On the President of the Republic of Belarus
Law of the Republic of Belarus
No. 3602–XII of February 21, 1995
[Law contains all the later amendments and alterations. Last amendments of this Law: Law of the Republic of Belarus No. 166-Z of October 6, 2006]
This Law, on the basis of and in the execution of the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus, sets forth the legal status and powers-of the President of the Republic of Belarus (hereinafter referred to as “ President”), the guarantees and the procedure of their implementation.
1. General Provisions
The President is the Head of State, the guarantor of the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus, of human and civil rights and freedoms.
The President serves as the highest government official of the Republic of Belarus, he shall embody the unity of the people, guarantee the pursuance of the basic lines of home and foreign policy, represent the Republic of Belarus in relations with other nations and international organizations. The President shall take measures aimed at safeguarding the sovereignty of the Republic of Belarus, its national security and territorial integrity, ensure political and economical stability, succession and cooperation of the government authorities, act as a mediator between the government authorities.
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Citizens of the Republic of Belarus 35 years of age and over who have the right to vote and have permanently resided in the Republic of Belarus for not less than ten years immediately before the elections shall be eligible to stand for election to the office of the President.
The people in conformity with the principles of the universal, free, equal, direct and secret ballot shall directly elect the President with the observance of the procedure established by the Electoral Code of the Republic of Belarus.
The President cannot be a member of the Chamber of Representatives of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus (hereinafter referred to as the “Chamber of Representatives) or a member of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus (hereinafter referred to as the “Council of the Republic), hold other offices in governmental, public and other institutions, organizations, engage in private business, receive, in addition to his salary, remuneration in money, except the author’s fees for works of science, literature and art.
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2. The President’s Term of Office
The President shall hold his office for five years.
The President powers shall start from the moment of his entering into office and terminate from the moment when the newly elected President is sworn in or in connection with the President’s removal from office, early dismissal of the President from office or the death of the President.
The President shall enter into office on taking an Oath of the following content:
“ Entering into the office of the President of the Republic of Belarus, I solemnly vow to be a faithful servant of the people of the Republic of Belarus, to respect and protect human and civil rights and freedoms, to adhere to and protect the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus, to devotionally and faithfully perform the high duties conferred on me.“
The Oath shall be taken at an official ceremony in the presence of the members of the Chamber of Representatives and the Council of the Republic, judges of the Constitutional Court, Supreme Court and the Supreme Economic Court of the Republic of Belarus not later than two months after the date of the President’s election. Invited to take part in the oath-taking ceremony may be also members of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus, other public officials, representatives of political parties, public associations, religious confessions of the Republic of Belarus, diplomats accredited in the Republic of Belarus and representatives of foreign countries.
Having pronounced the text of the Oath, the President shall sign an act on taking the Oath. The act on taking the Oath shall be passed by the President for storage in the President’s archives.
After the act on taking the Oath has been signed, the Chairman of the Central Commission for Elections and Republican Referendums of the Republic of Belarus shall hand in the certificate to the President. The State Hymn of the Republic of Belarus shall be played.
The ceremony of taking the Oath by the President of the Republic of Belarus shall be broadcast over the republican television and radio.
The President may be dismissed from office before the expiry of his term in the case of persistent disability, due to the state of his health, to perform the President’s duties. A decision on an early dismissal of the President from office shall be passed by at least two-thirds majority of votes of all the members of the House of Representatives and at least two-thirds majority of votes of all the members of the Council of the Republic on the basis of the conclusion made by the commission specially created by the chambers for this purpose. The decisions of the chambers shall be formalized in the form of resolutions.
The President may be removed from office in the event of committing high treason or another serious crime. A decision on bringing an accusation and on investigating the charge shall be in this case considered passed, if it has been voted for by the majority of all the members of the Chamber of Representatives on a proposal of at least a third of its deputies. The Council of the Republic on the strength of an adopted resolution shall organize the investigation of the crime.
The President shall be considered dismissed from office, if the decision on his dismissal has been voted for by at least two thirds of all the members of the Council of the Republic, as well as by at least two thirds of all the members of the Chamber of Representatives.
If the Council of the Republic and the Chamber of Representatives fail to pass a decision on dismissing the President from office within a month from the date of bringing the accusation, the accusation shall be considered rejected.
In the event of dismissing the President in connection with a committed crime, hearings on the merits of the accusation shall be conducted by the Supreme Court of the Republic of Belarus.
The President can send in his resignation at any time he chooses. The Chamber of Representatives shall accept the resignation.
The President’s office shall be considered vacant in the following cases:
on the President’s resignation;
on the President’s early dismissal from office;
on removal of the President from office;
on the President’s death.
When the President’s office becomes vacant or if the President is incapable of fulfilling his duties on the grounds envisaged by the Constitution, his powers, until the Oath is taken by a newly elected President, shall pass to the Prime Minister of the Republic of Belarus. In this case elections of the President shall be held not early than 30 days and not later than 70 days after the opening of the vacancy.
3. The President’s Powers
The President shall perform the functions of the Head of State within the limits set by the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus, the present Law and shall bear responsibility to the citizens of the Republic of Belarus for the proper and full exercise of these functions.
The President shall:
1) appoint the republican referendums;
2) appoint regular and extraordinary elections to the Chamber of Representative, the Council of the Republic and to local representative bodies;
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4) appoint six members of the Central Commission on Elections and Republican Referendums of the Republic of Belarus;
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11) remove from office the Chairman and judges of the Constitutional Court, the Chairman and judges of the Supreme Court, the Chairman and judges of the Supreme Economic Court, the Chairman and members of the Central Commission on Elections and Republican Referendums of the Republic of Belarus, the General Procurator, the Chairman and members of the Board of the National Bank of the Republic of Belarus on the grounds stipulated by law, with notice given to the Council of the Republic;
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The President shall call, by his edicts, republican referendums on his own initiative, as well as on a proposal of the Chamber of Representative and the Council of the Republic, or on a proposal of at least 450 thousand citizens enjoying the right to vote, provided that they include not less than 30 thousand citizens from each oblast and from the city of Minsk.
The President shall sign the resolutions adopted by a republican referendum.
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