BELARUS WEEKLY POL/ECON REPORT - June 20, 2008

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 VILNIUS 000486 AMEMBASSY MINSK SENDS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM ECON ENRG BO SUBJECT: BELARUS WEEKLY POL/ECON REPORT - June 20, 2008 ¶1. The following are brief items of interest compiled by Embassy Minsk. TABLE OF CONTENTS Civil Society -------------- - Slonim Civil Society Activist Fined (para. 2) - Opposition Leader Warned Over Inquiry (para. 3) - Police Raid Opposition Activist's Residence (para. 4) - Autocephalous Priest Fined For Unveiling Cross (para. 5) - Independent Newspaper Warned Over Incorrect Address (para. 6) - Belarusian Popular Front Expels Deputy Chair (para. 7) Domestic Economy -------------- - Reserves Rise by IMF and Domestic Standards (para. 8) - Average Monthly Salary USD 393 In April 2008 (para. 9) - Highest Subsidies Channeled to Agricultural Sector (para. 10) International Trade -------------- - Russia Remains Belarus' Largest Trade Partner (para. 11) Quote of the Week (para. 12) -------------- -------------- Civil Society -------------- ¶2. Slonim Civil Society Activist Fined On June 17, a Slonim regional court fined civil society activist Ales Masyuk 700,000 rubles (USD 330). Masyuk was charged with organizing an unsanctioned public meeting in Slonim for opposition leader Aleksandr Milinkevich on April 18. Charges reportedly stemmed from an anonymous letter questioning the authorization of the meeting. ¶3. Opposition Leader Warned Over Inquiry The Prosecutor General's Office warned United Civic Party Leader Anatoly Lebedko on June 17 for making "false accusations" against the GOB and informed him of possible criminal liability. The warning was based on a letter Lebedko sent to prosecutors calling for an investigation of whether the GOB was involved in arms sales to Colombian rebels, as alleged in recent media reports. ¶4. Police Raid Opposition Activist's Residence Police officers searched the residence of opposition activist Tatyana Vanina in Dzerzhinsk on June 16. Vanina said the officers presented a search warrant dated May 19, which claimed the activist illegally produced printed materials. Police confiscated some outdated analytical bulletins and copies of the USG's 2000 HUMAN Rights Report. ¶5. Autocephalous Priest Fined For Unveiling Cross On June 17, a Starye Dorogi town court fined a priest of the unregistered Autocephalous Church, Leonid Akalovich, 1,050,000 rubles (USD 495). Akalovich consecrated a wooden cross during an April 19 ceremony to commemorate village residents assassinated by Soviet partisans during World War II. The priest dismissed all charges as "illegal" saying he was "only fulfilling his Christian mission." ¶6. Independent Newspaper Warned Over Incorrect Address The Information Ministry issued a warning on June 18 to the Vitebsk-based independent newspaper Vitebskiy Kuryer M. Allegedly, the newspaper violated the law on media by misstating the paper's address and failing to report a change of address to the Ministry. Representatives from the paper plan to appeal the warning and resubmit to the Ministry the newspaper's founding documents including the relevant address changes. ¶7. Belarusian Popular Front Expels Deputy Chair The COUNCIL of the Belarusian Popular Front (BPF) voted to expel Deputy Chairman Ales Mikhalevich at a meeting on June 14. BPF Chair Lyevon Borshchevskiy stated that Mikhalevich did not follow the BPF's policies and insulted party leaders in an interview. Mikhalevich made no comments about his expulsion. -------------- VILNIUS 00000486 002 OF 002 Domestic Economy -------------- ¶8. Reserves Rise by IMF and Domestic Standards National Bank officials told Prime-Tass news service on June 16 that the country's gold, gem and hard currency reserves had risen according to both International Monetary Fund and domestic assessments. As of June 1, reserves rose by 6.7 percent to USD 4.5 billion by IMF standards and 7.2 percent to USD 5.4 billion by domestic standards. The National Bank said it plans to secure USD 10 billion in reserves by January 1, 2011 but did not indicate which standard it will use for the assessments. ¶9. Average Monthly Salary USD 393 in April 2008 According to the Statistics Ministry, the average Belarusian monthly salary in April 2008 was 836,000 Belarusian rubles (USD 393),an increase of 3.6 percent on the month. Earlier this month, Lukashenko instructed the GOB to increase the average salary to USD 1000 by the end of 2010. ¶10. Highest Subsidies Channeled to Agricultural Sector According to the Presidential Press Service, on June 13, President Lukashenko signed edict 333, which strongly recommends Belarus' six largest banks issue the equivalent of USD 1.1 billion in loans to the country's food processing companies. Government-guaranteed loans for one year will be used to pay farms for crops harvested in ¶2008. All banks, including the majority privately-owned banks on the list, are obliged to comply, effectively subsidizing the economy's most inefficient sector - agriculture. -------------- International Trade -------------- ¶11. Russia Remains Belarus' Largest Trade Partner The Statistics Ministry reported on June 16 that from January to April 2008, Belarus' largest trading partner was Russia, which comprised 49.2 percent of all external trade. Belarusian exports to Russia totaled 32.8 percent of total exports, while imports from Russia were 63.9 percent of all imports. Belarus' other top trade partners include the Netherlands (9.6 percent),Ukraine (7.1 percent),Germany (4.7 percent),Poland (3.5 percent),UK (2.9 percent),Latvia (2.6 percent),China (2 percent),Brazil and Lithuania (1.4 percent each). Exports to the U.S. decreased by 45.1 percent to USD 84.5 million, while imports dropped by 13.2 percent to USD 111.2 million. -------------- Quote of the Week -------------- ¶12. Speaking June 19 to university students at a ground-breaking ceremony for a Student Village in Minsk that will accommodate thousands of students, referring to the cancellation of benefits for students last December, Lukashenko said: "Do you remember when we talked about streamlining benefits for students, you asked me where the money would go? The money will not go anywhere. For example, here we will spend 700 billion rubles (USD 328 billion). Savage Cloud