21 September 2000
DAILY REVIEW FROM TATARSTAN
Speaker Denies Rumors On Early Presidential Election
Tatarstan's State Council chairman, Farid Mukhametshin, refuted a report in Tatarstan that an early presidential poll is possible, Efir-inform reported on 20 September. A Tatar newspaper had reported that the election will be moved from March 2001 to December 2000, and that a decision on this will change will be made at the next session of the State Council on 22 September. Mukhametshin said that this issue is not on the agenda for the session, and added that the main task of the deputies is to develop a law on presidential elections that the people will support and that will be approved of by Moscow.
Tatarstan's Deputies Change Law On Republican Judges
The objections by Tatarstan's Prosecutor-General against the conflicting parts of local and federal legislation were at the top of the agenda at a parliamentary legislative committee session on 20 September, Efir-inform reported. Deputies approved proposed changes concerning the citizenship of judges, in which only citizens of Tatarstan will be able to be judges. Consideration of the federal prosecutor's protest against the law on the status of Tatarstan's parliamentary deputies' status was postponed.
Bashkortostan's Speaker: Bilateral Treaty With Moscow Should Not Be Altered
Bashkortostan's parliament speaker, Konstantin Tolkachev, told journalists in Ufa on 20 September that the republican authorities will defend the principles of the power-sharing treaty between the republic and Russia despite all attempts by federal bodies to annul it. He said "we consider the treaty itself to be justified and [that it] fully expresses the interests of both Bashkortostan and Russia." He noted that it is most important in the process of harmonizing republican and federal legislation to avoid making changes under undue haste and to keep the juridical system that currently exists in the republic.
Shaimiev To Visit Harvard University
Tatarstan's president, Mintimer Shaimiev, will participate in a symposium devoted to the prospects of foreign investment in the Russian economy at Harvard University next month, the Soyuz Pravykh Sil press service reported on 20 September. The Russian delegation going to Harvard, which is headed by Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Khristenko, will reportedly include Economic Development and Trade Minister German Gref, Communications Minister Leonid Reihman, Health Minister Yuri Shevchenko, the presidential representative to the Volga super district, Sergei Kirienko, and Central Bank deputy head Tatyana Paramonova.
Visitors From CIS States Will Need Visas
People from CIS countries residing on Tatarstan territory will soon need a residence permission, Tatar-inform reported on 20 September. The news agency cited the head of the citizenship department of the passport/visa service board, Robert Zakirov, as saying that the measure was initiated by the Russian government, which has decided to withdraw from the Bishkek agreement on visa-free status for CIS citizens. Permission for the visas will be issued by the passport/visa service, and those refused such permission will have to leave Tatarstan.
Kazan Helicopters At Air Show
The Kazan helicopter plant exhibited its production at the Hydroavia Show-2000 in Gelendzhik, in which over 100 Russian manufacturers of hydro-aircraft and helicopters took part, Tatar-inform reported on 20 September. Oleg Markov, the deputy head of the Kazan company's advertising department, said the MI-8 and MI-17 machines designed for emergency and fire-extinguishing needs were shown. A MI-8 helicopter owned by Tatarstan's Emergency Ministry demonstrated life-saving operations on the sea.
By Gulnara Khasanova