An opposition leader was convicted Thursday of organizing an unauthorized rally against the disputed election of Belarus‘ authoritarian president and sentenced to 5 1/2 years in jail, his lawyer said.
Kozulin, in his final comments in court, denounced his trial as "unfair" and called the judge "an executioner."
Riot police broke up that march, beating demonstrators with truncheons.
Lukashenko, branded "Europe‘s last dictator," has ruled the isolated former Soviet nation of 10 million since 1994, quashing dissent, jailing opponents, and extending his time in office through votes widely considered illegitimate.
Alexander Milinkevich, who also ran for the presidency and is widely regarded as the leader of the beleaguered opposition, opposed Kozulin‘s calls for more aggressive protests after the election. //Associated Press
Prosecutors on Thursday demanded a six-year jail term for an opposition leader on trial in Belarus for organizing an unauthorized protest of the disputed election of authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko.
Alexander Kozulin was one of two opposition politicians to run in the March 19 election.
"Kozulin's guilt as a person dangerous to society is now fully established," prosecutor Sergey Bortnik said, asking the court to sentence him to six years in prison.
His lawyer, Igor Rynkevich, complained that Kozulin was denied the right to make a final statement, calling it "an unprecedented, harsh decision that shows the lack of independence of the Belarusian courts."
The 50-year-old former bureaucrat has been in jail since leading the protest march six days after the disputed vote, which officials said was soundly won by incumbent Alexander Lukashenko but was condemned as rigged by the opposition.
Riot police broke up that march, beating demonstrators with truncheons.
Western nations called the vote undemocratic and have since imposed travel and financial sanctions on Belarusian officials, including Lukashenko, and called for Kozulin's release.
Lukashenko, branded "Europe's last dictator," has ruled the nation of 10 million since 1994, suppressing dissent and extending his time in office through votes widely considered illegitimate. //AP
India and Belarus will discuss areas of mutual cooperation in the fields of economy, trade, industry, science and technology and culture during the visit of an Indian delegation.
The high-level delegation, headed by Minister of State for Industry Ashwani Kumar, left for Belarus capital Minsk last evening, an official release said here today.
The delegation comprises of senior officials of department of industrial policy and promotion, fertiliser and coal, it said.
The Minister would discuss areas of mutual cooperation with Belarus' Minister of Industry and Foreign Affairs.
The two sides would discuss possibilities of cooperation in banking, road construction and a joint venture for the manufacture of tractors in Belarus, the release said.
India imports potash from Belarus and there was a big opportunity for exports from India to Belarus including BHEL's turbines for its power sector, it added. //Zee News
The open National Championships of Belarus was marked by several phenomenal results. The meeting was held in two arenas in Brest, the Brest Sports Centre and the Locomotiv stadium (6-7 July 2006).
Vadim Devyatovskiy, the 2005 World Championship Hammer Throw silver medallist, threw his implement 81.95m to established a new world season’s lead. Two more men, Andrey Vorontsov (80.54m, 5th round), and double World champion Ivan Tikhon (80.31m, 3rd round) also breeched 80m in the competition.
The Hammer Throw competitions were held in the "Locomotiv" stadium and in the very first series of attempts Devyatovskiy threw 80.93m, while in the fifth and sixth rounds he flung the hammer beyond the 81m line — 81.42m. and then 81.95m.
"I am very pleased with the series," said the winner who also had three other marks beyond 80m in his series. "Never before have all six attempts been so fruitful. I did not prepare for this competition too much, but it’s true, that one competition can replace several training sessions. Whether am I ready to throw more? I think, I am."
On her fourth attempt the World Indoor champion in the women’s Shot Put, Natalya Khoroneko pushed the Shot Put out to 20.15m, a personal record, and the second best mark in the world this summer. Her third round put, her second best of the day, was 19.90m.
World champion Nadezda Ostapchuk was second, 19.39.
"As the main goal of the season is the European championship in Gothenburg, I was not especially set for these competitions, I simply wanted to check how my preparation was going. I’m pleased, that almost everything is alright," said Khoroneko.
The 2003 World champion, Andrey Mikhnevich, who is Khoroneko’s boy friend, went three times over 21m in the men’s Shot Put, with his best attempt 21.24m.
Pavel Lyzhyn came second with three releases over 20m, the best his fifth round effort of 20.60 m. The third place was occupied by Dmitry Goncharuk (20m).
Alesya Turova, the former women’s World 3000m Steeplechase record holder, who had dabbled with 1500m for sometime now, was back to her old discipline and won the steeplechase event in 9:26.23.
In the women’s Triple Jump, Natalia Safronova produced five jumps over 14m, the best being 14.43m.
After a maternity break, the 2004 World Indoor 200m champion Natalya Safronnikova returned to the track at these championships, and took silver in the 100m (11.80), behind Yelena Nevmerzhitskaja (11.54). They together with Olympic champion Yuliya Nesterenko, who has had a serious back injury, and either Oksana Dragun or Natalia Abramenko, will make up the sprint relay quartet for the European Championships in Gothenburg. //IAAF
Russia's nuclear chief said Tuesday that Russia and Belarus would hold Wednesday talks on the construction of a nuclear power plant in the Mogilyov Region, in the east of Belarus.
