US State Department mission, composed of the deputy assistant Secretary of the Department for newly independent states and head of the section for relations with Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine, will pay a working visit to Belarus March 18-20. On their visit`s agenda there are meetings with the democratic opposition, human rights groups and state officials. That would be the first mission of the new US president`s administration to Belarus. It is for certain related to the upcoming presidential elections - the issue which will be brought up at every meeting at the embassy.

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March 18 the State news agency circulated information, under the heading "Chair of the OSCE AMG in Belarus Hans Georg Wieck examined the course of the voting in Borisov and found no fault with them." Seemingly, today the Advisory Monitoring Group will respond with a note of protest, as far as it is not officially in a position to monitor the process, which the authorities named "by-election into the house of representatives."

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The law-enforcers spent three hours checking out the documents and equipment in the office of the "Borisov News" paper and Borisov affiliate of "Vesna" human rights group. The newspaper`s editor believes that the sudden search has been caused by the recently appeared flyers, telling Borisov residents about the continued arbitrariness in the election campaign into the "house of representatives".

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The Minsk City Council forbade holding the Freedom Day rally in the downtown. They moved the march and the final assembly to the Bangalor square site. However, the action initiators declared that they aren`t intended to celebrate the BNR (Belarusian National Republic) 83rd anniversary in the outskirts and the thing will stick to the previously confirmed route. As you remember, the initial gathering of its participants was supposed to take place at the Yubileynaya square at 2p.m. At 2.30 the marchers were to move out toward Romanovskaya Sloboda, along Gorodskoy Val, Skorina prospect, Lenin`s street and Freedom Square, where the final meeting will be held.

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