NEWSBRIEFS (11/24/96)

NEWSBRIEFS

Caucuses in uproar over draft law

KYIV - Leaders of all caucuses in Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada have signed a statement condemning a draft law on the withdrawal of Ukrainian military from Sevastopol. The bill was proposed by Ivan Symonenko of the Soyuz caucus, who demanded that the Ukrainian "occupational forces" pull out of Sevastopol by July 1, 1997. Mr. Symonenko described Crimea as a Ukrainian colony and Sevastopol as a temporarily occupied city. The Rukh caucus has demanded that Mr. Symonenko be stripped of his parliamentary immunity and prosecuted. It also called for the dismissal of Parliament Chairman Oleksander Moroz and his first deputy, Oleksander Tkachenko, for "turning a blind eye to the anti-state activities of some deputies." (OMRI Daily Digest)

Parliament concerned about Belarus

KYIV - The Verkhovna Rada expressed "deep concern" over rising tensions in neighboring Belarus, where President Alyaksandr Lukashenka and the Parliament are in conflict over a referendum to greatly extend his powers. A resolution passed in Ukraine's Parliament called on "the representatives of executive and legislative authority in this friendly state to display mutual understanding and act exclusively in a constitutional way to maintain democracy and security in the region." An initial draft of the resolution accused Mr. Lukashenka of undermining the Constitution, but a majority of the national deputies said they should avoid taking sides in the dispute. Nationalist deputies had wanted a stronger statement mentioning concern about the 300,000 Ukrainians living in Belarus. (Reuters)

Three neighbors comment on Belarus

WASHINGTON - A joint statement issued by Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine expressing "deep concern over the development of events in the Republic of Belarus" was released in Washington on November 20 by the Embassy of Ukraine. The statement noted: "As the closest neighbors of the Republic of Belarus and with concern about its future, while fully recognizing its sovereignty, we call for resolution of the conflict via constitutional means, while maintaining human rights and civil freedoms in accordance with generally accepted international norms and principles of democracy." (Embassy of Ukraine)

Demonstrators clash with police in Miensk

MIENSK - Between 5,000 and 10,000 people took part in a "March of Silence" in Miensk on November 17 to protest President Alyaksandr Lukashenka's proposals to increase his powers. Ten people were arrested, and some 20 were slightly injured. The demonstrators, carrying red and white Belarusian flags, marched on the Parliament building. Mr. Lukashenka dismissed Central Electoral Commission Chairman Viktar Ganchar on November 14, thereby violating the Constitution by interfering in the powers of the Parliament. Meanwhile, First Deputy Parliamentary Speaker Vasil Novikau said the Supreme Council has begun impeachment procedures against the president. By November 18 the Parliament had collected 75 signatures (five more than needed) to start the impeachment process. That same day Prime Minister Mikhail Chyhir resigned in protest over the president's proposed referendum, and President Lukashenka promptly named Syarhei Linh as acting premier. Meanwhile, in Russia, though the government had not taken a position on the crisis in Belarus, its minister for CIS affairs, Aman Tuleyev, had insinuated that Western opposition to Mr. Lukashenka's staunch support for integration with Russia had triggered the crisis. (OMRI Daily Digest)

Ukraine may restart a Chornobyl reactor

KYIV - Ukrainian nuclear authorities prepared plans to restart Chornobyl reactor No. 2, which was shut down in 1991 after a fire. Valerii Idelson, spokesman for Chornobyl, told Reuters that technical documents have been sent for approval to the Ukrainian government. Chornobyl reactors 1 and 3 still function, contributing 5 percent of Ukraine's electricity. Ukraine promised to close reactor No. 1 on November 30 and to close the entire plant by 2000 in return for $3.1 billion in grants and credits from G-7 countries. Ukrainian officials say the country faces severe energy shortages and complain that Western help is coming too slow. (OMRI Daily Digest)

CORRECTION: The OMRI Daily Digest has posted the following correction to a news item it had reported: An item titled "Ukraine tightens citizenship requirements" should have said that the Ukrainian Parliament had only preliminarily approved a new bill on citizenship that would bar dual citizenship in the country. The bill must still be approved in a second reading before the changes go into effect.