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History and Government
History: Belarus was part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania during the 13th and 14th centuries. The Grand Duchy was united with Poland in the 1500s, and Belarus then became part of the Russian empire following the dismemberment of Poland at the end of the 18th century. The Republic became part of the Soviet Union after the Russo-German treaty of Brest-Litovsk in 1918 that ended World War I in eastern Europe. Between 1941 and 1944 Belarus was occupied by German forces invading Russia; the region bore much of the brunt of the German occupation: an estimated two million people – including virtually the whole Jewish population – were murdered during this period.
With the post-war settlement, Belarus returned to its former status as a Soviet republic, but (uniquely among Soviet republics) was granted membership of the United Nations in its own right as a concession to Soviet requests for greater voting power at the assembly. The post-war Soviet era brought comparative prosperity to the Republic as it became a major centre of manufacturing in the western USSR. Along with this came a sizeable Russian immigrant population who now account for about one-seventh of the total. Lacking the specific grievances that affected, say the Baltic republics, there was less pressure for reform during the Gorbachev era. The principal opposition formation, the Belarusian Popular Front, was formed in 1988 and achieved some success at the elections to the (now disbanded) Congress of People’s Deputies in Moscow.
As the USSR disintegrated in 1991, the Republic’s Communist Party (CPB) moved quickly to reassert itself as the dominant political force. The post-independence leadership was keen to maintain political and economic links with Moscow and was a leading proponent of the creation of the Commonwealth of Independent States, a loose alliance of ex-Soviet republics which came into being shortly afterwards and whose headquarters was in the Belarusian capital of Minsk. The current leader of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenka, originally came to power at the 1994 presidential election. An important element of his platform was a promise to end corruption (he was previously head of the anti-corruption commission). Unfortunately, Lukashenka’s rule became characterised by corruption, nepotism, censorship and arbitrary decision-making; it has since deteriorated further, and now uses death squads to silence critics and political opponents. In 1996, a dubious referendum endorsed Lukashenka’s intention to extend both his powers and his term of office to 2001. The former trade union leader, Vladimir Goncharik, stood against Lukashenka at the September 2001 presidential poll. However, despite extensive support from the USA (using the same techniques and many of the same personnel who ran successful opposition electoral campaigns in Nicaragua and Yugoslavia), Goncharik suffered a heavy defeat.
The Lukashenka government’s conduct has completely undermined Belarus’ relations with the West, which it had initially sought to develop. But Lukashenka’s sympathies clearly lie to the east and Belarus’ already strong relationship with Moscow has since been further bolstered by a series of security and economic agreements.
Government: The 1994 constitution, controversially amended in 1996, allows for legislative power to be held by a bicameral National Assembly (Verchovny Soviet). This comprises: a 110-member House of Representatives, directly elected for a four-year term, and a 64-member Council of the Republic, of which eight members are presidential appointees and the remainder elected by local authorities. The President, who is directly elected for a five-year term, exercises executive power assisted by a Council of Ministers answerable to the National Assembly.
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