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UN Under-Secretary visits Belarus
4(588) 02.02.2004 From January 31 to February 3, 2004 Jan Egelann, UN Under-Secretary and coordinator of UN Chernobyl cooperation, will visit Belarus. Mr. Egelann intends to become familiar with humanitarian consequences of nuclear disaster at Chernobyl NPS personally and also to discuss questions concerning realization of a new UN Assembly resolution about consolidation of international cooperation and efforts coordination in the field of study and minimization of the disaster consequences with the government. On February 2 is expected an agreement between Belarus and UN concerning speeding-up the importation, coming-out and transit of first aid cargo and other property of personnel providing humanitarian help in cases of disaster and emergency to be completed.
Europe thinks of Belarus
5(589) 09.02.2004 A representative international conference “The Future of Democracy Abroad Baltic States” was held on February 6th in Riga. One of its’ results may be the foundation of some European centre for relations with Belarus with a headquarter in Baltic states or Poland. More than 200 people participated in the conference. Belarusian side was represented in this forum by 20 members of political and prodemocratic non-governmental organizations. They were invited to take part in a special section of the conference “Democracy in Belarus: elections 2004 and further”. The official Minsk had already manifested dissatisfaction with selection of participants before the conference (no representatives of the ruling regime). Belarusian opposition, on the contrary, was satisfied both with the forum and its results. The representatives of Belarusian opposition suggested the foundation of a special EU commission for relations with Belarus with the headquarter in one of neighbor countries joining EU on May 1, 2004. The suggestion is under consideration.
School of traditions
5(589) 09.02.2004 In late June it is planned the opening of creative workshops of traditional national handicrafts in Turov (Zhitkovichsky region of Gomel oblast). There will work weaving and embroidery masters, having skills and abilities of ancient Belarusian Polesye handicrafts. There are plans to organize a Revival Centre of Traditional Nature Management on the basis of these workshops in the future. All these projects are included in international project “School of traditions “Land of ancestors”, in which Belarusian ecological informative centre of protection of unexplored wilderness along with non-governmental organization “Bird Life Belarus” take part with the matching grant from UNDP in Belarus and the World Bank.
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