Have they have come to terms with their conscience in exchange for apartment?

In the run-up to the New Year Belarusian prime minister signed a decree of the Council of Ministers to give service flats to workers of the Belarusian state TV and radio company.

Mostly employees of the Agency of TV news have received housing in the prestigious district near former Masherau (Victors’) Avenue. Free service apartments have been received by editors of ONT channel Volha Ermakova, Yury Kruglik, a political analyst maxim Karotkin, a cameraman assistant Andrei Khryscinin, the head of the press-service Svyatlana Kraskouskaya (45 square metres for each), ONT programmer Yury Berastau, the head of the sports news Mikalai Stula. As stated in the decree of the Council of Ministers, the service flats have been given to a group of TV workers for the period of labour relations with the National State TV and Radio Company.

The head of the press-service of the Belarusian State TV and Radio Company Svyatlana Kraskouskaya, who has received a flat herself, reacted to the question of Radio Svaboda to comment on the news about free flats:

“Does your question have any bearing to professional activities of our company? I won’t comment your question. I wish you all the best”.

A former judge of the constitutional court and former head of law department of the Council of Ministers Valer Fadzeeu said:

“It’s not a completely normal situation. In case the economy would develop normally, people could earn money, take loans and build houses. And now it is unreal to buy or build anything for honestly earned money in our country”.

In Soviet era there were some criterions for giving service flats: when people need to live near the place of work (like plumbers, yard keepers, district policemen). Law on housing in Belarus includes articles on service flats, but there are no categories of people who could be given such flats. These people are to be defined by the leader of the state and the Council of Ministers. In some laws, (“Law on police”, “On prosecutor’s office”, “On courts and judges status”) there is a list of workers who can receive service flats. But journalists are not mentioned in any of these documents. This information cannot be found in the “Law on press and mass media” too.

“Now people do not receive state flats. People have to buy flats for their money. And in this case state gives these flats. I do not know what the reasons for giving service flats for the State TV and Radio Companies workers are. The worker will be attached to this working place. Maybe teachers should be given flats as well. But are there resources for that? And there is money for representatives of the Belarusian State TV and Radio company, as it has turned out,” told Ph.D. in law Valer Fadzeeu.

By the way, earlier workers of the state TV and radio received favourable loans and built flats themselves (which was much cheaper than for usual citizens).