Constitution of the Republic of Belarus

The Constitution of the Republic of Belarus is the Basic Law of the state, which has the highest legal force and direct effect throughout the country. The Constitution lays down the foundations for regulating the legal, political and economic systems of the state. The Basic Law enshrines the inalienable rights of man and guarantees for their implementation, mutual obligations of the citizen and the state, the procedure for the formation and functioning of government bodies. The provisions of the Constitution are developed in the current legislation.

The Constitution of Belarus was adopted on March 15, 1994 by the Supreme Council of the Republic of Belarus and is the first in the history of the sovereign republic and the fifth Constitution of Belarus (after the October Revolution of 1917).

In 1996, at the republican referendum, the Constitution was set out in a new version.

The next republican referendum, which put the issue of amending the Basic Law to the agenda, was held on October 17, 2004.

By the Law of the Republic of Belarus of October 12, 2021. № 124-3 amended the Constitution regarding the holding of elections of deputies on a single voting day.

On February 27, 2022, another republican referendum was held on the issue of amending and supplementing the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus. As a result, the preamble and 85 articles were adjusted, 11 new articles appeared, 2 articles were excluded. Also, the Basic Law was supplemented with a new chapter (Chapter 31 "All-Belarusian People's Assembly").

Currently, the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus contains 9 sections, 9 chapters and 156 articles. The most important constitutional norm is the provision of Article 2, which defines the hierarchy of values in the country. According to this article, a person, his rights, freedoms and guarantees of their implementation are the highest value and goal of society and the state.

The basic principles that permeate the norms of the Constitution include:

the rule of law;
guarantee and observance of human and civil rights;
democratic procedure for the formation of government bodies.

The Constitution embodies the historical experience of the formation of Belarusian statehood. It is based on the inalienable sovereign right of the Belarusian people to independently determine their destiny and be a full-fledged subject of the world community.

The Constitution of the Republic of Belarus of 1994. (as amended by the Law of the Republic of Belarus of 12.10.2021 N 124-З) (with amendments and additions adopted at the republican referendums of November 24, 1996, October 17, 2004 and February 27, 2022)