I 
110TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5970 
To amend the Belarus Democracy Act of 2004 to reauthorize that Act, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 6, 2008 
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey (for himself, Mr. HASTINGS of Florida, Mr. MCIN-
TYRE, Mr. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART of Florida, Mr. MCCOTTER, Mr. 
PALLONE, Mr. HOLT, Mr. SHIMKUS, Mr. MCGOVERN, and Mr. DAVIS of 
Illinois) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on the Ju-
diciary and Financial Services, for a period to be subsequently determined 
by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To amend the Belarus Democracy Act of 2004 to reauthorize 
that Act, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Belarus Democracy 
Reauthorization Act of 2008’’. 
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SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO REAUTHORIZATION OF THE 
BELARUS DEMOCRACY ACT OF 2004. 
The Belarus Democracy Act of 2004 (Public Law 
109–480; 22 U.S.C. 5811 note) is amended— 
(1) in section 2— 
(A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘the Re-
public of’’; and 
(B) by striking paragraphs (3) through 
(11) and inserting the following new para-
graphs: 
‘‘(3) The Government of Belarus has subjected 
thousands of pro-democratic political activists to fre-
quent harassment, beatings, and jailings, particu-
larly as a result of their attempts to peacefully exer-
cise their right to freedom of assembly and associa-
tion. 
‘‘(4) The Government of Belarus has attempted 
to maintain a monopoly over the country’s informa-
tion space, targeting independent media, including 
independent journalists, for systematic reprisals and 
elimination, while suppressing the right to freedom 
of speech and expression of those dissenting from 
the regime of Aleksandr Lukashenka. 
‘‘(5) The Government of Belarus has mounted 
a systematic campaign of harassment, repression, 
and closure of nongovernmental organizations, in-
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cluding independent trade unions and associations of 
entrepreneurs, and this crackdown has created a cli-
mate of fear that inhibits the development of civil 
society and social solidarity. 
‘‘(6) The Government of Belarus has increas-
ingly subjected leaders and members of ethnic and 
religious minorities to harassment, including the im-
position of heavy fines, denying permission to meet 
for religious services, prosecutions, and jail terms for 
activities in the practice of their faith. 
‘‘(7) The Government of Belarus has attempted 
to silence dissent by persecuting human rights and 
pro-democracy activists with threats, firings, expul-
sions, beatings and other forms of intimidation, and 
restrictions on freedom of movement and prohibition 
of international travel. 
‘‘(8) The President of Belarus, Aleksandr 
Lukashenka, has established himself in power by or-
chestrating an illegal and unconstitutional ref-
erendum that enabled him to impose a new constitu-
tion, abolishing the duly-elected parliament, the 13th 
Supreme Soviet, installing a largely powerless Na-
tional Assembly, extending his term in office, and re-
moving applicable term limits. 
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‘‘(9) The Government of Belarus failed to make 
a convincing effort to solve the cases of disappeared 
opposition figures Yuri Zakharenka, Viktor Gonchar, 
and Anatoly Krasovsky and journalist Dmitry 
Zavadsky, even though credible allegations and evi-
dence links top officials of the Government to these 
disappearance. 
‘‘(10) In 2006, the Government of Belarus con-
ducted presidential elections that failed to meet 
standards of the Organization for Security and Co-
operation in Europe (OSCE) for democratic elec-
tions, and the numerous detentions and arbitrary 
use of state power which accompanied the elections 
showed the disregard of the Government of Belarus 
for the basic rights to freedom of assembly, associa-
tion, and expression, and reinforced doubts regard-
ing the willingness of the Government of Belarus to 
tolerate political competition. 
‘‘(11) In 2008, the Government of Belarus re-
leased some political prisoners who had been impris-
oned or served ‘corrective labor’ sentences because of 
their political activity. 
‘‘(12) Aleksandr Kozulin, an opposition leader 
whom the Social Democratic Party nominated in 
2006 as its candidate for President of Belarus, re-
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mains in prison, where he continues to serve a five 
and a half year term for his political activity. 
‘‘(13) The Department of State, Department of 
the Treasury, and other executive branch agencies 
have heretofore made effective use of this Act to 
promote the purposes of this Act, as stated in sec-
tion 3 of this Act.’’; 
(2) in section 3— 
(A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘call 
upon’’ and inserting ‘‘continue to call for’’; 
(B) in paragraphs (2) and (3)— 
(i) by inserting ‘‘continue to’’ before 
‘‘support’’ each place it appears; and 
(ii) by striking ‘‘the Republic of’’ each 
place it appears; 
(C) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘seek 
and’’ and inserting ‘‘continue to’’; 
(D) in paragraph (5)— 
(i) by inserting ‘‘continue to’’ before 
‘‘refuse’’; and 
(ii) by striking ‘‘fatally’’ and inserting 
‘‘fundamentally’’; 
(E) in paragraph (6)— 
(i) by inserting ‘‘continue to’’ before 
‘‘refuse’’; and 
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(ii) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 
(F) in paragraph (7)— 
(i) by inserting ‘‘continue to’’ before 
‘‘work’’; and 
(ii) by striking the period at the end 
and inserting ‘‘; and’’ 
(G) by adding at the end the following new 
paragraph: 
‘‘(8) to remain open to reevaluating United 
States policy toward Belarus as warranted by de-
monstrable progress made by the Government of 
Belarus consistent with the aims of this Act as stat-
ed in this section.’’; 
(3) in section 4— 
(A) in subsection (a)(1), by striking ‘‘the 
Republic of’’; 
(B) in subsection (c)(1), by striking ‘‘radio 
and television’’ and inserting ‘‘radio, television, 
and Internet’’; and 
(C) in subsection (d)(1), by striking ‘‘2007 
and 2008’’ and inserting ‘‘2007 through 2010’’; 
(4) in section 5— 
(A) in the section heading, by striking 
‘‘RADIO
AND
TELEVISION’’ and inserting 
‘‘RADIO, TELEVISION, AND INTERNET’’; 
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(B) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘radio 
and television’’ and inserting ‘‘radio, television, 
and internet’’; and 
(C) in subsection (b)— 
(i) by inserting ‘‘, and such sums as 
may be necessary for fiscal year 2009 and 
each subsequent fiscal year for Internet 
broadcasting,’’; and 
(ii) by inserting before the period at 
the end the following: ‘‘, including broad-
casting by Radio Free Europe/Radio Lib-
erty, the Voice of America, and European 
Radio for Belarus and Belsat’’; 
(5) in section 6— 
(A) in subsection (b)— 
(i) in paragraph (4), by inserting 
‘‘student activists, ethnic minority and’’ 
before ‘‘religious organizations’’; and 
(ii) in paragraph (5), by inserting be-
fore the period at the end the following: 
‘‘and violations of human rights’’; 
(6) by redesignating section 9 as section 8; and 
(7) in section 8, as so redesignated— 
(A) by striking paragraph (1); 
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(B) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and 
(3) as paragraphs (1) and (2), respectively; and 
(C) in paragraph (3)(B)(i), by striking 
‘‘and prosecutors’’ and inserting ‘‘, prosecutors, 
and heads of professional associations and edu-
cational institutions’’. 
Æ 
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