Do not let the regime deceive you! What is the All-Belarusian People’s Assembly really for?
On April 24-25, the so-called All-Belarusian People’s Assembly will take place in Minsk. It will approve the key guidelines for Belarus’s domestic and foreign policies, as well as a new military doctrine. Let us explain what the ABPA is and why the regime is holding it.
1. Why was the assembly established?
The All-Belarusian People’s Assembly (ABPA) has held meetings before: six times from 1996 to 2021. However, those meetings never had a formal status – they were gatherings of officials and random people without authority or representation of any bodies. Lukashenka created the ABPA to simulate an alternative body to represent the people in opposition to the Supreme Council existing in 1996. In 2022, the Constitution was illegally amended again, making the assembly a “constitutional body”.
2. Who participates in the ABPA?
Nearly 2000 people will attend the ABPA, with a third of them being not delegates but simply guests. These include law enforcement officers, judges, and members of parliament and local councils. The ABPA will also feature representatives of various pseudo-civic organizations, including the regime’s Youth Union, the Federation of Trade Unions, and “Belaya Rus”. At the expense of taxpayers, the regime will feed, house, and protect all these people.
3. How are participants in the assembly elected?
No participant of the All-Belarusian People’s Assembly was ever elected by the people. There are no procedures for the election of delegates at all! All of them are appointed by the Lukashenka administration.
4. Does the ABPA really decide anything?
Formally, the ABPA has vast powers, determining the country’s development strategy and appointing members of the Central Election Commission and the Constitutional Court. In reality, however, 1162 delegates do not know each other, are not united in political parties, and are not part of profile committees. Gathering in one place for two days, they can only obediently and unanimously vote “in favor”. Discussing the country’s development strategy in such a format cannot be productive.
5. What does the regime need the assembly for?
Through the ABPA, the regime creates a window-dressing of legitimacy for Lukashenka and the decisions he makes. This is an imitation of popular participation. In the current situation, it is clear that the assembly does not represent the interests of the people as it only features officials appointed by the regime to participate in it and therefore loyal to it.
6. For the democratic forces, it is a priority to defend the interests of Belarusians. For this, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya regularly holds personal conversations, during which anyone can directly address the Belarusian leader with questions and problems, as well as share criticism, ideas, and suggestions.
Participation in these meetings is safe, even for those in Belarus. Belarusians are invited to join the personal conversations this Thursday, April 25. Follow the announcements of the meetings in Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s official channels.
