Belarus may amend the Constitution or adopt a new one in the near future, president Alyaksandr Lukashenka said as he met with heads of constitutional courts of foreign countries on Friday.
According to him, Belarus is considering such a step as life keeps changing.
“Our Constitution is lagging behind a little bit. I asked specialists of the Constitutional Court to submit their proposals regarding the possible improvement of our Constitution. Then we will sit down and discuss them,” state-run news agency BelTA quotes Lukashenka.
Over 25 years ago, on 15 March 1994, the Supreme Soviet adopted the Constitution of independent Belarus.
However, when Alyaksandr Lukashenka came to power, the Supreme Court was disbanded and the Constitution was later amended three times (1995, 1006, 2004). After the referendum in 1996, Lukashenka established the rubber-stamping National Assembly, received the authority to hold referendums and appoint top officials. His decrees and orders became stronger than laws.
In the autumn of 2016, Alyaksandr Lukashenka raised the question of constitutional reform again.
Later, Lidziya Yarmoshyna, Chairperson of the Central Election Commission, said the Belarusian leader was mulling over ‘modernizing’ and ‘keeping the Constitution current in some way’.
In March 2018, Lukashenka admitted the possibility of amending the Fundamental Law. However, he failed to specify what amendments might be made to the Constitution.
