Belarus
or Byelorussia or Belorussia
Country in E central Europe, bounded S by Ukraine, E by Russia,
W by Poland, and N by Latvia and Lithuania.
Government
The 1994 constitution provided for a democratic-pluralist, presidentialist
system. There is a 260-seat legislature, the Sejm, to which deputies
are directly elected for a four-year term by a majority system,
with a second-ballot run-off race in contests in which there is
no clear first-round majority. The state president, who is directly
elected for a maximum of two five-year terms, also serves as commander
in chief of the armed forces, appoints the cabinet and prime minister,
and has the power to declare a state of emergency but not to dissolve
parliament.
A new lower house, the 110-member House of Representatives,
was formed Nov 1996 by members of the Supreme Council minus a
40- member breakaway anti-Lukashenko rump, who formed an alternative
unofficial government. In Dec 1996 the composition of a 64-seat
upper chamber, the Council of the Republic, was agreed. Eight
members would be directly appointed by the president and the remainder,
eight each, indirectly elected by members of local soviets (councils)
in the six Belarussian regions and Minsk. The list of candidates
would be subject to final approval by President Lukashenko.
History
A Belarussian state developed in the Middle Ages around the city of
Polotsk on the river Dvina. From the 13th century it became incorporated
within the Slavonic Grand Duchy of Lithunia and from 1569 there
was union with Poland.
Brief independence
Belarus was brought into the Russian Empire in the late 18th century
and from the later 19th century there was an upsurge in national
consciousness. Amid the chaos of the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia,
an independent Byelorussian National Republic was declared 1918,
but failed to receive international recognition. Instead, a Byelorussian
Soviet Republic was established 1919, with some loss of territory
to Poland.
Nationalist revival
National culture and language were encouraged until the Soviet dictator
Stalin launched a Russification drive, with more than 100,000
people, predominantly writers and intellectuals, being executed
between 1937 and 1941. Under the terms of the 1939 Nazi-Soviet
pact, Belarus was reunified, but then suffered severely under
German invasion and occupation 1941-44. Russification resumed
in the 1960s and continued into the mid-1980s, when glasnost brought
a revival of national culture. A Popular Front, demanding greater
autonomy, was established Feb 1989. In the wake of the April 1986
Chernobyl nuclear disaster, which forced the resettlement of several
hundred thousand people, the Belarussian Ecological Union (BEU)
had been formed. Both the Popular Front and BEU contested the
March- April 1990 Belarussian supreme soviet elections under the
Democratic Bloc banner, capturing more than a quarter of the seats.
In response, Belarussian was re-established as the republic's
official state language from Sept 1990.
Independence achieved
Belarus's communist president, Nikolai Dementei, supported the attempted
coup against President Gorbachev in Moscow Aug 1991. When it failed,
Dementei resigned. Belarus's independence was declared on 25 Aug
1991 and the activities of the Communist Party suspended. In Sept
1991 the supreme soviet voted to adopt the name of Republic of
Belarus and elected Stanislav Shushkevich, an advocate of democratic
reform, as its chair, which also made him state president. Shushkevich
played an important role in the creation Dec 1991 of a new Commonwealth
of Independent States (CIS), the confederal successor to the USSR,
with Minsk (Mensk) chosen as the CIS's early centre. In the same
month, Belarus was formally acknowledged as independent by the
USA and granted diplomatic recognition. It had been a member of
the United Nations since its foundation in 1945.
Economy and armed forces
Belarus was cautious in its implementation of market-centred economic
reform, with privatization and price liberalization introduced
very gradually. It remained heavily dependent upon Russia for
industrial raw materials. In May 1992, Belarus and Russia (as
a single signatory), along with the the Ukraine and Kazakhstan,
signed protocols with the USA agreeing to comply with START and
to return all tactical nuclear weapons, inherited from the USSR,
to Russia for destruction. In Feb 1993 parliament formally ratified
START I and voted to adhere to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.
Communists regained power
The Communist Party, supported by Prime Minister Vyacheslav Kebich,
reestablished itself within the republic during 1993, and in Jan
1994, despite opposition from President Shushkevich, an agreement
to merge the Belarusian economy with that of Russia was signed.
Shushkevich was later dismissed by parliament. In July 1994 Aleksandr
Lukashenko, a pro- Russian populist, defeated Kebich in the presidential
elections; in the same month Mikhail Chigir replaced Kebich as
prime minister. Market- centred economic reforms continued but
in Feb 1995 a friendship and cooperation pact was signed with
Russia. From April Popular Front deputies staged hunger strikes
in opposition to President Shushkevich's plan to seek increased
presidential powers. Parliament was dissolved and in national
referenda, held in May, voters approved strengthening of the president's
powers and restoration of Russian as an equal official language;
they also backed plans for future economic integration with Russia.
The concurrent parliamentary elections were marked by apathy among
the voters, with turnout falling below the required 50%, and repeat
elections being held in Dec. A communist- dominated legislature
was returned. In April 1996 an agreement on ` economic union´
was signed with Russia in an effort to bolster Belarus's weak
economy.
1996 referendum
In Nov 1996 Lukashenko claimed victory in his campaign to acquire autocratic
powers through a referendum. According to government officials,
70% of the electorate supported his proposals to change the constitution.
However, the poll was riddled with flaws, and was considered by
many to be illegal. Unhindered by international criticism, Lukashenko
made it clear that he intended to act on the referendum, which
gave him de facto control of the constitutional court and the
electoral commission and a greater influence over a new parliament,
and extended his term by two years. The Supreme Council's referendum,
which included proposals to abolish the presidency, was rejected.
Prime Minister Chygir, who disagreed with Lukashenko's referendum,
resigned and was replaced by his deputy, Syargey Ling. Four Constitutional
Court judges also resigned in protest.
In Jan 1997 Belarus's observer status in the Council of Europe
was suspended and in April 1997 a treaty was signed with Russia
providing for closer links, but falling short of union.
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