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Belarus Local Government
![[PDF]](http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/pdf.gif)
Figure 11. Administrative Divisions of Belarus, 1995
In 1995 Belarus's local government was arranged in
three
tiers: six voblastsi (sing., voblasts'); 141
rayony (sing.,
rayon--see Glossary) and
thirtyeight cities; and 112 towns and 1,480 villages and
settlements.
Large cities were also divided into rayony
(see
fig. 11).
Under Belarus's new constitution, local councils of
deputies
are to be elected by the citizens of their jurisdictions
for
four-year terms and are to have exclusive jurisdiction
over
economic and social development programs, local budgets
and
taxes, management and disposal of local government
property, and
the calling of referenda. In October 1994, Lukashyenka
convinced
the Supreme Soviet to amend the law on local
self-government,
much to the dismay of the opposition, who saw the
country's
administration come under his control in a single stroke.
The
local councils in villages, towns, and city districts were
to be
disbanded and placed under the supervision of local
administrations. The head of the regional executives was
to be
appointed by the president, and the local executives were
to be
nominated by the regional executives (and approved by the
president). Thus, the chain of command ran from the top
down, as
it had in the days of the Belorussian SSR.
Data as of June 1995
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