Pop-singer Alexander Solodukha was quoted as saying that he will not agitate for Lukashenko like the rest of his colleagues: "I`m making conclusions. I can speak aloud many things without fear, some of it I will not say because of my upbringing. But when the majority starts complaining about their lifestyle and the ongoing events in the country, I tell them: look, if you don`t like the state leader elect another instead, you have a chance. Every one of us can affect his own destiny and that of his country. One`s inability to do it testifies to his weakness," - told Solodukha in his interview to radio "Svaboda".

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Draft law "on exterior intelligence" was passed on April 19 by the Interparliamentary assembly of CIS states at its 17^th plenary session in St.Petersburg. According to the member of the Permanent Commission for security of the assembly Valentin Vorotnikov, the security services of CIS states were developed on a single basis - USSR experience.

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In the first quarter of this year 24 Brest enterprises failed to fulfill their plan as to the volume of the industrial production. 15 businesses performed worse than during the analogous period last year. Storehouses are overfilled with commodity. The size of the total loss in the first quarter reached 275,6mln. rubles. Companies` indebtedness for energy supplies rose by 2,3%.

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The Administration reports that Alexander Lukashenko "warmly welcomed and whole-heartedly praised" the initiatives of a few workers` groups (or rather their leaders), which nominated Lukashenko as a delegate to the second All-Belarusian people`s assembly on behalf of the Pervomaisky district of Minsk.

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Ural metallurgic companies agreed with the leaders of Belarusian enterprises on the additional talks to sign contracts on the sales of their products. Minsk tractor manufactures plan to explore this new market and lease their production to the Sverdlov region of Russia.

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Recession in the production of popular commodity occurred at the leading companies of Gomel, including the confectionery factory "Spartak", which provides for the seventh part of the town`s stock. In order to stabilize the situation Gomel mayor Alexander Yakobson addressed his subordinates with a request to hold meetings with the key plant`s investor, president of the foreign company "Trilini Sweets" Marat Novikov. Yakobson is convinced that "the main investor deliberately fails the job, because he doesn`t fulfill his promises."

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KGB agents arrested red-handed on April 18 a foreign citizen while he was handed over the confidential documents, BelaPAN reports from the KGB Center of information and public relations.

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Frankly speaking, I`ve no idea whether Lukashenko has a speech writer, or he blots out this nonsense spontaneously. But given he has one, this person, just like his boss, must have the same diagnosis - "moderate mosaic psychosis with prevailing features of paranoid and dissocial derangement of personality."

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Former Belarusian student Gleb Dogel received a status of a political fugitive in the neighboring Poland. Charter`97 was told by Dogel`s cousin Gleb Sushkevich, enjoying the same status there, that Gleb was issued a so-called "Geneva" passport, which will enable him to leave Polish territory and freely travel across the continent.

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Dear web-site visitors. We bring our apologies for misinforming you about the blitz-visit to Minsk by Russian president Putin, which allegedly took place yesterday. This visit did have place - a year ago. Due to some technical irregularities this information was mistaken by us as fresh, while it was way out-dated. No such visit occurred yesterday.

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Minsk city council forbade the trade union of agricultural machinery industry to stage 70 pickets in the most populated areas of Minsk. The action organizers intended to attract public attention to the anti trade union policy of the authorities.

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Belarusian military officials are interested in Russia`s experience in producing certain parts for the T-72 tank, while the Defense Ministry plans to purchase at least some units of the Nizhny Tagil tanks T-90C. Originally, Lukashenko was expected to pay a visit to Nizhny Tagil and in particular to the "Uralvagonzavod" manufacture. However, yesterday he only visited the "Uraltransmash", which produces popular self-propelled vehicles "Akatsya" and "Giatsint". Lukashenko promised to return to the Urals later. It may well happen that the man will show up at the coming exhibition of weaponry hosted by "Uralexpoarms".

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Out of the total 9 990 200 citizens of Belarus only 5 928 000 are capable of working. Economically active population - those employed or in search for a job - are 4 542 000, 104 000 of them are unemployed, not registered with the labor exchange. The economically passive population - those who are able-bodied, but don`t work or rather don`t feel like working - amounts to 1 386 000 persons. Not counting the students (530 000) and women on maternity leave (150 000), it turns out that 706 000 have no job place, don`t study, don`t bring up kids and aren`t even looking for a job. Many of these people see no point in working, as far as the salaries are too little to provide for their living. Instead, many engage in stealing stuff and selling it at the black market.

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Minsk city association of the victims of political repressions addressed April 18 the respected citizen of Minsk, chair of the Union of composers Igor Luchenok with a proposal to nominate his candidacy at the forthcoming presidential ballot. The letter, signed by the association`s president Alexander Lapitsky, reads "We`re convinced that only you can awake joy and cheerful hope in our hearts and faces…"

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Belarusian military procuracy instigated criminal proceedings on April 18 against two senior officers of the Air Force troops. BELTA correspondent reports that the officials are indicted for deliberate inserting false data into the documentation for military equipment, ready for sales. The detectives believe that the cost of the equipment was lowered upon the request of the buyer - representative of some company.

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Last year 11443 Belarus nationals changed their permanent place of residence. At the same time 18517 persons with foreign citizenship and 985 individuals without citizenship were granted permanent residence in Belarus, reported during April 18 press-conference police colonel Sergei Stesik.

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Belarusian caramel became the only exception in the list of imported analogous products, liable to temporary protective measures on behalf of Russia.

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