Entrepreneurs change tactics
Entrepreneurs opposed presidential decree #760. But only the patience of the four hundred people who came to the meeting “was giving way”.
ERB NOTE
According to the decree, all private entrepreneurs should register as legal entities or continue their work after uniting in micro-enterprises.
It is interesting to recall last year’s actions of entrepreneurs because it has been a second meeting of the kind. For example, several thousand entrepreneurs refused to work and marched through Minsk in the spring of 2006.
The action was connected with the introduction of a value added tax. Then entrepreneurs reached their goal and VAT was changed to single tax. The thing is there were no political demands last year.
There were several thousand entrepreneurs who had economic demands in 2006 but this year there are only several hundred of them.
Still, regardless of such a small number of participants the organizers say it is only a beginning. One of the meeting participants Aliaksandar Makaeu says:
“We announced the meeting of entrepreneurs in March and the meeting of wage earners on May 1. We will stick to the strategy. We have announced a republican strike on March 25 because the problems are very serious and officials and authorities are not willing to compromise.”
Entrepreneurs tried to come to an agreement with the authorities. Negotiations with different ministries lasted two months but failed. After that entrepreneurs decided to organize a protest action.
The European Radio for Belarus tried to find out the opinion of the meeting participants. Many of them were set at bay. An entrepreneur from Homel Іryna Kamіnskaya says:
“Last year the state policy was aimed at giving credits to entrepreneurs to help small-scale business. About 5000 entrepreneurs were given credits but they were already not able to register as legal entities.
It will be necessary to pay off all credits and debts and close down private enterprises. I cannot reregister because I took a credit as an entrepreneur.
Only idiots could have invented it. It is not small-scale business; it is elimination of small-scale business. First they give something and then they stifle you”.
Interestingly, it was a day off for private entrepreneurs yesterday because Belarusian markets do not work on Mondays. It is frightening to think how many entrepreneurs are going to participate in the action on March 25.
We asked the head of Baranavichy Union of Entrepreneurs Aleh Bashko whether he supported the coming political action of the Belarusian opposition on March 25. He said the following:
“As entrepreneurs, we support it because politicians raise our problems too. But my personal opinion has always been like that – politics is good but let me work and support my family.
Don’t prevent us from working. We are still citizens of this country. But it seems we were not citizens but dregs of society”.
Almost all leaders of the Belarusian opposition were present at yesterday’s meeting: Alyaksandar Mіlіnkevіch, Anatol Lyabedzka, Vіntsuk Vyachorka and others. Some of them even made speeches. But will the presence of the Belarusian opposition elite help Belarusian entrepreneurs?
Members of the opposition used to envy entrepreneurs’ actions. Politicians could not gather so many people for a civil action. But the situation seems to be changing. Is our country becoming more politicized?
Trying to understand entrepreneurs’ problems with you, Zmіtser Trauchuk, European Radio for Belarus.
