Poland: Leaders of Union of Poles in Belarus meet in northeastern city :: Charter'97 :: News

Members of the Main Council of the Union of Poles in Belarus (ZPB), elected [in] March 2005 at a congress which was later declared [null and] void by the Belarussian authorities met in Bialystok, northeastern Poland on Friday [28 October] to discuss further actions.

The meeting was attended by ZPB leader Andzelika Borys, also unapproved by the [Belarusian President Alyaksandr] Lukashenka`s authorities.

Borys told journalists that the ZPB managed to have a quorum which was of key importance for Poles in Belarus and a sign that the organization continues operations. The meeting in Bialystok was attended by 18 of the 35-member council.

The union activists also met with the authorities of Wspolnota Polska, the Polish organization long involved in assistance to Ukraine.

They acquainted Wspolnota Polska with the situation of the union after elections in Volkovysk in August 2005 during which new ZPB authorities, supported by Lukashenka were elected.
They spoke about the regime`s repression against Poles and also Belarussian citizens.
Source: PAP news agency, Warsaw, in English 1610 gmt 30 Oct 05