Several Ministers from the Cabinet of Prime Minister Novitsky filed in resignations out of their own will. Right now we know the names of at least two of them – Education Minister Petr Brigadin and Information Minister Mikhail Podgainy. The official bodies don’t confirm that yet. However, there are plenty of grounds for such dismissals: for Brigadin it is the abominable conflict around the Belarusian Humanities Lyceum, while the Information Ministry is rocked by procuracy investigation, revealing serious law violations.

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The amendments into the Law on political parties, envisaging their shutdown for a one-time violation of law on mass assemblies, is an attempt to “keep parties on a short lead”, deems that head of the Party of communists Sergei Kalyakin. Such innovations, says the politician, “in no wise add extra positive image to the Belarusian authorities”. “For the time being they have no practical application, although at a certain point the authorities may use that law in order to get rid of their opponents in the political field,” – said Kalyakin.

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The leadership of NTV channel remains in double-mind as to whether or not it should apologize before the official Minsk in connection with the coverage of Vasil Bykov’s funeral, Radio Svaboda was told on July 11 by the NTV press-secretary Irina Gan. As is known, the authorities consider NTV report on the matter to be an insult to them and under that pretext they deported NTV correspondent Pavel Selin and ordered to close down their office in Minsk until the company publicly apologizes for alleged disinformation.

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The officials have finally found a good pretext for shutting down the National State Humanities Lyceum of Yakub Kolas. The reason for the Lyceum’s shutdown and change in its status is the restructured system of the country’s Ministry of education, said at the July 11 press-conference in Minsk deputy Education Minister of Belarus Kazimir Farino.

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Administration of the Oktyabrsky district of Mogilev denied registration to the primary organization of the trade union of car-building and agricultural machinery of the Mogilev automobile plant, motivating their refusal by the alleged applicant’s lack of the concomitant documentation for the purpose. However, not a single official from the district administration managed to specify what exactly documents are absent. The trade unionists themselves are set to appeal against the verdict of the district administration in court and also to inform the International Labor Organization on the Belarusian authorities’ crackdown on the freedom of association.

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The Council of the Belarusian Congress of democratic trade unions passed a statement in support of the Belarusian trade union of aviation dispatchers, currently facing liquidation motion.

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Recognition of the Belarusian parliament and restoration of its membership with the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly “in no wise means that OSCE agrees with the interior situation, currently observed in Belarus,” – said the head of the OSCE office in Minsk Eberhard Haiken on July 10 in Vitebsk, commenting on the recently passed resolution on Belarus at the OSCE PA session in Rotterdam.

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The economy of Belarus is nearing its ultimate collapse, said the member of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus academician Ivan Nikitchenko, delivering his speech at the session of the public initiative “Council of the Belarusian intelligentsia” on July 10.

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Specialists in radiobiology are heading for a permanent work to Gomel, where their Minsk-based institute now moves, said the president of the National Academy of Sciences Mikhail Myasnikovich at the opening ceremony of the institute of radiobiology in Gomel.

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