Draft Constitution of Belarus: Lukashenko is meant Forever and Nuclear Weapons Will Return to the Country

The constitutional amendments, long promised to the people of the country by the dictator Lukashenko, are proposed to establish, among other things, that the head of state, who has ceased to exercise his powers, cannot be held accountable for the actions that he committed as president. Also, if the amendments are adopted, one person will not be able to be the head of state for more than two terms, and the All-Belarusian People's Assembly will be able to remove him from office "in the event of a systematic or gross violation of the Constitution or committing high treason or other grave crime".

“The President can be removed from office by the All-Belarusian People's Assembly in the event of a systematic or gross violation of the Constitution or committing high treason or other grave crime”, - the draft constitution says.

It also states that the proposal to bring charges against the president and remove him from office is submitted to the All-Belarusian People's Assembly on the initiative of at least one third of the full composition of the House of Representatives or at least 150 thousand citizens of the republic who have the right to vote. The investigation into the charges is being organized by the All-Belarusian People's Assembly.

“The decision of the All-Belarusian People's Assembly to remove the president from office is made after receiving the conclusion of the Constitutional Court on the existence of facts of systematic or gross violation of the Constitution by the president if the president is accused of such violation of the Constitution”, - the draft says.

The decision of the All-Belarusian People's Assembly to remove the president from office is considered adopted if a majority of the entire assembly voted for him.

The draft states that "in the event of the death of the president as a result of an attempt on his life, an act of terrorism, military aggression, as a result of other violent actions", state bodies and officials act in accordance with the decisions of the Security Council.

It specifies that in this situation, the Security Council will be held under the leadership of the Chairman of the Council of the Republic. In addition, in the event of the death of the president, a state of emergency or martial law will be imposed on the territory of the country immediately on the basis of the decision of the Security Council in accordance with the established procedure.

The draft also stipulates that in the event of a vacancy of the presidency or the impossibility of fulfilling his duties on the grounds stipulated by the Constitution, his powers, prior to the taking of the oath by the newly elected president, are transferred to the chairman of the Council of the Republic. Today this post is held by Natalya Kochanova.

These provisions aroused genuine interest among Russian analysts.

So, the famous lawyer, professor of the Free University Yelena Lukyanova writes:

“I have not seen such an openly authoritarian oxymoron for a long time. It may well be placed in a reader on the topics "how to manipulate the constitutional text in the name of preserving power" and "how not to write the Constitution." The sensations are multiple. From "the mask I know you", because all the underwater boulders and smaller pebbles are easily solved, to chills from disgust...".

Political analyst Alexander Morozov assessed the seeming "democratic character" of the new document:

“…From the draft of the new Constitution of Belarus it follows that Lukashenko has such a schedule: after the referendum, 1 year is allotted for the formation of the All-Belarusian People's Assembly. Then another two years are allocated to bring legislation in line with the new Constitution. After that, Lukashenko moves to the position of chairman of the VNS, and the "president" turns into a deputy of this VNS, the powers are spelled out in such a way that a "system of two keys" appears. The "president" retains inhuman powers, beginning with the fact that he monarchically "personifies the unity of the people" (this is so written down) and has the right to personally preside over meetings of the cabinet of ministers. The guarantees of immunity for Lukashenko are spelled out in detail in the event that after three years he nevertheless decides to switch to the "two keys" system and move down to the post of head of the VNS. Thus, the draft contains an "imaginary carrot" for the Belarusian voter: the hope that Lukashenko will move from the position of operational management to the VNS with the veto, and some Tertel (for example) will become the president... (all this is contained in the section IX, art.141-145)..."

Dmitry Drize, political observer of Kommersant, draws attention to another important feature of the document, which is directly related to the Kremlin militaristic hysteria:

“From the constitution of Belarus, in particular, it is proposed to exclude the mention of the neutral and nuclear-free status of the republic. Instead, Minsk promises not to start the aggression first.

It is clear whose nuclear weapons could potentially move to Belarus. This can be seen as a potential response to NATO's expansion further to the East and, in particular, to Ukraine. Although such decisions for Russia even at first glance seem controversial. This is more like another horror story for Western partners.

Of course, the main thing is the future of Alexander Lukashenko. Without an answer to this question, it makes no practical sense to comment on all these documents. Earlier it was believed that the current leader deliberately delays the publication of the new constitution, precisely in order not to give an answer to the above question. Be that as it may, there is still a noticeable desire to offer the ally, that is, Russia, some options for integration in exchange for continued financial and political support. It is clear that it cannot go on like this forever, however, most likely, the main stake is placed on wasting time..."

Journalist Vasily Alenin believes that with this document Lukashenko “wrote out an indulgence for himself”:

Lukashenko wrote down an exemption from responsibility in the Constitution https://t.me/SerpomPo/11696. I got scared. This one step betrays the fact that he understands who he is. (...) And at the same time, burned to holes, the insolent ruler demonstrates naivety. He behaves as if he believes that his piece of paper called "Constitution", which he is pushing into a ragged country, will at least mean something if he loses power, and in Belarus there will be justice of the same type as in Europe.

(...) His guarantee is not the "Constitution", but the existence in Russia of a kindred regime that maintains and protects him. If we assume that there will be changes in our country, the power of Lukashenko will come to an end..."

In general, in the post-Soviet space, as history shows, little depends on the Constitution. For example. The USSR Constitution of 1936 was very good, democratic, but this did not in any way prevent the authorities from shooting millions of Soviet citizens...