Prosecutor’s Office Employees Day in Belarus Date in the current year: June 26, 2024

The formation of the legal system of the Byelorussian SSR (BSSR) began in 1922, several months before its formal incorporation into the Soviet Union. On June 26, 1922, the Central Executive Committee of the BSSR officially established the State Prosecutor’s Office. The newly created Prosecutor’s Office was tasked with supervising the legality of the actions of various state, public and private institutions and organizations, as well as citizens. It also supervised the legality and validity of court decisions and the legality of detention and imprisonment of individuals.

Following the establishment of the State Prosecutor’s Office, the People’s Commissar of Justice became the chief prosecutor of the BSSR. He reported to the Presidium of the Central Executive Committee of the BSSR. At the local level, procuratorial activities were carried out by district and county prosecutor’s offices.

The formation of the State Prosecutor’s Office in Belarus was completed during 1923, but the development of the legal system continued. For example, in 1924, the investigative bodies of the People’s Commissariat of Justice became subordinate to the prosecutor’s office.

In 1933, the Central Executive Committee and the Council of People’s Commissars of the Soviet Union established the General Prosecutor’s Office of the SSSR, which resulted in the centralization of the country’s procuratorial system. By 1936, all republican prosecutor’s offices, including the State Prosecutor’s Office of the BSSR, became independent from the People’s Commissariat of Justice and directly subordinate to the General Prosecutor of the Soviet Union.

The present-day Prosecutor’s Office of Belarus was formed on August 25, 1991, on the same day as the Declaration of State Sovereignty of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic was recognized as a constitutional law and Belarus became independent from the Soviet Union. The main tasks of the prosecutor’s office are to ensure the rule of law and to protect the rights and legitimate interests of citizens and organizations, as well as public and state interests.

The Prosecutor’s Office of Belarus coordinates the activities of state law enforcement bodies responsible for fighting against crime and corruption and preventing crimes, as well as the anti-crime activities of other organizations involved in the fight against crime. It also has the authority to conduct preliminary investigations in cases provided for by the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Belarus. Prosecutors support state prosecution in criminal cases and can participate in administrative and civil cases.

Prosecutor’s Office Employees Day was officially added to the country’s calendar of professional days in 1998. Like all professional holidays in Belarus, it is not a non-working day unless it falls on a weekend.