The People’s Assembly, something akin to a senate, will become a body with constitutional powers and not just a consultative one. It will absorb some of the powers of the president, preparing ground for a life without Lukashenko in Belarus, and to despair of western experts, looks awfully similar to Soviet Union’s Central Committee or China’s National People Congress.
It is of course a reaction to the attempted coup in 2020, which has backfired in moving Belarus further away from liberalism. Western think tanks, which I will not link here for the sake of hygiene, are criticizing the “left wing populist” tone of the government, which has as priorities reducing living costs and taxing the rich. And in general have a very defeatist tone as they recognize the government has hardened its grip and it will be hard to repeat what they tried in 2020. The opposition will most likely boycott the parliament, people’s assembly and presidential elections instead of trying to win them.
Be the vanguard you want to see in the world.
From https://president.gov.by/en/statebodies/belarusian-people-s-congress
According to the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus that was amended and supplemented at the national referendum on 27 February 2022, the Belarusian People’s Congress has become a constitutional body. The responsibilities, the order of formation, and the actitives of the Belarusian People’s Congress are specified in Chapter 31 of the Constitution and the law.
The Belarusian People’s Congress is the highest representative body of people’s power of the Republic of Belarus, which determines the strategic areas of development of society and the state, ensures the inviolability of the constitutional system, the continuity of generations, and civil accord.
The delegates of the Belarusian People’s Congress include:
- President of the Republic of Belarus;
- President of the Republic of Belarus, who has ceased to exercise his powers (expiration of the term of office, early resignation);
- representatives of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches;
- representatives of local Councils of Deputies;
- representatives of civil society.
Delegates from local Councils of Deputies and civil society are elected from each oblast and the city of Minsk in the manner determined by law.
The maximum number of delegates of the Belarusian People’s Congress is 1,200 people.
The term of office of the Belarusian People’s Congress is five years.
The meetings of the Belarusian People’s Congress are held at least once a year.
The Belarusian People’s Congress is empowered to approve the main guidelines of the domestic and foreign policy, the military doctrine, the national security concept; to approve the social and economic development programs of the Republic of Belarus; to receive the Prime Minister’s report on the implementation of the social and economic development programs of the Republic of Belarus. The Belarusian People’s Congress has the right of legislative initiative.
The resolutions of the Belarusian People’s Congress are mandatory for execution and can revoke the legal acts, other resolutions of government bodies and officials that contradict the interests of national secutrity, except for the acts of courts.
Some more info from a reactionary article: https://constitutionnet.org/news/belaruss-upcoming-referendum-lukashenka-stacks-deck
The ABPA would be given wide-ranging competences and significant powers, including the following: appointing and dismissing judges of the Constitutional and Supreme Courts, as well as the Chairperson and members of the Central Electoral Commission; proposing constitutional amendments and referendums; giving binding instructions to state bodies and officials; introducing a state of emergency or martial law; and approving the main directions of domestic and foreign policy, military doctrine, and national security (Section 3). Further, and ominously, the ABPA can impeach the president (currently the prerogative of the parliament), has “the right to consider the question of the legitimacy of elections” and can “annul legal acts and decisions of other state bodies and actors which run counter to the interests of national security…”
So it looks like the All-Belarusian People’s Assembly (ABPA) or Belarusian People’s Congress went from being a CPPCC to NPC in terms of China’s political structure.
As a comparison, here are China’s NPC powers: https://english.www.gov.cn/archive/lawsregulations/201911/20/content_WS5ed8856ec6d0b3f0e9499913.html
Article 62 The National People’s Congress shall exercise the following functions and powers:
- (1) amending the Constitution;
- (2) overseeing the enforcement of the Constitution;
- (3) enacting and amending criminal, civil, state institutional and other basic laws;
- (4) electing the president and the vice president of the People’s Republic of China;
- (5) deciding, based on nomination by the president of the People’s Republic of China, on the successful candidate for the premier of the State Council; deciding, based on nominations by the premier of the State Council, on the successful candidates for vice premiers, state councilors, ministers of ministries, ministers of commissions, the auditor general and the secretary general of the State Council;
- (6) electing the chairperson of the Central Military Commission and deciding, based on nominations by the chairperson of the Central Military Commission, on the successful candidates for other members of the Central Military Commission;
- (7) electing the chairperson of the National Commission of Supervision;
- (8) electing the president of the Supreme People’s Court;
- (9) electing the procurator general of the Supreme People’s Procuratorate;
- (10) reviewing and approving the plan for national economic and social development and the report on its implementation;
- (11) reviewing and approving the state budget and the report on its implementation;
- (12) changing or revoking inappropriate decisions of the National People’s Congress Standing Committee;
- (13) approving the establishment of provinces, autonomous regions and cities directly under central government jurisdiction;
- (14) deciding on the establishment of special administrative regions and the systems to be instituted there;
- (15) deciding on issues concerning war and peace; and
- (16) other functions and powers that the highest state organ of power should exercise.
Article 63 The National People’s Congress shall have the power to remove from office the following personnel:
- (1) the president and the vice president of the People’s Republic of China;
- (2) the premier, vice premiers, state councilors, ministers of ministries, ministers of commissions, the auditor general and the secretary general of the State Council;
- (3) the chairperson of the Central Military Commission and other members of the Central Military Commission;
- (4) the chairperson of the National Commission of Supervision;
- (5) the president of the Supreme People’s Court; and
- (6) the procurator general of the Supreme People’s Procuratorate.
Further, and ominously, the ABPA can impeach the president (currently the prerogative of the parliament), has “the right to consider the question of the legitimacy of elections” and can “annul legal acts and decisions of other state bodies and actors which run counter to the interests of national security…
Spooky season is back 👻👻
Do you think they’re worried the ABPA might impeach US presidents? It’s not the most outrageous political claim that I’d have heard a USian come out with.
Edit: where would I go for a good primer on Chinese constitutional law/governance? Do you know?
where would I go for a good primer on Chinese constitutional law/governance?
I don’t know, do you mean introduction to laws related to the constitution? The NPC does have a list of all current 299 laws in China (in Chinese): http://www.npc.gov.cn/npc/c2/c30834/202311/t20231102_432724.html, and the first category is a list of 52 laws related to the constitution. The NPC also provides English translations for the various laws here: http://en.npc.gov.cn.cdurl.cn/laws.html
Thank you! Yes, this is the kind of thing I was after.
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He made those comments in 1995 (https://www.upi.com/Archives/1995/11/27/Belarus-leader-defends-Hitler-praise/9348817448400/), this is his more recent take;
Its still a stupid thing to say.
Wow, thanks for dispelling this propoganda comrade I was not aware of this at all.
Its insane how insidious pro-nazi propoganda is.
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But he didn’t commit his country towards fascism, unlike some of his neighbors and retained a lot of the structures he inherited from the BySSR. Belarus isn’t socialist, but it is the closest thing to it in Europe
Yeah man take your stand. This’ll finally put the left in line
A wonderful step away from Lukashenko. A vile piece of shit. His best legacy will be not capitulating to western pressure, everything else was horrible.
