Proposal to introduce five-year parliamentary term in Belarus

“A proposal was put forward to clarify the status and functions of the president, parliament and government in the section “President. Parliament. Government”, redistributing the powers of these branches of government based on their constitutional functions. It was proposed to define to the fullest extent the legislative powers of the parliament, expand its control powers and its role in personnel decision-making, to increase the parliamentary term from four to five years, to change the way parliamentary sessions are held - one session from September to June during the year,” Piotr Miklashevich said.

It was also proposed to give more powers to the government and allow it a greater leeway in making decisions as far as its executive powers are concerned. “It was proposed to formalize the government's right to submit proposals to the president regarding the appointment and recall of diplomatic representatives of the Republic of Belarus in foreign states and at international organizations. In order to increase the independence of the government, it was proposed to disallow the president to cancel the decisions of the government,” the chairman of the Constitutional Court said.

The 9th meeting of the Constitutional Commission took place on 21 July. The meeting reviewed the work of the Constitutional Commission to develop proposals to amend the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus.