Belarus

Belarus, officially known as the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country located in the north-east of Europe and has international borders with 5 countries: Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania and Latvia. The capital of Belarus is Minsk, a modern international city located in the centre of the country, it is considered modern because it has been destroyed and rebuilt numerous times, most recently after World War 2, when it was almost completely destroyed, also because Belarus an important trade and transport route between Europe and the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States). The country of Belarus is divided into six administrative districts, each centred around a major city: Brest Region, Homel Region, Hrodna Region, Magileu Region, Minsk Region and Vitebsk Region.

After seven decades as a constituent republic of the USSR, Belarus attained its independence in 1991. It has retained closer political and economic ties to Russia than have any of the other former Soviet republics. Alexander Lukashenko has been the country's president since 1994, the country is run through authoritarian means and a centralized economic system, the government also has restrictions on freedom of speech and the press, peaceful assembly, and religion.

Cultural trends

- Religion: Religion in Belarus is considered a unifying factor since 80% of the population are Eastern Orthodox while only 20% are of other religions. But the Government restricts religious freedom both actively and indirectly it is also known to be responsible for and regularly failing to condemn acts of religious insensitivity which creates a hostile and intolerant religious community.

- Language: Belarus has two official languages: Belarusian, spoken by 23.4% of the population, and Russian, spoken by 70.2%. The remaining 6.4% includes small Polish and Ukrainian speaking minorities. In everyday life many Belarusians, especially in Rural areas use Russian-Belarusian mixed language, relatively recently called "trasianka". The existence of two official languages in a country as small as Belarus creates cultural diffusion among its citizens, also the usage of a mixed language facilitates the process language loss.

-Social issues: The most prominent social issue Belarus faces is its unfulfillment of its human rights obligations. The main human rights concerns in Belarus include:

Freedom of expression: Most printed and electronic media remains under state control and the state press distribution system maintains a monopoly.

Freedom of assembly: The authorities violate the right to freedom of assembly by not permitting demonstrations and public actions. The very restrictive Law on Public Events requires demonstrators to apply for permission to the local authorities to hold an event, and bans all demonstrations less than 200m away from underground stations and pedestrian crossings. There have been allegations that excessive force has been used to disperse non-violent demonstrations, and peaceful demonstrators have been detained.

Violence against women: Adequate resources and structures to respond to violence against women are lacking in Belarus. There are only two shelters for victims of domestic violence.

Legal System

According to the Constitution, judicial power in Belarus belongs to the courts and utilises a civil law system. However, the severe interference of the President and in the process of forming the judiciary establishment, control over financial support of the courts also the President’s political leverage on the courts, make it possible to say for certain that there is no independent judicial system in Belarus.
The ABA (The American Bar Association) Rule of Law Initiative launched its program in Belarus in 1992 with the placement of its first rule of law liaison in the capital city of Minsk. The office closed in spring 2006 because of problems with local registration, which suggests a lean towards a “rule of man” basis of rule instead of the “rule of law” basis that it claims to have. Some of the more pressing legal issues in Belarus are: Death penalty: Belarus is “Europe’s last executioner” – the only remaining country in Europe and the former Soviet Union which still carries out executions.

Fair trials and torture: Nineteen years after independence, Belarus retains many repressive features of the Soviet criminal justice system. Judges routinely do not exercise their authority to independently and impartially decide on the legality of an arrest or detention nor the need for continued detention. There is credible evidence that, under pressure to solve crimes, police investigators sometimes resort to torture and other ill-treatment in order to force confessions. These confessions are subsequently admitted as evidence in trials.

Political system

Belarus has been ruled with an increasingly iron fist since 1994 by President Alexander Lukashenko and his government which is classified as a republic by name although it is in fact a dictatorship, which is why President Lukashenko is often dubbed "Europe's last dictator". Opposition figures are subjected to harsh penalties for organising protests. The country became independent in 1991, following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Two decades later, the sense of national identity is weak, international isolation continues and the nature of political links with Russia remains a key issue.

-Foreign Relations of Belarus:

Russia: The introduction of free trade between Russia and Belarus in mid-1995 led to a spectacular growth in trade, which was only temporarily reversed in the wake of the financial crisis of 1998. President Alexander Lukashenko sought to develop a closer relationship with Russia. Now in present day, Russia remains the largest and most important partner for Belarus both in the political and economic fields. In terms of trade, almost half of Belarusian export goes to Russia. Due to the structure of Belarusian industry, Belarus relies heavily on Russia both for export markets and for the supply of raw materials and components.

European Union: Following the recognition of Belarus as an independent state in December 1991 by the European Community, EU-Belarus relations initially experienced a steady progress. EU-Belarus relations stalled in 1996 after serious setbacks to the development of democracy. The Council of the European Union decided against Belarus in 1997.

United States: The United States has encouraged Belarus to undertake increased privatization and to create a favorable climate for business and investment. Although there has been some American direct private investment in Belarus, its development has been relatively slow given the uncertain pace of reform.

Economic System

As part of the former Soviet Union, Belarus had a relatively well-developed industrial base; it retained this industrial base (which is now outdated, energy inefficient, and dependent on subsidized Russian energy and access to Russian markets) following the breakup of the USSR. The country also has a broad agricultural base which is inefficient and dependent on government subsidies. After an initial burst of capitalist reform from 1991-94, including privatization of state enterprises, creation of institutions of private property, and development of entrepreneurship, Belarus' economic development greatly slowed. About 80% of all industry remains in state hands, and foreign investment has been hindered by a climate hostile to business.
Economic output, which had declined for several years following the collapse of the Soviet Union, revived in the mid-2000s thanks to the boom in oil prices. Belarus has only small reserves of crude oil, though it imports most of its crude oil and natural gas from Russia at prices substantially below the world market. Belarus exported refined oil products at market prices produced from Russian crude oil purchased at a steep discount. In late 2006, Russia began a process of rolling back its subsidies on oil and gas to Belarus. Tensions over Russian energy reached a peak in 2010, when Russia stopped the export of all subsidized oil to Belarus save for domestic needs. In December 2010, Russia and Belarus reached a deal to restart the export of discounted oil to Belarus. Little new foreign investment has occurred in recent years. In 2011, a financial crisis began, triggered by government directed salary hikes unsupported by commensurate productivity increases. The crisis was compounded by an increased cost in Russian energy inputs and an overvalued Belarusian ruble, and eventually led to a near three-fold devaluation of the Belarusian ruble in 2011.The Belarusian currency lost more than 60% of its value, as the rate of inflation reached it new highs in 2011 and 2012, before calming in 2013. The Belarusian economy continues to struggle under the weight of high external debt servicing payments, a growing trade deficit, stagnant economic growth, and low foreign reserves.