A few dozen entrepreneurs engaged in the protest action under the slogan “CAN’T LIVE LIKE THAT!” and “Stop violating trade unionists’ rights!”, held today on July 29 in mid-afternoon at the crossroads of Kuibysheva and Kulman streets in front of the “Parking” fair. The businessmen protested the Minsk city hall’s decision, obliging all individual entrepreneurs to install cash-desks or special calculation computer systems at their trading places. This new measure will bring about serious problems for the retailers and make their business almost unprofitable. The protesters stood in a picket for around 40 minutes. As a sign of protest they broke the cash desk, which the authorities want them to install. None of the Minsk officials visited the event. Instead, the dissenters were encircled by the law-enforcers, who handed in to the action’s organizer Leonid Malakhov a court summons. The man is charged by the Sovietsky district court of Minsk with violating art.167/2 of the Administrative code (running unsanctioned rallies) and may well get up to 15 days of jail. Presently, Leonid Malakhov stays in the Sovietsky court awaiting trial.

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Protest action under the mottoes “CAN’T LIVE LIKE THAT!” and “Stop violating trade unionists’ rights!” was run this afternoon at the intersection of the Kuibysheva and Kulman streets, opposite the entrance to the “Parking” trade center. The action was initiated by the co-chairman of the “Private property” Leonid Malakhov and upheld by the ZUBR movement. Leonid Malakhov was in no time captured by the Sovietsky district law-enforcers for holding an unsanctioned action and will be soon taken to court. ZUBR coordinator Timofei Dranchuk was detrained right at the entrance to the Sovietsky police station of Minsk, where he arrived after Malakhov’s arrest. Policemen claim that they seized Dranchuk as far as the young man has been wanted since March 25, 2002, being sentenced by court to 10 days of arrest for marking the Freedom Day. However, there passed three months since the issue of the verdict and, under the law, if the judicial ruling hasn’t been carried out in practice, it is no longer valid. According to our latest data, police intends to send Timofei to the Okrestina detention center.

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On Sunday July 28 the law-enforcers of the Berestovitsky police station laid a siege to the building of the Belarusian Autocephalous Orthodox Church in the Pogranichny village. The law-enforcers trespassed the territory of the church after the temple’s priest Yan Spasouk fell unconscious during the debates with the local officials. Shortly after that they arrested the human rights defender and journalist Valery Schukin, who chanced to be in the epicenter of unfolding events.

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The Foreign Affairs Committee of the Polish Sojm approved the parliamentary statement, which reads that absence of democracy in Belarus threatens peace and stability in all of the Central and Eastern Europe. Commission members unanimously supported the text of the statement, which signifies, according to deputy of the “Law and Justice” faction Mark Yurk, that all political forces in Poland are equally concerned over the situation in Belarus.

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Global UN report on the human development proved what many citizens have intuitively sensed for many a year now: Belarus has almost the worst democracy development record in CIS space, which is under the level of all countries with the normal statistics, said the coordinator of the UN representation in Belarus Nil Bune at the July 24 press-conference, dedicated to the presentation of the UN Global report on human development.

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July 26 saw pickets opposite the Belarusian embassies in Brussels and Den Haag (Holland), Charter`97 was told by the secretary of the Belarusian Center Pavel Raduk. The actions were run by the Center itself and its Dutch affiliate. On the eve of the Belarusian Day of Independence dozens of exiled Belarusians came to the embassies to manifest their anger over the atrocities, committed by the regime of Lukashenko. They demanded immediate halt of political repressions, change of the suicidal economical policy and unification of common people. Belarusian citizens abroad want to know the destiny of the disappeared people, they demand the release of the political prisoners and termination of persecution of the independent mass media. "Lukashenko, your time is up" was the motto of their action.

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Presidium of the Federation Council of Belarus didn’t uphold the initiative of the new FTU chairman Leonid Kozik on the dismissal of Alexander Starikevich from the editor-in-chief of the “Belarusky Chas” trade union’s mouthpiece. It was Kozik who initiated the resignation, which the man himself never concealed: “Belarusky Chas” is the newspaper of all trade unions and can’t be misused for one’s personal good. The paper must not be the way it is now. There’s nothing concrete in it, all things are laid out in general terms. But we got to build our lives, create an organization, strengthen it and preserve the industrial trade unions. I can’t cooperate with the newspaper, which is not sharing these views… With the current editor there’s no way we can create a newspaper of the kind.”

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Commercial firms, supplying petroleum to Belarus, have already provided 20thsd tons of fuel for harvesting and pledge to sacrifice the same amount in future. July 26 evening the Belarusian TV reported that the agreement on that had been reached between the government and representatives of the leading oil suppliers.

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Today the Leninsky district court of Minsk will hold court proceedings over the Young Front’s leader Pavel Severinets. The young politician will be sued for his rallying on Saturday on the Independence Day eve. On July 27 around 100 YF members lined up with opposition banners in hands opposite the Palace of the Republic in central Minsk. Half an hour later they broke up into groups and proceeded towards the presidential administration, the Supreme court, Constitutional court and the procuracy general, all headquartered in downtown. Some of the protesters marched towards the State Publishing House, hosting the editorial offices of nine state newspapers, and called on them to cease the harassment of the independent press, de-monopolize television and radio as well as stop persecuting the journalists.

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The protest “Can’t Live Like That!” and “Stop violating businessmen’s rights!” will be held at 12 o’clock on July 29 at the crossroads of the Kuibysheva and Kulman streets in front of the entrance to the exhibition center “Parking”.

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Alexander Lukashenko charged the Minister of information of Belarus Mikhail Podgainy to “bring to senses” all opposition press. Speaking at the July 25 meeting with the officials, Lukashenko said that they must use all leverages of influencing the opposition press, which “constantly ridicules the harvesting”. “If you fail to calm them down, we’ll try that together but I won’t let them mock at the people, who feed these scoundrels,” – said Lukashenko.

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Alexander Lukashenko forwarded his greetings on behalf of the Belarusian nation to the Cuban leader Fidel Kastro on the occasion of the 49th anniversary of the National revolution.

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