Оpen letter to the President of the Republic of Belarus :: Charter'97 :: News

Dear mister President! The events that take place near the House of the Government, cause not only deputies and journalists bewilderment, but also many citizens trying to pass past White house get amazed. It`s impossible to get near it; even diplomatic missions accredited in Belarus employees are not allowed to enter the building. There are so many special services agents, that people involuntarily recollect «death squadrons» and 37-th year. They behave extremely inconsiderately, they do not show their certificates and do not introduce themselves, they stop even deputies of Parliament, do not let journalists to enter.

There is an impression, that someone has implemented state of emergency in our country.

So we want to ask you:

1. What kind of cordons of civilly dressed people surrounds the building of the House of the Government last weeks?

2. Why the accredited journalists are not allowed to enter the Parliament? What kind of closed plenary sessions are held in the Oval hall? Why neither the Chairman of National Assembly V.A.Popov nor his assistant V.N.Konoplyov has not answered the questions of the deputies about existing arbitrariness? Who in particular has given this ordered not to let journalists in the building?

3. Why V.A.Popov allows himself statements about absence of his and other deputies’ responsibility for everything that happens behind the walls of Parliament?

There is a logical question: whether there is any legislative power of the Parliament at all in Belarus? Whether deputies are responsible for what is going on in their constituencies?

Being deputies of the House of Representatives and knowing the true reasons of all these "phenomena", we do not cease to be surprised by poor and primitive thinking of close to you officials who carry out a role of small screws in the system created by you.

You perfectly realize, that acceptance of addendum in the Elections Code will lead only to strengthening of principles of openness and transparency of elections. Are you afraid of this?

Can you, breaking the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus (articles 2, 4, 8, 21, 33, 34, 37, 65, 101, 110, 117) and making the Parliament decorative, still hope to help the country out from social and economic, political crisis and to be recognized by the international community? Every day of such governing brings harm not only to the country as a whole, but to each citizen.

At last, we consider neglecting of the Parliament opinion to be felonious. Majority of deputies in this Parliament are professionals, education and level of knowledge of some of them exceeds your personal one.

You have created a rigid command - management system, "trunk", as you call it, which has poor knots, personifying two other power branches - legislative and judicial. They constantly risk getting under your axe. Besides it is extremely hard to make independent and correct decisions for your officials paralyzed with fear.

With surprising persistence you show inability to use the authority trusted on you. Your power is huge. But you have deceived the voters; you haven`t fulfilled any item of your electoral program - «To guide the country from the gap».

In the state you supervise people are still prosecuted on political grounds notwithstanding all international agreements and the legislation of the Republic of Belarus.

The mass media controlled by you carry out the ideological order of presidential administration. Belarus citizens are deprived of the objective and all-round information regardless of the Constitution. At the same time independent mass-media are constantly persecuted.

But you still have chance to finish your presidential authorities with dignity.

We, the deputies of the House of Representatives of National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus, are ready to help you to decide old and acute problems. We do this for the sake of millions of Belarus citizens tired of this gloomy life, poverty and lawlessness.

We suggest that we should meet for constructive discussion of the questions which are of great importance both for Belarus and its people and for you personally.

Deputies of the House of Representatives
National assembly of the Republic of Belarus

Valery Frolov
Sergey Skrebets
Vladimir Parfenovich

June, 14, 2004.