December

2000

From the editors

23.11.00 a one-day all-republican strike of the businessmen of the Republic of Belarus was held.

More than 150.000 businessmen and people working on hiring from all cities of the Republic of Belarus took part in the strike. Businessmen from Minsk, Grodno, Vitebsk, Gomel, Mogilyov, Pinsk, Soligorsk, Volkovysk, Dzerzhinsk and many other cities (more than 90 % of those who participated in the strike) took the most active part in the strike. In the total more than 30 large and small populated areas of Belarus took an active part in the strike. In other cities more than 80 % of businessmen participated in the strike.

In Minsk all large ware markets went on strike. In Gomel except for the strike of all markets (including food) the businessmen of the Auto Markets passed through the city in cars and the headlights of their cars were switched on. The action was shoot by a local television. The active workers of the trade union of the businessmen explained about why the action of the protest is carried out.

THE BUSINESSMEN HAD INFORMED ALL INTERESTED MINISTRIES And OFFICES about the forthcoming STRIKE two weeks prior to its beginning. However any official did not attempt at have a talk with the businessmen.

The requirements of the businessmen:

-         cancellation of the Order of the State customs committee of the Republic of Belarus from September 20, 2000 N 55: «About customs registration of the goods imported to the customs territory of the Republic of Belarus from the territory of Russian Federation made in the third countries and put into the free circulation in Russian Federation» in a part concerning personal businessmen;

Cancellation of instituting administrative and criminal proceedings of personal businessmen on formal and far-fetched reasons;

-         cancellation of the use of the obligatory book keeping for the businessmen who pay the fixed rates of the tax. The fly-off slip should be given to a buyer only as the document verifying the purchase;

-     to put some changes in the Decrees of the President of RB # 14 from 04.08.97 and # 15 from 04.09.98 excluding the confiscation of the goods. The property should be inviolable. The confiscation of the property can be only done according to the decision of the court and only that which have been acquired in a criminal way;

-            cancellation of the groundlessly high administrative fines for personal businessmen. The maximum size of the administrative fine should not exceed 10 minimal wages.

-            reduction of the rent payment for a place. The cost of one square meter of the trade area in the markets should not be higher than the rent payment for one square meter of the trade area in a state shop;

-         not to allow to increase the present fixed rates of the tax for personal businessmen;

-Cancellation of the obligatory certification of small-sized batches of the goods for personal businessmen. Such goods should be on sale with a checkmark "The Goods is not certificated in the Republic of Belarus";

-         not to allow to increase the present fixed rates of the tax for personal businessmen;

-     to allow businessmen to choose a system of payment of taxes (on the fixed rates or from the obtained income) themselves;

-            working out (together with the Belorussian union of the businessmen) and introducing of the standard agreement on the rent of trade places. The agreement on the rent of a place should be made just after the first requirement of a businessman;

-     introducing of liability of the bodies producing the certificates of quality and other documents verifying quality of the goods before a customer. I.e. a customer should have a right to bring an action against a seller of the poor-quality goods and against a body producing the document verifying quality and safety of the goods;

-            discontinuance of the outrage of the tax organs and the bodies of MIA.

The specificity of the strike of the businessmen is that the businessmen have paid all taxes and payments, rent of trade places for this day of work (23.11.2000) and do not work.

The 23.11.2000 one-day strike of the businessmen is the first action of the protest from several which are planned to protect the rights of the businessmen for November - January 2000-2001. It is supposed to realise a meeting in the middle of December in Minsk.

The first results of the strike have already got. All mass media has paid attention to us. We are having the talks with the government to solve a conflict situation.

We will get everything we want in any way. We are not those, separate businessmen’s structures, as we have been earlier. The unity real instead of imaginary is a token of success of this strike. The strike has shown that we have done everything in a right way having refused from a superfluous ballast of state trade unions and separate pseudo-leaders. Now instead of them we have created new real trade unions of the businessmen in these cities.

I personally, the Strike Committee of the businessmen and the Belorussian Trade union of the Businessmen thank you all, businessmen! The special thanks to the active workers of the Belorussian Trade union of the Businessmen, Free and Independent trade unions of the businessmen.

The businessmen today have turn into the active and organised force. The authorities now should take this force into the account. And it is the main conclusion of the strike.

The strike got «five with plus» from the Strike Committee. It is the largest strike in Belarus for the last 5 years.

