NEWSBRIEFS (05/09/99)

NEWSBRIEFS

200,000 mark May 1 in Ukraine

KYIV - A total of some 200,000 people nationwide took part in Workers' Day rallies and demonstrations on May 1, primarily in eastern Ukraine (100,000 in Donetsk Oblast) and Crimea, Ukrainian Television reported. In a 4,000-strong demonstration in Kyiv, Communists carried flags of the former USSR and Ukrainian SSR, as well as portraits of Joseph Stalin, and called on President Leonid Kuchma to step down. "The authorities are leaving our children with no future whatsoever," Communist leader Petro Symonenko told the rally. The Associated Press quoted Verkhovna Rada Chairman Oleksander Tkachenko as saying that "the fight for the good of the people must determine the outcome of [presidential] elections." Ukrainian Television reported that at the rally Mr. Tkachenko "hinted for the first time" at his willingness to run in the presidential elections. Meanwhile, in another part of the capital, Yurii Kostenko's Rukh Party gathered at Sofiiska Ploscha for anti-communist demonstrations. Rukh I, led by Hennadii Udovenko, did not participate. (RFE/RL Newsline, Eastern Economist)

Kuchma's relations with Rada questioned

KYIV - Commenting on President Leonid Kuchma's condemnation of the Verkhovna Rada as incompetent, First Vice Chairman Adam Martyniuk said on April 30 that he must stop turning the Parliament into an enemy. He said the problem was not the Rada's incompetence, but that laws were not carried out. Rukh leader Hennadii Udovenko said that he thinks the president is acting correctly in continuing to issue economic decrees. "Parliament is effectively paralyzed, with deputies discussing political questions instead of working," he added. (Eastern Economist)

Cabinet raises payments for utilities

KYIV - The government has increased tariffs for public utilities by an average of 20 to 30 percent in "most Ukrainian regions," Ukrainian Television reported on May 1. The same resolution canceled all subsidies for public utilities, except those to housing. Lifting the parliamentary ban on increasing public utilities tariffs is one of the International Monetary Fund's requirements for resuming the its cooperation with Ukraine. An IMF mission is currently in Kyiv to discuss boosting financial aid to the country. President Leonid Kuchma's aide Valerii Lytvytskyi said last week that Ukraine is requesting a new $300 million loan from the fund and will also ask it to "double or even triple" the monthly installments of the resumed $2.2 billion loan. Those installments currently average $70 million, the Associated Press reported on April 30. (RFE/RL Newsline)

OSCE set to close Crimea office

SYMFEROPOL - The OSCE office in Crimea is expected to be closed as the term of its activities expired on April 30. The office dealt primarily with issues of minorities and the Tatar citizenship problem. Ukrainian officials claimed that since all the problems the office was dealing with have been resolved, there is no need to keep the office open. Keeping it open gives the impression there are difficulties, according to one official. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe will continue to work in Ukraine on other programs. (Eastern Economist)

Peace Corps volunteers sworn in

KYIV - A new group of 34 U.S. Peace Corps volunteers had their swearing-in ceremony on April 21 in Kyiv. The new group will work in various parts of Ukraine for the next two years in educational institutions, business support centers, city administrations and NGOs. They will join another 175 Peace Corps volunteers currently working in Ukraine. Since 1992 more than 600 volunteers have been working in Ukraine, where the Peace Corps has its second largest program. (Eastern Economist)

Kuchma confident of election victory

KYIV - President Leonid Kuchma said in Khmelnytskyi on April 29 that he is convinced he will win the presidential elections on October 31, Ukrainian Television reported. He added that his main rival is the economic situation in Ukraine, but added that he knows what measures to take. According to the president, Ukraine's economic troubles are due to the fact that the country "has not renounced Communist ideology." Mr. Kuchma said Ukraine's power structure, determined by the Constitution, is ineffectual and should be changed "with the help of the people." President Kuchma also criticized the Verkhovna Rada for its inefficiency, saying that lawmakers lack the "political will to take resolute steps" and continue to "battle with the executive." (RFE/RL Newsline)

Banks protest disclosing customer data

KYIV - Along with eight business organizations and trade unions, the Association of Ukrainian Banks has issued a statement protesting a new regulation whereby commercial banks are to provide information to the tax authorities about some of their accounts, the Associated Press reported on April 29. Under that regulation, Ukrainian banks will be asked to disclose transaction records and other information on the accounts of individuals and companies suspected of tax evasion. The statement says that tax officials want information that has "nothing to do with taxation" and that this violates "citizens' legal rights to conduct business." (RFE/RL Newsline)

