BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

19/03/2007

Belarusian Opposition Reportedly Agrees To Hold Congress In April

Six opposition parties and a group of small business owners on March 17 agreed to hold the Second Congress of Pro-Democratic Forces on April 21-22, Belapan reported, quoting Alyaksandr Bukhvostau, chairman of the organizing committee for the congress. A statement announcing the date of the congress is expected to be signed on March 19. Bukhvostau said that the signatories of the statement will participate in the congress, adding that it will be open for signing by other political groups and nongovernmental organizations. The March 17 meeting was not, however, attended by former opposition presidential candidate Alyaksandr Milinkevich, who told Reuters that he does not want to have anything to do with this congress. "This will be a congress of party groups and not of democratic forces as a whole. If leaders at the top do not want real unity, I will organize it from the bottom," Milinkevich added. Initially, the congress was planned for mid-March, but Milinkevich objected to the idea of a rotating leadership in the opposition, which was proposed by other opposition party leaders for the congress agenda (see "RFE/RL Newsline," February 15, 2007). The agenda for the congress approved on March 17 reportedly includes the opposition's strategy for 2007-08, its action plan and economic proposals, and a "transitional-period constitution." JM

Source:

http://www.rferl.org/newsline/2007/03/3-CEE/cee-190307.asp