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Belarus plans to regulate the activities of organizing committees formed to establish political parties. A draft law introducing a corresponding article into the Law “On Political Parties” has been published in the National Legal Internet Portal’s legislative database.
According to the draft, an organizing committee is created to prepare and hold a founding congress and to develop the party’s charter and program.
The committee must consist of at least ten citizens who have the right to be party founders — that is, Belarusian citizens who permanently reside in the country, are over 18 years old, and possess voting rights.
Members of the committee elect a chairperson and designate an authorized person to open a bank account, manage funds, and sign civil contracts. The draft specifies that committee members will work on a voluntary basis.
Within seven days of its establishment, the committee must notify the Ministry of Justice, providing information about its location, chairperson, authorized person, expected sources of funding, and the proposed party name. It must also submit the minutes of the founding meeting and a list of committee members (full name, date of birth, citizenship, residence, place of work, phone number, and personal signature).
The committee will be allowed to begin work once the Ministry of Justice publishes information about it — including its members, address, and leadership — on the ministry’s website. The ministry must publish this within five working days of receiving the notification. If the information provided is incomplete, the ministry may refuse to publish it, though this decision can be appealed in court.
The organizing committee may operate until the Ministry of Justice decides whether to register the party or deny registration, but no longer than six months from the date the information is posted online.
The draft also states that the committee must prepare a list of founding members with their personal details in preparation for the founding congress.
Funding for the committee’s activities will come from the personal funds of the party’s founding members, in accordance with existing legal restrictions on political party financing. A bank account will be opened in Belarusbank for this purpose. If the party is successfully registered, the funds will be transferred to the new party; otherwise, they will be remitted to the state budget.
Within seven days after the committee’s dissolution, its chairperson and authorized person must submit a financial report and account balance statement to the Ministry of Justice.