IAEA conference offers support

KYIV - A two-week conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency dedicated to compliance with the Nuclear Safety Convention of its 45 signatory countries, including Ukraine, concluded in Vienna with participants expressing concern over lack of funding for nuclear power station safety problems in Ukraine. On the whole, Ukraine's efforts to keep in line with requirements of the convention have been acknowledged. In particular, much progress has been made in creating a national legal base for atomic energy utilization, reactor safety has been scrutinized, a nuclear plant personnel licensing system has been introduced, a program has been worked out to license nuclear sites, and an emergency response system has been established. A document summing up the conference states that the level of radioactive emissions from Ukraine's nuclear power stations remains quite low. It was pointed out that Ukraine has enhanced the role of state regulation of nuclear safety, but that the need remains for a better division of functions and responsibility among different regulating agencies. Conference participants spoke out in favor of maintaining financial and methodological support for Ukraine to improve safety standards. (Eastern Economist)

CIS set to meet in Crimea

MOSCOW - CIS heads of state will meet on June 4 in Crimea, Yurii Yarov, executive secretary of the Commonwealth of Independent States Executive Committee announced on April 27. The meeting will discuss the issue of reforming CIS administrative structures with the objective of reducing the number of administrative staff from 1,300 to 710. The CIS Inter-State Economic Committee will be downsized and transformed into a CIS Economic Council consisting of CIS countries' prime ministers. The meeting was initiated by the Ukrainian delegation, Mr. Yarov said. (Eastern Economist)

Rada approves new broadcasting chief

KYIV - After a series of votes the Verkhovna Rada on April 22 named Oleksander Savenko to replace Zynovii Kulyk as chair of the State TV and Radio Broadcasting Committee (DerzhTeleRadio). The replacement was initiated by the Rada "in the interests of Ukraine and of Ukrainian society," read the Parliament's statement sent to President Leonid Kuchma. Mr. Savenko, who was nominated by the president, pledged to do his utmost to transform the committee into a bridge uniting the legislative and executive branches for the people's benefit. His policy will be to ensure Ukraine's entry into the global information space, elucidate to the public any regulations to be approved by the president, the Verkhovna Rada or other authorities, implement freedom of speech and enhance the competitiveness of domestic information products. He also plans to expand the regional network of the national broadcasting agency. Mr. Savenko spoke out against filling air space with foreign-made low-quality broadcasts, specifically against "Americanizing" the information space. He emphasized the lack of funds for broadcasting, pointing to the fact that DerzhTeleRadio received only 5 million hrv of the 97.7 million hrv earmarked for the first quarter of this year. (Eastern Economist)

Re-nationalization of energy sector?

KYIV - The Office of the Procurator-General has asked the judiciary to revoke privately owned stakes in six regional energy companies and return them to the state, the Associated Press reported on April 20. "As a lawyer, I ascertain that gross violations were made during the privatization of these companies," Deputy Procurator-General Olha Kolinko said. The demand follows President Leonid Kuchma's decision last week to fire senior government officials over alleged abuses of authority in the energy sector. Ukraine's 27 regional energy companies are considered to be among the country's most attractive properties, since each has a monopoly or near monopoly on electricity supplies in its region. (RFE/RL Newsline)

PM predicts hryvnia stability for 1999

KYIV - Prime Minister Valerii Pustovoitenko told journalists on April 19 that the hryvnia exchange rate will remain stable at some 4 hryvni to $1 this year. Mr. Pustovoitenko confirmed that Ukraine will meet its 1999 macroeconomic targets. He added that inflation in the first quarter of 1999 stood at 3.5 percent, while the budget deficit and credit rates were also kept within projected limits. However, the prime minister also noted that from January to March the state budget was able to collect only 15.9 percent of planned revenues. (Eastern Economist)

Ukraine's Jews unite for a second time

KYIV - Following the recent creation of the United Jewish Community of Ukraine, three Jewish breakaway groups organized another congress and on April 14 created another umbrella organization, a Jewish Confederation of Ukraine, the Associated Press reported. "It is a historic moment for Ukrainian Jews as practically all of them are now represented [in the confederation]," the agency quoted the chief rabbi of Kyiv and Ukraine, Yaakov Bleich, as saying. (RFE/RL Newsline)

GDP drops nearly 5 percent

KYIV - The State Committee for Statistics reported on April 28 that Ukraine's GDP decreased by 4.8 percent in the first quarter of this year, compared with the same period in 1998. Industrial production was down 2 percent. Agricultural output among private farms increased by 2.4 percent, but owing to the poor performance of state-run farms, the increase in total agricultural production was only 0.5 percent. (RFE/RL Newsline)

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