Sergei Kiriyenko, the head of the Russian Federal Agency for Nuclear Power, said he positively assessed the idea of a nuclear power plant construction in Belarus.
"We are ready to discuss thoroughly this issue with our Belarusian colleagues," Kiriyenko said. //RIA Novosti
Lithuanian Defense Ministry made claims Monday that a Belarussian Air Force helicopter intruded into its airspace at around 10:35 local time (08:35 GMT).
"The Belarussian helicopter Mi-24 broke almost 100 meters deep into Lithuanian airspace in the Varena district," Lithuanian Air Force commander Arturas Leita said. "Radars of Lithuanian border forces registered that flight."
Lithuanian Air Force has opened an investigation over the incident. In the meantime, officials at the Belarussian Defense Ministry in Minsk strongly denied Leita’s statement.
"The information that a Mi-24 helicopter of our Air Force broke into Lithuanian airspace totally contradicts reality," Vladislav Remenchik, the chief press officer at the Defense Ministry said when Itar-Tass asked him to comment on the situation.
"Monday, scheduled flights were held at our airbase No. 181 and all the helicopters strictly observed the specified flight routes," he said. "None of them violated Lithuanian airspace, which is proved by data of objective control of Belarussian Air Defense Forces."
Earlier, the Defense Ministry strongly denied Lithuania’s claims that a Mi-8 helicopter had intruded into its airspace in the night hours of June 20. //Itar-Tass
Belarus and Cuba reached a preliminary agreement on supplies of the Belarusian agricultural products to the Cuban market. This is one of the main results of the visit of a Cuban delegation to Belarus.
During almost two weeks the Cuban guests were familiarizing themselves with the work of the Belarusian agro-industrial sector. The delegation was composed of representatives of the Cuban food company Alimport, the food safety department of the health ministry, specialists in the field of veterinary, ecological and radiological food control. As BelTA was informed in the embassy of Cuba in Belarus, the main goal of the visit was to study potential purchases of the Belarusian agricultural foodstuffs for the Cuban market.
The representatives of the Cuban delegation confirmed their interest in purchases of the Belarusian foodstuffs and called their visit to this republic fruitful. Talks on food purchases will become the next stage of development of the Belarusian-Cuban cooperation in the agrarian field.
Minsk resident Aleksei Yanushevskiy took the second position at the Electronic Sports World Cup 2006 in France, representatives of the Belarusian Electronic Sports Federation told BelTA.
The source informed, the fourth world cup was held in Paris on June 30 — July 2. It gathered representatives of 60 countries including Belarus.
The 16-year-old Belarusian Quake IV professional was second only to a representative of the host country and lost the final competition 1-2. It is the highest achievement in the history of the Belarusian electronic sport, which started in 2004.
Another Belarusian Yaroslav Kavetskiy ranked 15th in the WarCraft III nomination.
In summer and autumn this yea the company of the National Academic Bolshoi Ballet Theater of the Republic of Belarus will go a big international tour, a correspondent of BelTA was informed by head of the literarily department of the theater Tatyana Aleksandrova.
In the first half of August the leading soloists of the theater will go on a concert tour to Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. In early September the company will partake in the international music and dance festival in the capital of Thailand Bangkok. The ballets "Nutcracker", "Romeo and Juliet" and "Spartacus" will be shown there. In autumn the company will also visit China and South Korea, where the Belarusian artists are very famous. At present the theater is holding active talks with Dutch impresarios on organizing tours around several European states: Belgium, Holland and Luxemburg.
The National Academic Bolshoi Ballet Theater of the Republic of Belarus will close the 73rd season on June 29 with the play "The Legend about Ulenshpigele". The music for the play was composed by Yevgeniy Glebov; choreographer — Valentin Elizariev. The primary arias are performed by Belarusian ballet stars Olga Gaiko, Denis Klimuk, Yuri Kovalev, Piotr Borchenko and Vitaliy Petrovskiy. The band-master — Vyacheslav Volich.
The 73rd season was one of the most complicated for the theater. Because of the reconstruction of the building of the National Academic Bolshoi Ballet Theater of the Republic of Belarus the company worked in the Palace of the Republic. In spite of this fact the season was rich in various events. The theater has preserved its repertoire and prepared a premier — the ballet "Love under Elms". Performances featuring guest actors from Ukraine, Japan and Great Britain and a prizewinner of international contests, graduate from Belarusian Choreographic College Ivan Vasilyev took part, were a great success as well. Two times the company went on a tour to South Korea and China with the ballets "Nutcracker" and "Swan Lake".
The Bolshoi Ballet Theater will open a new season on September 16, 2006 in the Palace of the Republic with the classical ballet "Swan Lake".
Police have reportedly arrested two assailants who attacked supporters of opposition leader Aleksandr Kozulin during an authorized demonstration in a park in Minsk.
The assailants beat up one demonstrator, stole his cell phone, and ripped up clothes and signs of other supporters.
The demonstration was timed to coincide with Dr. Kozulin's trial, which opened in the Moskovsky District Court in Minsk on Thursday.
The former presidential candidate is accused of disorderly conduct and "malicious hooliganism," the charges he dismissed as politically motivated. //BelaPAN
14 July 2006