Belarus Passes Bill Allowing Death Penalty for Officials Convicted of Treason

Belarusian lawmakers have adopted a bill in the second and final reading that allows for the possibility of officials being sentenced to death for treason, the press service of the lower house of parliament reported on Tuesday.

For the bill to come into force, it must receive approval from the upper house of parliament and be signed by the president.

"The draft law on amendments to criminal codes regarding criminal liability has been accepted in the second reading. The bill introduces changes to the criminal code of the Republic of Belarus and the criminal enforcement code of the Republic of Belarus. In particular, the bill provides the possibility of applying the extreme measure of punishment—death penalty—against state officials and military personnel who commit crimes specified in the criminal code under the article 'Treason against the State,'" stated the press service in a message posted on its Telegram channel.

According to the press service, the bill also allows for penalties in the form of fines for committing crimes against peace and humanity, public safety, as well as increasing the amount of fines for such crimes up to 50,000 basic units.

The draft law provides for exemption from criminal liability for individuals who participated in the preparation of crimes specified under the articles 'Attack against Institutions under International Protection' and 'Diversion,' if they timely warned state authorities or otherwise contributed to the prevention of those crimes.

An article on 'Promotion of Terrorism' is also being introduced, which is expected to significantly enhance the preventive potential of this legislation, as it will help prevent the dissemination of information that incites terrorism and will not allow the acceptance of terrorism's methodologies and ideologies.

Furthermore, it is proposed to amend Belarusian legislation by including an article on 'Violation of Requirements for the Protection of State Secrets,' which entails criminal liability for the intentional illegal transfer of Belarusian state secrets outside the borders of Belarus.

The press service added that the draft law plans to increase the detention period for individuals suspected of 'treason against the state' by ten days, as well as for 'conspiracy or other actions committed with the intent to seize state power,' 'espionage,' 'agent activity,' 'terrorist acts against state or public figures,' and 'diversion.'

It is also expected to extend the period during which charges must be filed against these individuals to 20 days.