According to topschoolsintheusa, Belarus is a unitary democratic state with a republican form of government. The Constitution of 1994 (as amended in 1996) is in force. Administratively, Belarus is divided into 6 regions (Brest, Vitebsk, Gomel, Grodno, Minsk and Mogilev) and 118 districts.
The capital of the republic – the city of Minsk – is equated in status with the region. The largest cities (2002, thousand people) are Minsk, Gomel (490), Mogilev (361), Vitebsk (349), Grodno (307), Brest (291).
Belarus is a presidential republic in which the president has broad powers. The government of the republic is responsible to him; he is the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.
The President determines the country’s development strategy, the main directions of its domestic and foreign policy.
The highest body of legislative power is the National Assembly, which consists of the House of Representatives (110 deputies) and the Council of the Republic (64 deputies). The current composition of both chambers was formed in November-December 2000.
The highest body of executive power is the Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister.
The head of state is President A. Lukashenko (elected in 1994, re-elected in 2001). Chairman of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly – V. Popov, Chairman of the Council of the Republic – G. Novitsky. The head of government is Prime Minister S. Sidorsky.
The President of Belarus is elected by popular vote for a term of 5 years with the possibility of re-election for a second term. The House of Representatives of the National Assembly is elected by direct universal suffrage. Members of the Council of the Republic are elected at meetings of deputies of local Councils, 8 from each region and the city of Minsk; 8 more deputies of the Council of the Republic are appointed by the President. The term of office of both chambers is 4 years.
Local authorities are Councils of Deputies: Minsk city, regional, district, city (cities of regional subordination), settlement and rural. Councils of Deputies are elected by direct universal suffrage for a term of 4 years. Executive functions are carried out by the executive committees of local councils of deputies.
At the beginning of 2002, 18 political parties, both pro-government and opposition, were officially registered in the Ministry of Justice of Belarus. The most active and influential of them are: the Communist Party of Belarus (CPB) – supports the policy of President A. Lukashenko, stands for the restoration on a voluntary basis of the state union of the peoples of the former USSR; The Party of Communists of Belarus (PKB) – stands for the socialist path of the country’s development, is in opposition to the current leadership; Agrarian Party (AP) – stands for the reform of society on the principles of democratic socialism, the interests of farmers, ensuring the priority development of the agro-industrial complex; Belarusian Party of Women “Hope” – advocates for greater participation of women in public and political life, for improving the working and living conditions of women; The United Civic Party (UCP) is a right-liberal party that advocates the free development of market relations and limiting the role of the state in the economy and other sectors of public life; is in opposition to the current leadership of the republic; The Party of the Belarusian Popular Front (PBNF) is a nationalist party that is in strong opposition to the president; The Conservative Christian Party of the Belarusian Popular Front (KHPBNF) is a nationalist party that emerged after the split of the PBNF; The Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus (LDPB) stands for the free development of market relations, while at the same time supporting the president’s policy on the most important issues. Maintains close ties with the party of the same name in the Russian Federation. at the same time, on the most important issues, it supports the policy of the president. Maintains close ties with the party of the same name in the Russian Federation.
