EMBASSY MINSK WEEKLY POL/ECON REPORT - September 21, 2007

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 MINSK 000809 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM ECON ENRG BO SUBJECT: EMBASSY MINSK WEEKLY POL/ECON REPORT - September 21, 2007 ¶1. The following are brief items of interest compiled by Embassy Minsk. TABLE OF CONTENTS International Relations -------------- - Syria to Open Embassy in Minsk, Expand Ties (para. 2) Civil Society -------------- - Opposition Youth Arrested, Fined, and Expelled (para. 3) - Opposition Warned Over Internet Statements (para. 4) - Activist in Rechitsa Sentenced (para. 5) - Youth Activist Arrested on Hooliganism Charges (para. 6) - Police Search Opposition Activists' Apartments (para. 7) - MPs Will Not Discuss Social Benefits Cuts (para. 8) - UCP Activist Jailed (para. 9) Domestic Economy -------------- - IKEA Considers Production in Belarus (para. 10) International Trade -------------- - Belarus Signs Coal Processing Agreement (para. 11) - Belarus' Foreign Debt up 15.9 Percent (para. 12) - Belarus' Electricity Imports Down 1.1 percent (para. 13) - Quote of the Week (para. 14) -------------- International Relations -------------- ¶2. Syria to Open Embassy in Minsk, Expand Ties According to press reports, Syrian Ambassador to Belarus Farouk Taha will open an embassy in Minsk next month and will focus on developing economic collaboration and deepening political ties. Syria's imports from Belarus increased 66 percent on the year in January-July to USD 27.4 million while exports rose five times to USD 1.8 million. -------------- Civil Society -------------- ¶3. Opposition Youth Arrested, Fined, and Expelled A Gomel district court sentenced Belarusian Popular Front (BPF) youth activist Dmitry Zheleznichenko to eight days of administrative arrest and fined him 620,000 rubles (USD 290) on September 18. Zheleznichenko was charged with using profanity in public and initially detained on September 17 on suspicion of rape. The activist, a third-year student at Gomel University, was also notified of his expulsion on the grounds of "systematic violations of the university's internal regime." Zheleznichenko said he was expelled for political reasons and sent a complaint to the Education Minister to appeal the decision. ¶4. Opposition Warned Over Internet Statements The Prosecutor General's office issued a verbal warning to United Civic Party (UCP) Leader Anatoly Lebedko on September 18, after summoning him to provide explanation of comments he posted on the internet on the suspension of the opposition Communist Party. The leader called the suspension politically motivated and illegal. Lebedko said he did not blame the judge for the unjust suspension decision, insisting that the Belarusian judicial system is not independent from the regime. ¶5. Activist in Rechitsa Sentenced A Rechitsa District Court sentenced United Civic Party (UCP) member Leonid Nevar to six days in jail on September 19 on petty hooliganism charges. The judge found Nevar guilty of using profanity towards a Rechitsa ideology officer and of violating public order. The trial was held behind closed doors, and the judge refused to allow Nevar's family in the courtroom. Nevar's wife alleged that authorities sought to isolate Nevar during the annual national harvest festival to be held in Rechitsa on September 21-23. ¶6. Youth Activist Arrested on Hooliganism Charges MINSK 00000809 002 OF 003 A Gomel District Judge sentenced opposition youth Andrey Tenyuta to ten days in jail on September 18 on minor hooliganism charges. The police detained Tenyuta on September 14 when he was passing out opposition leaflets on his university campus. The school's vice-rector apprehended Tenyuta, and testified at the trial, claiming the activist called him "a bandit" and pushed him. Tenyuta was held at a detention center for three days before the trial. ¶7. Police Search Opposition Activists' Apartments Police officers searched apartments of 17-year-old opposition youth Arseniy Yegorchenko in Svetlogorsk on the night of September 16 and of opposition youth Kirill Otomonchuk in Zhlobin on September 18. According to Yegorchenko, the police produced a warrant and, despite his claims that his parents were away and the search was thus illegal, entered his apartment and conduced a three-hour search. Otomonchuk stated that officers searched his apartment for two hours. His father and he were later summoned to the KGB office for questioning and released without charges. In both cases, the police seized the activists' computers and other equipment, books and issues of unregistered opposition group bulletins. ¶8. MPs Will Not Discuss Social Benefits Cuts United Civic Party (UCP) Leader Anatoly Lebedko informed the media on September 19 that the lower chamber of Parliament refused to overtly discuss the bill reinforcing procedures for cutting social benefits. The refusal came in response to United Democratic Forces' (UDF) proposal for debate. In addition, Belarus State TV Company Head Aleksandr Zimovsky turned down the idea of holding public live debate. Lebedko maintained that the UDF would continue to seek dialogue with the government on issues of public interest and the current program of social and other reforms. ¶9. UCP Activist Jailed A Minsk district court on September 17 sentenced United Civic Party (UCP) member Sergey Klyuyev to 10 days in jail. Police detained Klyuyev on September 14 and seized his European March stickers. Although Klyuyev fell ill with a fever at the trial, the judge denied calls for an ambulance. The activist is serving his sentence at a detention center in Minsk, where he reportedly received medical assistance. -------------- Domestic Economy -------------- ¶10. IKEA Considers Production in Belarus IKEA is holding talks with the Belarusian Economic Ministry on establishing a USD 25 million furniture production facility in Belarus. The company hopes to first receive a logging concession in the Grodno region, then establish timber processing, and finally set up furniture production. -------------- International Trade -------------- ¶11. Belarus Signs Coal Processing Agreement Belarus' mine research institute Belgorkhimprom and Luxembourg-based Polar Stars Group S.A. on September 18 signed investment contracts to process brown and slate coal deposits in the Gomel region, estimated at a total of 1.5 billion tons. The Polar Stars Group was established in 2006 and invests in the development of oil, gas and mineral resources, mainly in Russia. The value of the signed contracts was not disclosed. ¶12. Belarus' Foreign Debt up 15.9 Percent Belarus' Statistics Ministry reported on September 17 that the national economy's debt rose 15.9 percent for April-June to USD 9.2 billion. In the first six months of the year foreign direct investment rose 49.5 percent, commercial banks' foreign liabilities increased by 63.1 percent and the debt of other sectors of economy was up 26.9 percent. In 2006, foreign debt increased 33 percent to USD 6.8 billion. ¶13. Belarus' Electricity Imports Down 1.1 percent The Belarus Statistics Ministry announced on September 18 that although the volume of the country's electricity imports was down 1.1 percent on the year for January-July, the net value of imports rose 26 percent. Approximately 70 percent of all imports came from the CIS. Volume rose 29 percent from Russia, and 49 percent from non-CIS countries, and shrank 49 percent from Ukraine. -------------- MINSK 00000809 003 OF 003 ¶14. Quote of the Week -------------- Chairman of the Constitutional Court Grigoriy Vasklevich on the Russian-versus-Belarusian language divide and the supposed near-absence of discrimination in Belarus: "The Constitution of the Republic of Belarus forbids discrimination on the basis of religion, sex, race, or language. Except for the language issue, everything is going well. No complaints are being received." Stewart