BELARUSIAN BLOGGERS AND OFFICIALS COMMENT ON U.S. VISA BAN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MINSK 000729

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E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM SOCI BO
SUBJECT: BELARUSIAN BLOGGERS AND OFFICIALS COMMENT ON U.S. VISA BAN
EXPANSION


Introduction and Summary
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1. (U) On August 3, the USG expanded the list of Belarusians
subject to special visa review procedures under Presidential
Proclamation 8015. The previous list, which cannot be made public
due to the Privacy Act, contained only those individuals directly
linked to human rights abuses. The new expanded list includes
entire classes of senior government officials, senior management of
state-owned enterprises and their spouses. The Embassy announced
the expansion of the list on August 7.


2. (SBU) The GOB called the expanded travel ban list "unreasonable"
and threatened "to take relevant reciprocal steps". Though
officials individually dismissed the sanctions, their reaction
showed aggravation, and the issue also raised heated debate in the
internet community. Some bloggers welcomed and strongly supported
U.S. measures against the regime, while others deemed them
unproductive and unfeasible, citing the consolidation and unity of
the regime. The majority of the internet community predicting the
GOB would not take strong measures in response to U.S. sanctions, as
any such move could hurt Belarus' economic interests. End
introduction and summary.

Officials Disturbed By Travel Restrictions Reinforcement
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3. (U) On August 8, Chairwoman of the Central Election Commission
(CEC) Lidiya Yermoshina called the U.S. travel restrictions a
violation of international laws and a "Stalinist law" citing
repression against family members of "enemies of the people". Her
colleague, Secretary of the CEC Nikolay Lozovik, referred to
restrictions as "profanity" and suggested that "banning state
enterprises' general managers will not contribute to promotion of
American goods in the Belarusian market". He also ironically noted
that restrictions contradict general U.S. statements to establish
world democracy, and added "soon no one in Belarus will be allowed
entry" into the United States. Chief Judge of the Brest Oblast
Tamara Suchok opined that the travel ban is "groundless",
politically motivated, and has resemblance to fascism. Suchok felt
that she was included unfairly as she saw "no guilt" or wrongdoing
in announcing indicting verdicts in political cases.

Bloggers Encourage Further Travel Ban Expansion
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4. (U) Popular Belarusian internet news portal TUT.by welcomed
comments on travel restrictions from its readers. The majority of
forum participants endorsed U.S. sanctions and urged a further
expansion of the list, often offering assistance with names and
titles. The bloggers concurred that banning spouses would yield
tangible repercussions, and officials would face repression similar
to what democratic activists have to confront in Belarus. Readers
also urged European countries, e.g. Croatia, Montenegro, Turkey, and
other tourist destinations popular with officials, to adopt the same
list. TUT.by visitors referred to the GOB officials as
"time-servers", who receive rewards and privileges for completing
any orders from the regime. At the same time, bloggers called for
easing U.S. visa procedures common Belarusians.

Bloggers Express Skepticism over Travel Restrictions
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5. (U) A group of bloggers argued that further travel restrictions
would not be successful as the U.S. policies in Belarus had not been
consistent, and some high-ranking officials received U.S. visas in
the past. Bloggers insisted it was not the U.S. banning officials
from their territory, but President Lukashenko, referred to as
"Fuehrer," rigorously limiting and closely monitoring their travel
to the West. They also emphasized it could be technically
complicated for the U.S. Embassy Minsk "to match faces and names
with titles and ranks" on the ban list. Some ironically noted an
official having a "close relationship" with an opposition activist
could use it as a pretext for claiming to be democratically
oriented. Others scornfully proposed allowing entrance only to
U.S.-backed presidential hopefuls or those who voted for democratic
candidates and are able to present a copy of the bulletin as a
proof. In general, this group of bloggers maintained that human
rights deteriorated further since President Bush signed the first
act envisaging a travel ban in 2004.


MINSK 00000729 002 OF 002


Comment
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6. (SBU) The extended travel ban list clearly incensed GOB
officials, and some overtly expressed indignation. The internet
community debated the latest U.S. sanctions against the regime and
followed official statements arguing that the local nomenclature
seems to be "sterilized" rather than "consolidated" due to the fear
of tight control and repressions. Some independent experts
concurred that travel restrictions will not develop into a critical
blow at the regime, but have become yet another sign of increased
pressure from the United States and EU on the regime to initiate
democratic and reforms in Belarus.

MOORE