Brest KGB considers actions towards Alexander Mekh legal

07.08.2008. Tags: Belarusian Popular Front, KGB, dismissals, elections-2008.
Source: RFE/RL.

On 6 August a potential candidate at the parliamentary elections, the head of Kobryn town organization of the Belarusian Popular Front Party Alexander Mekh received an answer to his complaint to the KGB.

In the beginning of June a KGB officer and the head of Kobryn bureau of Beltransgas pipelines persuaded him against participation in the election, as a veteran of the Belarusian parliament Viktar Kuchynski was to run at the same election district.

Mr. Mekh recorded the conversation. Soon it appeared on the web and in press. He decided to put his candidacy to the elections and was fired in the end of June. He sued against the dismissal, asking the court for rehabilitation at work. He also demands explanations from the KGB concerning the legality of such means of pressurization on the opposition. By the way, on 4 August, at the first court sitting the head of Kobryn Beltransgas pipelines bureau Uladzimir Halashka confessed that the abovementioned conversation had really taken place, but not ‘on such a scale’.

The activist described the situation: ‘I filed to the KGB a complaint against the actions of its worker Andrei Basko because on 4 June I had been summonsed to the office of Uladzimir Halashka, where a KGB officer was waiting for me. Both of them threatened that I would be dismissed in case I did not revoke my candidacy.

I recorded this conversation to my mobile phone. There were several articles in Narodnaya Volia describing what had happened. There is also a script of this talk. I attached an article and this script to my complaint to the head of Brest oblast KGB department. Here’s the answer I received from there, signed by the deputy head of the department Dziadkou:

‘Your statement was considered by the KGB department. A duty check-up was conducted. No law violations of the present legislation of the Republic of Belarus were found as a result.’’