Once again thank you all.

Yours faithfully

Valery Levonevsky

Reasons and results of the November 23, 2000strike of businessmen.

According to the information which is given by the state bodies in Belarus, approximately 152.000 personal businessmen and about 200.000 people working on hiring are registered.

If we take into account that each of them has family in a percent ratio this interlayer of the population makes about 10 % of the population of Belarus. Certainly, if we will estimate these people as it is done by the higher officials of the state they are only "buy and sell". But if we recognise that these citizens of Belarus even in such very difficult conditions attempt to show the economical initiative and to do something it is possible to say that this is the most active layer of the population. What was a reason which made more than 150.000 businessmen and people working on hiring go on such a step which is unprofitable for them? In brief, the "legislative" process in Belarus has gone so "far" that today, at first, it is difficult to understand who "prepares" these laws. And secondly, such legislative acts are published that a businessman is simply not capable to execute them. Everyone who in any degree is familiar with the activity of businessmen knows: if you carry out everything that is offered to you - will stay with nothing. If you fill all books, way-bills, slips, certificates etc. as it is necessary, you will have time for nothing then. Businessmen have been driven into a corner (we do not know whether the authorities have thought about it or not) and the last thing they have to do is to strike.

This event shows that those officials which prepare the legislative acts which regulate the activity of businessmen have a vague idea about the activity of these businessmen. If this part of the population (about 10 %) was submitted in a present House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus there should be not less than 10 deputies presenting their interests. If also the deputies of the House of Representatives had the real legislative rights then there should not be such conflicts of duties, as then when the laws concerned with the small businessmen were accepted, their concerns would be taken into account.

Our publishers of the laws frequently devise a bicycle which is very similar for some reason to a collective-farm cart. They would like all to be taken into account, all to be enumerated, all to be checked and the would like to check every pocket. It seems that they will soon control how many heads of garlic were planted by an old woman at her garden, how many strawberries are planted, etc. The idea of control itself is irrational. But whether is it so vivid that if everything is controlled what will appear from this?

It seemed that the main purpose of the state officials should be the creation of the conditions at which it would be profitable for citizens to be engaged in business then they would somebody to collect taxes from. But it is not so, they have completely other problems. We have the impression that everything is done for a half of citizens of the country go and check up what the second half of citizens does. Thus the problem of employment is solved. We ask what would happen if a businessman paid a reasonable tax would be protected from any checks on his trade place of size 2 on 2 meters? Nothing, the number of those who take bribes would reduce. If Belarus was the only country in the world with such problems then we have no place where to take examples from but we know that in other countries these problems are decided completely in a different way.

The strikes show that while businessmen do not begin to strike nobody in this state want to hear about their problems. Though the local officials and even high-rank officials of the government understand the absurdity of some laws, however they are frightened and are not capable to show initiative when particular problems of businessmen are solved. Each of them is afraid to lose the place as he understands that in this state sometimes even ministers appear in the handcuffs.

The 23 November strike has also shown one more important point, the absolute majority of the businessmen has already understood that they can achieve something only by joint actions, together they are force. Many political figures start "to make advances" to businessmen and try to use them with the mercenary purposes. Earlier they did not pay ant attention to us. Now, when we are one strong structure “the walkers” have "rushed" to us from different directions. But they woke up late. From the environment of businessmen the core or skeleton of the future political party of economical sense has already formed. We shall not support the right considerably adjusted, reactionary parties. We shall not allow to use us in their politics tricks. The draft program of the Party of Economical Revival (PER) is prepared. Businessmen start to understand that it is impossible to live by one day, it is impossible to think that any political figures with low communist thinking can create normal conditions for the activity of the businessmen. It is impossible "to sail on flow", it is necessary to everybody to join the political struggle and to build an independent long-term economic policy. The majority of the businessmen are completely devoted to their hard activity as the business does not suffer those who works «in a slipshod manner». But among them there are those who start to be engaged in the political activity on the professional basis. Valery Levonevsky managed to rally adherents and to create a command. The result of this activity of this command is already seen on the example of the strike. Practically, each city has the printed materials about reasons of the strike, each businessman who want to learn about it was said about the purposes and problems of the strike.

Even the state MASS-MEDIAS, including television, began to sound sore problems of the businessmen».

To be short it is possible to say: «The National strike of the businessmen has been held successfully».

Alexander Vasliev

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