Global Greens in Belarus

PARTY BUILDING IN TODAY'S BELARUS

Start with an NGO

The only proven path to creating a political party in modern-day Belarus — build the party on the base of an already existing NGO. That is exactly how the party «Belaya Rus» was created, using an NGO of the same name (Belaya Rus is the only political party that has been created in Belarus since the 1990's).

Although not required by the Law on Political Parties, the NGO infrastructure provides an accepted legal framework for party building. Registration of an NGO is much simpler than registering a political party, requiring only ten founders.

If you are interested in becoming a founding member, leave your contact here.

Goals of the NGO «Greens»:

Promotion of the principles of the Global Greens in Belarus;
Promotion of the environmental benefits of the Belarusian development model;
Creation of the infrastructure necessary for building a political party.

Tasks of the NGO «Greens»:

Recruit 5,000 founding members, which are necessary for registering the party;
Formulate proposals for the charter and program of the party;
Organize the founding congress of the Greens party;
Organize events to promote Green principles.

Full text of draft charter for NGO «Greens» .

LEGAL REQUIREMENTS FOR PARTY REGISTRATION

Only three things are required by law to register a political party in Belarus.

1. Founding Members

The main task for creating a party is to convince 5,000 citizens to become founding members. Each founding member is required to give explicit assent to the current Belarusian constitution. So the goal is to convince people that the current constitution is worth supporting.

2. Platform

The platform is a formal set of principal goals to appeal to the general public. Existing platforms, especially those of other Green Parties, can serve as prototypes. Read more . . .

3. Charter

The party's ideology is set out in Article 2, which includes its goals. The primary goal is the same for all parties: "ensuring the inviolability of constitutional order". Read more . . . .

GLOBAL GREEN MOVEMENT

The four pillars of the Global Greens have been adopted by political parties, movements and independent candidates around the world. The current constitution of Belarus (2022) largely corresponds to these principles:

Sustainability
Social justice
Nonviolence
Grassroots democracy

The Belarusian constitution is unique in that it combines a mandate for communal land ownership and a multi-party political system.

Conformance of Belarusian Constitution to Global Green Principles

Sustainability	Land Protection Article 13. Subsoil, water, forests are the exclusive property of the state. Agricultural land is owned by the state.
Social Justice	Right to housing Article 48. Citizens of the Republic of Belarus have the right to housing. Right to Healthcare Article 45. Citizens of the Republic of Belarus are guaranteed the right to health care, including free treatment in state healthcare institutions.
Non-violence	Non-violence and neutrality Article 18. The Republic of Belarus in its foreign policy proceeds from the principles of equality of states, non-use of force or threat of force, inviolability of borders, peaceful settlement of disputes. The Republic of Belarus excludes military aggression from its territory against other states.
Grassroots Democracy	Multiparty Rule Article 4. Democracy in the Republic of Belarus is based on a diversity of political institutions, ideologies and opinions. The ideology of political parties, religious or other public associations and social groups cannot be established as obligatory for citizens. Article 36. Citizens have the right to create political parties for the implementation and satisfaction of political, social, economic, cultural and other interests.

COMMUNAL LAND IN BELARUS

Communism's Best Feature is Preserved in Belarus

Compare Land Use in Washington DC and Minsk

Washington Metro Area Privatized Green Space

Washington DC Land Use (privatized green space shown in red).

DEVELOPMENT OF POLITICAL PARTIES

Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, its member states set about building modern multi-party democracies. In Belarus that process lasted thirty years, during which time the remains of the Communist Party retained de facto power.

By 2020 there were 15 registered political parties, but none of them except the Communists had any real power. The president is barred by the constitution from belonging to any party, and a large majority of MP's also had no party affiliation. Elections were regularly held, but in the absence of a functional multi-party system they were perceived as opaque and undemocratic.

In the pivotal presidential election of 2020, none of the major candidates had any party affiliation. The turmoil that surrounded that election forced an overhaul of the political system. In the run-up to Parliamentary and local elections held in February 2024, a Party of Power was registered and it quickly attained dominance. At the same time, all of the smaller parties were liquidated.

Parliament Composition	Legal Framework
Soviet Era (1924 - 1989) Communists have a constitutional monopoly in the Supreme Soviet. - Communist Party	Constitution of the Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic. Article 6. The Communist Party of the Soviet Union is the leading and guiding force of Soviet society, the core of its political system, state and public organizations. Armed with the Marxist-Leninist doctrine, the Communist Party determines the general perspective of the development of society, the line of the domestic and foreign policy of the USSR; directs the creative activity of the Soviet people, gives a planned, scientifically substantiated character to their struggle for the victory of communism.
Transition Period (1990 - 2022) The Communist Party remains dominant in a nominally multi-party system. The president and most MP's have no formal party affiliation. - No party affiliation - Communist Party - Party of Labour and Justice	Constitution of Belarus Article 4 . Democracy in the Republic of Belarus is based on a diversity of political institutions, ideologies and opinions. Article 36. Citizens have the right to create political parties for the implementation and satisfaction of political, social, economic, cultural and other interests. Article 86. The President must not be a member of any political party for the entire term of office. Law on Political Parties Article 10. To create and operate a political party, at least 1,000 founders (members) from the majority of regions of the Republic of Belarus and the city of Minsk are required.
Multiparty Rule (2023 - present) Party-aligned candidates dominate parliamentary elections. All political parties field a candidate in the presidential elections. - Belaya Rus - Liberal Democratic Party	Law on Political Parties Article 10. To create and operate a political party, at least 5,000 founders (members) are required. At the same time, at least 100 founders (members) are required from each of the regions and the city of Minsk. Note: In 2023 the requirements for party registration were made much more stringent. Minimum membership increased fivefold, and a substantial presence was required in all regions. As a result, most parties were liquidated, including the Green Party and Social Democrats.

