Business community demands to denounce Council of Ministers’ repressive Resolution

Such a decision was adopted on August 3 in Minsk at the emergency meeting with participation of businessmen.

The business-community will seek renouncing of the Council of Ministers’ resolution #991 of July 28, 2009 “On some issues of buying goods at the territory of Belarus” which was enacted on August 2.

On Monday evening the Republican confederation of entrepreneurship and other business associations plan to send a joint letter with a demand to denounce the resolution, BelaPAN informs.

According to estimations of businessmen who spoke at the meeting, in its present form the document is to do harm to the business. It will cause bankruptcy of most auction companies, representations of foreign enterprises, would cause withdrawal of foreign investors from Belarus. Besides, the resolution is to cause growth of corruption in state bodies, which receive powers to decide on official dealers.

“Such a document does not have a right to exit. Its operation must be immediately suspended, and should be found out with which aim it had been created, and what could be done to achieve this aim,” noted the chairman of the Republican Confederation of Entrepreneurship Viktar Marhelau. As said by him, the business-community is ready to help the government in all constructive initiatives, including endeavours for reducing the negative foreign trade balance and raising money for the state budget. “However we won’t discuss issues of how the economy should be ruined, which is proposed by the resolution #991,” Marhelau underscored. He also finds it necessary to pose a question of “treason against the State with the aim of economic collapse”, as there are all signs of that, he believes.

The chairman of the Belarusian Union of Entrepreneurs Alyaksandr Kalinin supposes that it is necessary to demand comments from creators of the law immediately, to make them explain their position. He has expressed the hope that the document is a “technical mistake”. “I hope that it doesn’t mean what is written there, as it is impossible to ban the institution of intermediaries. It will kill not only wholesale dealers, but would deliver a blow on retail business,” the head of the BUE noted.

Kalinin has also underlined that at the recent consultations in the government with participation of the first Vice Prime Minister Uladzimir Syamashka quite the opposite measures had been discussed: “We paid attention to the fact that the institution of intermediaries which was being wound down in our country for many years, should be restored on the contrary, which would allow to stimulate export of Belarusian goods”.

The chairman of the public association “Minsk capital union of entrepreneurs and employers” Uladzimir Karyahin has informed that on Monday a consultation in the government with participation of Premier Sidorski took place. They discussed the implementation of the resolution#991, and its explanations are to be prepared in the near future.

Referring to the telephone conversation with the deputy Minister of Economy Andrei Tur, Karyahin said that the resolution is not applied upon export of Belarusian goods, is not applied to individual entrepreneurs and physical persons (craftsmen and those employed in rural tourism). “As said by Andrei Tur, the resolution will not be applied to agreements signed before August 2,” Karyahin said.

He has also stated that the Economy Ministry is not a creator of the resolution #991, as said by Andri Tur, but it will explain its operation.

The document excludes intermediaries from the process of sales to legal entities of domestic and imported goods at the territory of Belarus. Since now legal entities are to buy goods with their own funds, borrowed funds and funds of country’s and local budgets only from suppliers who are manufacturers of goods, and also from their official sales representatives.