29 Лютага 2004
Social Democrats in Brest petition Regional Soviet to demand decrease in utility rates

 The leaders of the Brest regional organization of the Belarusian Social Democratic Party "Narodnaya Hramada" (BSDP), Igor Maslovsky, Anatoly Levkovich and Valentin Lazarenkov, have petitioned the Brest Regional Soviet to discuss the system of setting utility rates at its next session and demand a decrease in the rates from the executive branch.
"We are interested to know why the Brest region has the highest utility rates and the lowest average pay among Belarus' regions. The residents of the region who voted for our candidacies in elections for the Regional Soviet are also interested to know this," Mr. Levkovich told BelaPAN.
The Social Democrats have demanded on behalf of their voters that the Regional Soviet summon representatives of the executive to the session so that they will explain what were the grounds to raise the rates. "We would like to know if the factor of low wages, pensions and allowances was taken into consideration when the decisions to raise the rates were made," Mr. Levkovich said. According to him, the Social Democrats regard the decisions as a direct violation of Article 21 of the Constitution, which declares each citizen's right to a decent standard of living and a constant improvement in the conditions necessary for this.
The petitioners suggest that the Regional Soviet reply to them in writing and give an answer to the voters through the media.