¶14. Belarus Posts 8.8 Percent On-The-Year Increase in 
Agricultural Produce 
 
A source in the National Statistic Committee told Prime-TASS 
news agency on August 17 that the country's through-July 
agricultural production increased on the year by 8.8 percent and 
totaled the equivalent of $4.2 billion. 
 
----------------- 
Quote of the Week 
----------------- 
 
¶15.  During his working visit to Vitebsk region on August 20 
Lukashenka commented on his policy towards the EU: 
 
"The agenda is there. I do not want to list positive things that 
we started to have with the EU, something that we have already 
done.  I thanked them more than once for the support provided to 
us by the IMF and certain countries.  I just want to say about 
one problem,  shall I say, warn Europeans: if they believe that 
they will keep making conditions counting that Lukashenka has no 
way out (that's what Russia thought some time ago) as his 
relations with Russia are bad~  We have good relations with 
Russia. We have excellent relations with Russia.  I am just 
making a reservation: we have problems in our mutual relations. 
That is true.  But someone who does nothing has no problems. 
Because we do something, we do have unresolved issues.  If 
someone in the West believes that our relations with Russia got 
spoiled and Lukashenka can be forced to release all criminals 
from prisons and change the law tomorrow, they are all wrong." 
MILLER