"One of the sponsors of the cinema festival 'A woman's portrait in interior', director of the Goethe Institute in Minsk, Heike Ellen Muller, called the festival a new form of cultural co-operation of France and Germany in Belarus. According to her, from this time on such a festival will become traditional."
"Belarusian cinema lovers were granted a possibility to see six famous pictures made by women directors of France and Germany on March 12-20 [2001]. The festival was organized by the French Embassy department on co-operation and culture, the Goethe Institute in Minsk, and Minsk's "Cinemaclub". Within the framework of the festival three German and three French pictures were shown in the Republican Center of Culture of Veterans."
"109 Belarusian women have been deported from European countries to Belarus for prostitution from January, 1999, to April, 2000. It's only a small proportion of those who are involved in this 'illegal business.' Many of them have been forced to become prostitutes. Many of them have been deceived, said Alena Ambrozhavich, employee of the Polish La Strada foundation, set up to fight trade in Belarusian women abroad."
"Alena Ambrozhavich: 'In most cases, women are told that they would work legally. They are cheated about conditions of work, about payment. They are often asked to give their passports in order to get a residence stamp and then forced to work.' "
"In December, 2000, the Belarusian Association of Young Christian Women launched a joint project with La Strada aimed at fighting trade in Belarusian women abroad. Within several months of their work partner associations have conducted a number of educational seminars for Belarusian women planning on going abroad and opened a hotline which enjoys increasing popularity among Belarusian women. The number of addresses to the hotline proves that the problem is very accute."