Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Belarus

U.S., OSCE Concerned About Belarusian Bill

3 December 2005 -- The West is expressing strong concerns about Belarus, a day after the
country's lower house of parliament, the Chamber of Representatives, passed
legislation intended to curb attempts at popular protests against
President Alyaksandr Lukashenka.

TEXT SIZE - +

December 03, 2005

U.S. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack early today warned that
full adoption of the bill could result in what he called "serious
consequences for Belarusian authorities."

Europe's biggest security and rights body, the Organization for
Security and Cooperation and Europe (OSCE), said it is "gravely concerned"
about the legislation. An OSCE statement said the bill's provisions
"have the potential to become a flagrant violation of a number of the
OSCE principles and commitments that Belarus has subscribed to."

But the Belarusian security service, the KGB, said the legislation is necessary as the country prepares for a
presidential
poll next year to prevent street protests such as those that brought
opposition leaders to power in the former Soviet republics of Georgia,
Ukraine, and Kyrgyzstan.

The bill now goes to the upper house, the Council of the Republic, for final approval.

(with Reuters)

A vendor in the central Bosnian town of Zenica sells heart-shaped cushions with proclamations of love for 1 euro each.

Love It (Or Hate It), It's Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day, the Western holiday celebrating love, has become a global phenomenon over the past two decades. The fall of communism and the emergence of the Internet have helped February 14 become something of an unofficial international day of romance. However, not all the passions the holiday stirs are related to love. While some countries have openly embraced the holiday, others are attempting to ban it or replace it with local customs. More

'Police Detain Stuffed Animals' In Minsk Toy Protest

Belarusian youth activists say police have "detained" some stuffed animals used in an antigovernment protest in Minsk, in an echo of similar recent protests in Russia. More

There are frequent reports in the Bulgarian and Ukrainian media about Romanian “pirates” robbing passing transport ships on the Danube. (file photo)

Reports Of 'Pirates Of The Danube' Get The Old Heave-Ho

An attack last month on a Ukrainian barge on the Romanian sector of the Danube River has caused a diplomatic tussle between Bucharest and Kyiv, sparking media reports of possible acts of piracy on Europe's second-largest river. But do “Danube pirates” actually exist? More