Republic

Stability in Belarus largely depends on effective system of justice, President says

Stability in Belarus and Belarusian society largely depends on the effectiveness and efficiency of justice, President Alexander Lukashenko said today’s meeting of judges of the Republic of Belarus. Without effective justice it’s impossible to ensure that human rights and interests of the state are duly protected, according to the Head of State. “The state is doing its utmost today to ensure the normal functioning of courts, and has a right to expect appropriate results,” said Alexander Lukashenko. Thousands of citizens apply to courts of justice every year, he said. Citizens’ attitude to the state policy and how much they trust the authorities on the whole depend on how promptly, qualitatively and fairly courts settle their problems. “Justice should be as accessible and open as possible. Judges should be addressing the needs of the people, deepening their understanding of the problems they are facing. It’s necessary to learn to work in an environment when the state is functioning for the people, when the requirements imposed on every one of us, from the President to an ordinary government employee, are very demanding,” said the President. Life today is such that judges should step up the level of their involvement with the process of development of the national legal system as a whole, said Alexander Lukashenko. The state cannot permit itself the luxury of not exploiting the huge professional and intellectual potential of the officers of the court, first of all, for building up modern legislation, Alexander Lukashenko said. The Head of State supports today’s routine applied in Belarus when judges hold on-site meetings with citizens. In his opinion, this is extremely important for raising public awareness in the legislative field, explaining people their rights and how they can protect their interests in case of infringement; it’s also crucial in enhancing crime prevention. Through these meetings judges get an opportunity to see people’s needs, to learn about their opinion about the system of justice in Belarus as a whole. The legal system of Belarus features the Constitutional Court, ordinary courts administrating justice by means of civil, criminal and administrative proceedings and economic courts. The Constitutional Court includes 12 judges and considers issues of the constitutionality of whole legal acts and their certain provisions. The system of ordinary courts comprises the Supreme Court, oblast courts, Belarus military court, regional courts and inter-garrison military courts.