OSCE Parliamentary Assembly on Wednesday passed a strong-worded resolution on Belarus, despite the protest of the Russian delegates. The text of the resolution confirms that the Belarusian authorities failed to ensure “access of all political parties to mass media”, while “the parliament isn’t at all endowed with the necessary functions and authority.”

---

The public association “Agency of regional development “Varuta” was liquidated today by the Brest regional court. A liquidation lawsuit was instituted by court on April 11, 2003. The reason for that were alleged discrepancies in the title of the public association. The jury, as a proof of violations, examined the documents and the information bulletin, released by the association, where “Varuta” is called a “public organization” rather than “public association”.

---

Today the Committee for civic affairs of the Grodno regional court found legitimate the Leninsky district court of Minsk’s decision on the complaint of the chairman of “Ratusha” Ales Milinkevich against the decision of the administrative commission, which charged Milinkevich over the violation of rules for storing and using the polygraph machinery.

---

The Supreme Economic Court of Belarus turned down “Marat” Minsk-based company’s complaint over the Information Ministry’s ruling of May 28, 2003 “On the suspension of “BDG: for special use”, reports “Interfax” news agency.

---

The Ministry of press of Russia will demand the resumption of NTV company’s activities on the territory of Belarus via the means, which the Ministry has at its disposal, RIA “Novosti” was told in the Ministry’s press-service.

---

“The state hinders the development and growth of Evangelical churches,” – unanimously stated the leadership of the Union of Evangelical churches. In this connection on July 13 they will hold a countrywide fasting and prayer for the improvement of the government’s attitude to the Evangelical Christians. In Minsk at 6p.m. at the Bangalor square there will be organized a common prayer of all Evangelicals.

---

This week or by the end of July at the latest the “Act on democracy in Belarus” may be approved by the House of Representatives of the US Congress as part of the draft law on the redistribution of funds. And the Belarusian authorities’ decision on the suspension of activities of the Minsk-based US IREX organization may accelerate the passage of this draft law in the American Parliament.

---

Moscow intends to bring up before the Belarusian authorities the issue of the NTV office’s shutdown in Minsk. “We are set to consider this problem with the Belarusian side,” – said the official Russian Foreign Ministry representative Alexander Yakovenko. Meantime, he underscored that the Russian Foreign Ministry regrets the decision to shut down NTV office in Minsk.

---

The Ministry of press of Russia considers the intention of the Belarusian authorities to shut down NTV office to be yet another attempt to exert pressure on the Russian mass media. “The Ministry of press of Russia expresses extreme alert over the plans to shut down NTV office in Belarus. The Russian Ministry assumes that such intentions of the official Minsk can’t be regarded but as an exertion of pressure on Russian mass media,” – reports RIA “Novosti”.

---

“For as long as Lukashenko doesn’t isolate the country with barbed wire, we will still be getting information from there. However, we have an example of Turkmenistan. And it seems as though Belarus will fall in its footsteps,” – said in an interview to the “Kommersant” newspaper first director general of NTV Alexander Gerasimov, commenting on the NTV office’s shutdown in Belarus.

---

A decision to shut down NTV representation in Belarus is a short-sighted step on part of the Belarusian authorities and Alexander Lukashenko, RIA “Novosti” was told by Pavel Selin, who used to work as NTV special correspondent in Belarus and was deported from there a fortnight ago.

---

Rotterdam continues the summer session of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, at which they considered the situation in Belarus. Today there will be held voting on the resolution on the situation in Belarus. Belarus, which is already represented in OSCE PA by the “house of representatives” won’t engage in the voting, as far as Mikhail Orda, Natalia Andreichik and Vladimir Dervenkov departed Netherlands a few weeks ago in protest.

---

174 Belarusians addressed the US government in 2002 with a plea to be given political refuge there. 70 such petitions were satisfied, four applications were turned down, while the rest of them are still being considered by the authorities. Such data are contained in the annual report of the US immigration and naturalization service, published these days.

---

The judge of the Central district court of Minsk Tatiana Voitsekhovich sentenced on June 8 a female ZUBR activist Tatiana Elovaya to 10 days of arrest. As you remember, on May 19 Tatiana Elovaya was sentenced in her absence (in breach of law) to 10 days of arrest for engaging in the protest action “Down with the tyrants!”, organized on April 3 at the US embassy in Minsk.

---

In order to intensify struggle with salary indebtedness the Cabinet of Ministers’ presidium approved changes in the presidential decree of July 26, 1999 #29 envisaging a stricter responsibility for the violation of order and period of salary payments to the workers.

---

In the next couple of days top Belarusian officials, even the Prime Minister himself, may be sacked from their posts for their failure to clear off accumulated salary indebtedness before peasants and agricultural companies for the products, they produce.

---