CONTENTS

Official Materials and Decisions
of the Constitutional Court
of the Republic of Belarus

• Decision of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Belarus of 10 April 2002 No. D-140/2002 "On setting of fixed sums of incomes tax while renting out living accommodation in the city of Minsk"

Summary
     The Constitutional Court in its Decision of 10 April 2002 "On setting of fixed sums of incomes tax while renting out living accommodation in the city of Minsk" has found to be at variance the practice of application by taxation of Decision of Minsk city executive committee, which had set the rates of incomes tax from the citizens in stable sums while renting out living accommodation, with the principle under Article 58 of the Constitution, which shall stipulate the prohibition to be compelled to discharge duties that are not specified in the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus and its laws, since the given Decision was adopted by Minsk city executive committee with going beyond its powers.
     The Constitutional Court has proposed Minsk city Council of deputies and Minsk city executive committee to bring on or before 1 July 2002 their decisions on the specified issues into line with the Law of the Republic of Belarus "On income tax from natural persons" and with the present Decision of the Constitutional Court.

• Decision of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Belarus 23 May 2002 No. D-141/2002 "On legal regulation of the procedure of opening chemist's shops, chemists stations (dispensary), kiosks and chemist's storehouses by economic entities"

Summary:
     Having analyzed on the grounds of motions of citizens the restrictions for opening chemist's shops envisaged by Procedure of opening chemist's shops, chemist's stations (dispensary), chemist's kiosks and chemist's storehouses by economic entities irrespective of the forms of ownership in the territory of the Republic of Belarus and approved by Order of the Ministry of Public Health of the Republic of Belarus of 21 December 1998 No. 366, the Constitutional Court found them to be at variance with the Laws of the Republic of Belarus "On Public Health" and "On entrepreneur activities in the Republic of Belarus".
     The Ministry of Public Health of the Republic of Belarus has been proposed to bring the given Procedure of opening chemist's shops into line with the given legislative acts and to repeal ill-founded restrictions for opening chemist's establishments which are privately owned.

• Decision of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Belarus 23 May 2002 No. D-142/2002 "On decisions of Minsk city executive committee concerning suspension of taking documents for indexation of cheques "Zhiljo" ("Dwelling")"

Summary:
     In 2000 - 2001 Minsk city executive committee has adopted certain decisions under which local administrations in the city of Minsk had to suspend in 2000 - 2002 taking documents for indexation of housing quotas (cheques "Zhiljo") which were made as presents, inherited or obtained in the specified procedure from the citizens of the Republic of Belarus. Those decisions Minsk city executive committee has motivated by the absence of the funds on a special account "Privatization of dwelling" in the National Bank of the Republic of Belarus and inadequate financing from the republican budget for redemption of debt on indexated cheques "Zhiljo".
     At the same time, Article 21 of the Law "On privatization of housing stock in the Republic of Belarus", point 4 of the Provision on indexation of housing quota (sums of quotas) approved by Resolution of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus of 21 September 2001 No. 1399 shall envisage indexation of housing quotas inherited and obtained in the specified procedure from the citizens of the Republic of Belarus. Thus, Minsk city executive committee has practically stopped the effectiveness of the given norm of legislation.
     In its Decision the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Belarus has underlined the necessity of proper financial security of any enforceable enactment under adoption and specified that Minsk city executive committee had went beyond its powers. The Constitutional Court has proposed Minsk city executive committee to bring its decisions into line with the legislation, and the Council of Ministers - to solve the issue on financial security for realization of the norms of the Law of the Republic of Belarus "On privatization of housing stock in the Republic of Belarus", including by way of possible making proposals on alterations of the norms of the Law in question.

• Decision of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Belarus 29 May 2002 No. D-143/2002 "On legal regulation of taking cash by individual entrepreneurs with use of checkout summing apparatuses"

• Explanation of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Belarus on the order of application of the Decision of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Belarus of 29 May 2002 "On legal regulation of taking cash by individual entrepreneurs with use of checkout summing apparatuses"

Summary:
     The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Belarus on 29 May 2002 has delivered Decision on the issue on legal regulation of taking cash by individual entrepreneurs with use of checkout summing apparatuses. The ground for the adoption of the given Decision has become the motion of a public association "Belarusian Union of entrepreneurs" which contained 498 signatures of individual entrepreneurs.
     Having analyzed the relevant provisions of the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus, Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus of 17 May 2001 No. 12 "On imposition of single tax from individual entrepreneurs and other natural persons who carry out realization of goods, works (services) and on some issues connected with the specified activities", other enforceable legal acts regulating the issues of taking cash while realizing goods (works, services) with use of checkout summing apparatuses, the Constitutional Court has come to the conclusion, that certain provisions of enforceable enactments of less legal force shall practically exclude the effect of the norms of higher legal force.
     The specified conclusion is referred to Resolution of the Council of Ministers of 15 January 2002 No. 38 "On some issues of realization of goods (works, services) with use of cash checkout summing apparatuses or special computer systems", to Decision of Minsk city executive committee of 19 February 2002 No. 184 "On procedure of taking cash at certain trade objects (points)", to Resolution of the Ministry on taxes and dues of 8 February 2002 No. 11, which has approved Provision on procedure of use by legal entities and by individual entrepreneurs of cash checkout summing apparatuses and of special computer systems for taking cash while realizing goods (works, services). Application in practice of certain norms of the specified enforceable enactments on points of fact shall deprive individual entrepreneurs, who pay single tax, of the rights to take cash without using cash checkout summing apparatuses and the right to maintain records of returns in free form, which have been granted them respectively by part one of point 5 and part one of point 4 of Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus of 17 May 2001 No. 12.
     Due to that the Constitutional Court has decided to propose the Government of the Republic of Belarus, Minsk city executive committee, other state bodies to bring enforceable enactments, as regards the procedure of taking cash with use of cash checkout summing apparatuses, into line with the provisions of Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus of 17 May 2001 No. 12 and with the Decision of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Belarus.

