GOVERNMENT DISCUSSES BANKER’S DEATH.

The murder of bankerIvan Kivelidi figured prominently on the agenda of the government’sAugust 7 cabinet meeting chaired by Viktor Chernomyrdin, OstankinoTV reported. Chernomyrdin pledged "tough measures againstthe underworld" and promised full assistance to the investigativeagencies. He also criticized journalists for hampering the investigationinto this case by publishing unreliable information. MeanwhileVladimir Shcherbakov, the dead banker’s deputy, ruled out thepossibility that Kivelidi was killed for personal or financialreasons. He called the murder "an act of political terror,"recalling that following the murder of banker Oleg Kantor lastmonth, Kivelidi had publicly vowed to organize the financial communityto resist organized crime, Independent TV reported 7 August. However the August 7 Izvestiya carried an article claiming that the reason for Kivelidi’s murder may have been his objectionto the proposal by Russia’s eight largest banks that they takecontrol of privatized state enterprises as a form of guaranteeingtheir credits to the government.

Disputes over Electoral Law