Four political parties, with support from their Russian counterparts, were the first to meet the threshold of 5,000 active members spread around the country.

Political Parties Currently Registered in Belarus

Belarusian Party	Candidate for President 2025	Candidates for MP 2024*	MPs	Idealogy	Russian Partner Party
Belaya Rus Create unity with us. Wikipedia	Alexander Lukashenko †	71	51	Preservation of the communist heritage Unity Agrarianism	United Russia
Party of Labour and Justice Work. Justice. Accountability. Wikipedia	Alexander Khizhnyak	21	8	Socialism Laborism Loyalism	A Just Russia – For Truth
Communist Party Proletarians of all countries, unite! Wikipedia	Sergey Syrankov	37	7	Communism Marxism-Leninism	Communist Party of the Russian Federation
Liberal Democratic Party Order in the country — prosperity at home Wikipedia	Oleg Gaidukevich	54	4	Right-wing populism Russian-Belarusian unionism Loyalism	Liberal Democratic Party of Russia

† According to Article 102 of the 1994 constitution (still in effect today), the president cannot be a member of any party.

* - Source for candidate data: Central Electoral Commission of the Republic of Belarus.

EXCERPTS FROM PLATFORMS OF POLITICAL PARTIES WORLDWIDE

Communist Party

Preserve the legislatively established state ownership of land
Universal access to free quality education and qualified medical care
Comfortable housing, recreation and social security

Full Text of Platform:

Belaya Rus

The Party sees the future of the Republic of Belarus in evolutionary development based on our accumulated experience of state building
Systematic and targeted fight against corruption
Formation of environmental awareness of citizens

Full Text of Platform:

Party of Labour and Justice

Right to work and fair remuneration for work
High-quality and affordable housing throughout the country
Fair distribution of social benefits

Full Text of Platform:

Liberal Democratic Party

Conducting elections using a proportional-majoritarian system, and not just single-mandate constituencies. Party lists guarantee competition and an alternative at all levels of government

Full Text of Platform:

Green Party of Finland

Financing municipal projects that promote walking, cycling and public transport
Deepen European and global cooperation, ensure Finland’s security and work towards a more stable world

Full Text of Platform:

Green Party of Canada

Ensure access to zero-carbon public transportation, with high-speed rail networks between major cities, and spokes of light rail and electric bus connections across the country.
Redefine the concept of wealth, to focus on quality of life rather than capacity for over-consumption

Full Text of Platform:

CHARTERS OF REGISTERED POLITICAL PARTIES

The primary customization is in chapter 2, which includes the goals and principles. The first seven goals are defined by law, starting with "ensuring the inviolability of the constitutional order". After that, the party can add its own goals.

Party	Charter Scan	Excerpts from Goals and Principles
Belaya Rus (устав) Founded in 2023.	13,069 words, 14 chapters.	2.1. The goals of the Party are: 2.1.1. ensuring the inviolability of the constitutional order . . . 2.1.3. unification of citizens of the Republic of Belarus based on the priority of national interests, cultural traditions, historical memory, patriotic and spiritual and moral values of the Belarusian people, the desire to preserve the sovereignty and independence of the state; 2.4. The party operates on the basis of the following principles: 2.4.2. democracy; 2.4.4. transparency; 2.4.5. autonomy and equality of all political parties;
Party of Labour and Justice (устав) Founded in 1993, charter amended in 2023.	2,864 words. 11 chapters.	2.1. The goals and objectives of the RPTS are: 2.1.1. ensuring the inviolability of the constitutional order . . . 2.1.9. formation of a society of economic well-being, defending the interests of working people, human rights to work and its fair remuneration;
Communist Party (устав) Founded in 1996. Charter amended in 2023.	7,112 words, 7 chapters.	2.1. The CPB, based on the creative development of Marxism-Leninism, sets its goals: - ensuring the inviolability of the constitutional order . . . 1.6. The CPB stands firmly on the proven Marxist-Leninist principles of proletarian internationalism and actively promotes the strengthening of the unity of the international communist and labor movement and fraternal ties with communists around the world. 4.3. A party member is obliged: - to constantly study and creatively apply Marxist-Leninist teachings in practical work
Liberal Democratic Party (устав) Founded in 1994, charter amended in 2023.	2,635 words, 7 chapters.	2.1. The goals and objectives of the LDPB are: ensuring the inviolability of the constitutional order . . . elucidation and propaganda of the ideas of liberalism.

SECURITY MEASURES

Strict adherence to the law.
Step-by-step coordination with the Ministry of Justice.
Conformance to declared government policy.
Reasoned support for the Belarusian constitution.

Declared Government Policy

We have never interfered and will not interfere with party building, especially for initiatives that come from people who sincerely love their country.

A.G. Lukashenko

Political parties have enough leeway to promote their own vision. This depends on the orientation of the parties themselves, which can be represented by a wide spectrum — from left to right.

A.G. Lukashenko

We do not reject progressive forms of Western European democracy. We will integrate them.

A.G. Lukashenko

At the moment, the level of trust in political parties in Belarusian society is low.

president.gov.by

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