Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and her adviser on parliamentary cooperation Anatol Liabedzka spoke on March 15, the Day of the Constitution of Belarus, about what the country’s basic law should be like.
Tsikhanouskaya said the constitution should protect the weak from the strong and citizens from the abuse of power, rather than serve as an instrument of control.
“Belarusians need a Constitution that works in real life, not one that exists only on paper. A Constitution in which the right to freedom of speech, a fair trial and participation in the fate of the country do not depend on the political situation. A Constitution that does not allow anyone to privatize the state and turn a temporary mandate into lifelong control. One that provides real separation of powers and limits the authority of those who govern,” she stressed.
Liabedzka recalled that the Belarusian state and legal tradition has deep roots — the Statutes of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania became a model of constitutional law for other European countries for centuries. He said that after the 1996 referendum the basic law ceased to be a real guarantee of human rights.
“The draft Constitution of a new Belarus is the blueprint of the Belarusian home where people want to live. A home for nine million citizens — safe, comfortable and just. Belarusians deserve not an imitation of people’s power but the real right to choose their future,” he said.
The draft People’s Constitution has been submitted for public discussion on the Prastora platform.
