Belarusian Trade Union of Aviation Dispatchers Under Pressure :: Charter'97 :: News

The State Committee for aviation constantly intervenes in the organization’s affairs, while recently the transport procuracy itself took a keen interest in their activities, said at today’s press-conference in Minsk the president of the Belarusian trade union of air dispatchers Yuri Migulsky.

The first incident dates back to January this year. The inspection then was initiated by deputy Justice Minister Petrash. He claimed that the organization had allegedly violated Alexander Lukashenko’s decree #2 of 26.01.1999, regulating trade unions’ registration issue. The transport procuracy demanded the lists of organization’s members at the time being and at the time of registration in 1999.

Yuri Migutsky declines to do that, referring to the written requests of the organization’s members. They fear repressive actions on part of the administration of “BelAroNavigation” company, which is part of the State Committee for aviation’s structure.

President of air dispatchers’ trade union called this demand of the procuracy “a paradox”, for they are not at all supposed, under law, to preserve copies of documents, submitted for re-registration, which is a sole responsibility of the registering body.

President of the Belarusian Congress of democratic trade unions Alexander Yaroshuk said that the exertion of pressure on aviation trade union is yet another part of the state policy. He mentioned that they got to confront this pressure in concrete resistance actions, be it strikes or something of the kind.