Belarus
2026
- GOVERNMENT
- nominally a republic, in fact a dictatorship
- CONSTITUTION
- March 15, 1994; amended 1996, 2004
- LEGAL SYSTEM
- based on civil law; not subject to the jurisdiction of the ICJ
- LEGISLATIVE SYSTEM
- bicameral, National Assembly (Natsionalnoye Sobranie) composed of the Council of the Republic (Soviet Respubliki) and the House of Representatives (Palata Predstaviteley)
- JUDICIAL SYSTEM
- Supreme Court (composed of the president and vice president and organized into various specialized chambers, including economic and military; number of judges determined by the president of the republic and the president of the court); Constitutional Court (composed of 12 judges, including a president and a vice president); oblast courts; City Court of Minsk; city courts; Economic Courts of the city and oblast of Minsk
RELIGIONS
Orthodox 48.3%, Catholics 7.1%, others 3.5%, non-believers 41.1% (estimate 2011)
From the country
- APRIL 18, 2016BelarusDEATH PENALTY
a 22-year-old prisoner, Siarhei Ivanou, was executed, according to another death convict, Siarhei
a 22-year-old prisoner, Siarhei Ivanou, was executed, according to another death convict, Siarhei
- MARCH 30, 2016BelarusDEATH PENALTY
EUROPEAN UNION: STATEMENT ON THE CONFIRMATION OF A DEATH SENTENCE IN BELARUS
The European External Action Service (EEAS) Spokesperson released this Statement on the confirmation of a death sentence in Belarus:
FEBRUARY 16, 2016BelarusDEATH PENALTYBELARUS: TRIPLE MURDERER SENTENCED TO DEATH
Belarus sentenced to death a man convicted of killing three people, the day after the European Union (EU)
JANUARY 5, 2016BelarusDEATH PENALTYBELARUS: MAN SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR MURDER
The Minsk Regional Court pronounced this year’s first death sentence in the case of Henadz Yakavitski, a
- JANUARY 1, 2016BelarusDEATH PENALTY
Article 24 of the constitution reads that
Article 24 of the constitution reads that "the death penalty...
DECEMBER 16, 2015BelarusDEATH PENALTYBELARUS: RUSSIAN CITIZEN SENTENCED TO DEATH IN UAE AWAITING EXTRADITION
Pyotr Ivanik, a Russian national, who has been sentenced to death in the United Arab Emirates, is currently
NOVEMBER 20, 2015BelarusDEATH PENALTYBELARUS: MAN SENTENCED TO DEATH ON MURDER CHARGES
A man was sentenced to death on charges of murder in Belarus, the only nation in Europe that still has capital punishment.
MARCH 18, 2015BelarusDEATH PENALTYBELARUS: MAN SENTENCED TO DEATH IN RECHYTSA
the Rechytsa District Court sentenced Siarhei Ivanou, 21, to death on charges of murdering and raping a 19-year-old girl on 29 August 2013.
- JANUARY 1, 2015BelarusDEATH PENALTY
Article 24 of the constitution reads that
Article 24 of the constitution reads that "the death penalty...
NOVEMBER 4, 2014BelarusDEATH PENALTYBELARUS: A MURDER CONVICT EXECUTED
Authorities in Belarus executed a murder convict sentenced to death, reported the unregistered Vyasna (Spring) human rights center in Minsk.
- JUNE 11, 2014BelarusDEATH PENALTY
BELARUS: FOREIGN MINISTER, ‘SOCIETY NOT READY TO ABOLISH DEATH PENALTY’
in an interview posted on the ministry's official website, Foreign Minister Vladimir Makey said Belarusian
- MAY 14, 2014BelarusDEATH PENALTY
BELARUS: CONVICTED MURDERER REPORTEDLY EXECUTED
Media reports in Belarus say a convicted murderer has been executed.