Procurator’s Office Rejects Application of Borisovskie Novosti Chief Editor

02.09.2005.

According to Belarusian Association of Journalists

Barysau City Procurator’s Office didn’t satisfy the complaint of Anatol Bukas, chief editor of Borisovskie Novosti newspaper, against illegal obstacles to distribution of his edition. In the complaint he stated that the workers of Barysau City Executive Committee Valiantsina Shutko and Natallia Kaspierskaia purposefully hindered the sale of the newspaper in the city. According to Bukas’ information, in the middle of July Mrs. Shutko personally ordered to remove Borisovsie Novosti from the news stand of a pavilion in Chkalauskaia Street because the newspaper wasn’t included into the list of the sold goods. To the editor’s mind, N. Kaspierskaia committed the same violation by prohibiting the sale of the newspaper in Voyage shop and several private pavilions (A. Bukas put down their surnames in the complaint). One of the vendors applied to the authorities, asking to accept amendments to the registered line of goods, but they refused to do it. It is also prohibited to sell Borisovskie Novosti at the news stands of the state distribution net Miablsaiuzdruk, post departments, etc.

A. Bukas is sire that the mentioned workers of Barysau CEC “explained Presidential decree #4 in their own way”: despite the fact that the document defines the minimal line of goods necessary to receive the license for retail, they demand from the businessmen and directors of shops to register the whole line of goods.

The chief editor asked the procurator’s office to inform the officials about inadmissibility of such actions and also submit the answer to the mentioned vendors. The procurator’s office refused to do it and stated he could complain against its decision to court or Minsk Regional Procurator’s Office.