Workers of P.Brouka Belarusian Encyclopedia Publishing House Don’t Want to Lose Their Old Building

According to BelaPAN

The workers of the Republican Unitarian enterprise P.Brouka Belarusian Encyclopedia Publishing House consider the transfer of the publishing house from the old building (located in Akademichnaia Street, 15a, in the center of Minsk) to the multistoried building in Stsebeneu Street, 20-2 (at the city’s outskirts) inexpedient. It was stated by the initiative group of the collective that was established for applying to the city authorities.

According to the workers, in autumn 2005 the publishing house was visited by representatives of the Supreme Economic Court, after which the enterprise administration and a number of well-known scientists and workers of culture applied to Aliaksandr Lukashenka and to the presidential administration with the request to leave the old building to the publishing house. Then the administration of the enterprise received presidential order of 13 March 2006 about passing the building to the Minsk City Economic Court. Five days later the president ordered to issue means for reconstruction of this building.

As soon as the new building that is given to the publishing house is situated at the far outskirts of Minsk and quite far from the nearest bus stop, the member of the initiative group consider that moving to it will mean the death of the publishing house that cooperates with scientists of the National Academy of Sciences and a number of Minsk universities. Besides, the new building is not suited for a publishing house and will demand much money for reconstruction.

Due to the fact that all proposals of the initiative group were ignored by the authorities, ˜ of the workers left the enterprise. In the case of moving to the new location the publishing house will lose half of its workers. Among the possible reasons for such situation members of the initiative group call the economic interest of the state officials in the building in Akademichnaia Street and differences in the ideological views.