Problems, opinions, comments

• E.S. Smirnova. Some aspects of the process of constitutionalization of European Union and their plan view on the Union of Belarus and Russia

Summary:
     European constitutionalism is considered to be a variety of the concept of European integration. There is an aspect of mutual relations between European Court and National Courts. Analysis is given the issues of changes in legal systems of European States as regards the observance of fundamental constitutional rights and freedoms of citizens due to application of the provisions of Unique European Act, as well as Maastricht and Amsterdam Treaties.
     From the stand point of political and social-economic integration under consideration is a constitutional process of Union State of Belarus and Russia.

• A.A. Sarkisova. On problem of death penalty in the Republic of Belarus

Summary:
     Article contains analysis of legal regulation of the issue of death penalty in the Republic of Belarus in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution which shall enshrine the temporal and exceptional nature of the penalty in question.
     Author studies the process of development of criminal legislation in the Republic of Belarus which is directed to the consistent reduction of the scope of application of death penalty both on the subjects and on the circle of crimes for the commitment of which death penalty shall be subject to application. Grounded on the requirements of the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus, on the approaches of European States, on the tendencies of development of the criminal legislation, as well as on the practice of its application, the author gives reasons for the position on declaring a moratorium to death penalty.

• T.S. Maslovskaya. Constitutional liability: the issues of content

Summary:
     Under consideration there are matters of constitutional responsibility: notion, substance, legal foundations. Special attention is given the issue of constitutional responsibility of supreme officials including the head of state.

• N.A. Lichagin. The immunity of private life as one of the fundamental human rights (the experience of the European regulation and case law)

Summary:
     In this article the author has analyzed the norms of the European Convention for the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms of 1950, which regulates rights of citizens on the respect of its private life. The case law of the European Court of Human Rights in the sphere of securing of the immunity of home and privacy of correspondence, which are the main guarantees of the right on respect of private life was examined. There were researched the conceded by law limitations of such right foremost while conducting of the measures on operational search concerned with audition of the phones of citizens, perlustration of their correspondence, backroom search of homes etc.

• T.N. Vazhenkova. Becoming and development of the legislation of the Republic of Belarus on employment of the population for securing constitutional right of citizens for labour

Summary:
     In this article the issues of becoming, adoption to the international standards and development on the present day stage of the legislation of the Republic of Belarus securing of the realization of the citizen's constitutional right for labour are discussed.

Fundamental human rights and freedoms
in international law and their protection

     Protocol No. 6 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, concerning the abolition of the death penalty (Strasbourg, 28 April 1995)
     
     Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, aiming at the abolition of the death penalty (Adopted and proclaimed by General Assembly Resolution 44/128 of 15 December 1989)
     
     Resolution 1044 (1994) on abolition of the death penalty (Adopted by the Parliamentary Assembly of Council of Europe 4 October 1994)
     
     Protocol No. 13 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, concerning the abolition of the death penalty in all circumstances (Vilnius, 3 May 2002)

The chronicle of events

     The constitutional law aspects of the abolition of the death penalty in the Republic of Belarus (Report of the Chairman of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Belarus G.A. Vasilevich on the parliamentary hearings 30 May 2002 "Political and law issues of abolition of death penalty in the Republic of Belarus")
     
     Resolution of the II Congress of judges of the Republic of Belarus
     
     V.V. Podgrusha. Republican council of judges is acting

     Jubilees
     
     The choice justified by life (Interview with the judge of the Constitutional Court A.G. Tikovenko)

Bodies of constitutional control of foreign countries

     G.A. Vasilevich. The bases for the development of the constitutional control in the Republic of Turkey

International relations of the Constitutional Court

     G.A. Vasilevich. Constitutional control as the most important instrument for development of law and democracy in Europe
     
     G.A. Vorobei. International forum in Moscow
     
     A.A. Sarkisova. Judicial system and human rights (about conference in Poland)
     
     V.I. Seledevsky. Advanced program on human rights
     
     L.O. Murashko. International seminar in Minsk