The Republic of Belarus today: General Outlook

Belarus declared its independence on 25 August 1991. According to the Constitution, adopted in March 1994, the Republic of Belarus is a unitary democratic social state based on the rule of law, which exercises supreme control and absolute authority over its entire territory, and pursues an independent internal and foreign policy. Currently the Republic of Belarus is a sovereign independent state.

The politics of Belarus takes place in a framework of a presidential republic, whereby the President of Belarus is the Head of State, the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, the guarantor of the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus, the rights and liberties of man and citizen.

Under the Constitution, the President is elected directly by the people of the Republic of Belarus for a term of office of five years by universal, free, equal, direct electoral suffrage and by secret ballot.

State power in the Republic is exercised on the principle of division of powers between the legislature, executive and judiciary. State bodies, within the confines of their powers, are independent: they cooperate among themselves acting on the principle of checks and balances.

The country's supreme legislative authority is the National Assembly, however the President may enact decrees that are executed the same way as laws. The National Assembly is a bicameral Parliament comprising the 110-seat House of Representatives (the lower house) and the 64-seat Council of the Republic (the upper house). The House of Representatives has the power to appoint the Prime Minister, make constitutional amendments, call for a vote of confidence on the Prime Minister, and make suggestions on foreign and domestic policy. The Council of the Republic has the power to select various government officials, conduct an impeachment trial of the President, and accept or reject the bills passed by the House of Representatives. Each chamber has the ability to veto any law passed by local officials if it is contrary to the Constitution of Belarus.

Executive power in the Republic of Belarus is exercised by the Government – the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus – the central body of state administration. The Government in its activity is accountable to the President and responsible to Parliament. The head of the Council is the Prime Minister, appointed by the President with the consent of the House of Representatives. The Prime Minister manages the activities of the Government and informs the President on its basic guidelines and on all the most important decisions.

The judicial power in the Republic is performed by the Supreme Court and specialized courts such as the Constitutional Court, which deals with specific issues related to constitutional and business law. The judges of national courts are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Council of the Republic. Supervision of the exact and uniform execution of laws by all bodies of state management, local councils and other legal and physical persons is carried out by the General Public Prosecutor of the Republic of Belarus.

Control over the fulfilment of the republican budget, the utilization of state property, the execution of parliamentary acts, regulating the relations with state property, economic, financial and tax relations, is carried out by the State Control Committee.

11. Check your understanding of the text by marking these statements as True or False. Provide evidence from the text to support your answers.

1. The Republic of Belarus as a sovereign country was formed in 1990, following the disintegration of the Soviet Union.

2. Our national Constitution was adopted in March 1994 in which the functions of the Prime Minister were given to the President.

3. According to the Constitution, the Republic of Belarus is a presidential republic, governed by the President and the National Assembly.

4. Alexander Lukashenko has been the President of Belarus since 1992.

5. The unicameral Parliament consists of the Council of the Republic and the House of Representatives.

6. The Council of Ministers is the legislative branch of state power, and is appointed by the President of Belarus.

7. Control over the constitutional compliance of normative acts in the country is fulfilled by the Supreme Court.