One will only be able to become an academician with the permission of the Security Council
And if there was an administrative penalty for participation in protests, then one cannot even be nominated.
Candidates for academicians and corresponding members will be admitted to elections only after a check by the State Secretariat of the Security Council. And scientists who have received an administrative penalty for participating in protests will not even be able to be nominated. Such rules are provided for by the new version of the Statute of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus. The corresponding decree No. 367 was signed by Lukashenka on October 19. It will come into force in six months – in spring 2027.
According to the decree, academicians and corresponding members are elected by the General Assembly of the NAS. However, before a scientist is registered as a candidate, their documents must pass a check by the State Secretariat of the Security Council.
There, one must obtain a conclusion "on the absence of information preventing election to the members of the Academy of Sciences." Without such a conclusion, the candidate will not be registered, and therefore will not reach the voting stage.
It is separately stipulated whom cannot even be nominated.
Among the grounds is an administrative offense related to "violation of the procedure for organizing or holding mass events." Thus, the ban will also affect scientists punished on this ground for participating in protests.
This list also includes "extremist-oriented" crimes, grave and especially grave crimes. Among administrative offenses, actions involving Nazi symbols and materials containing calls for extremist activity or promoting it are also mentioned.
There is also a broader wording: one cannot be nominated after "other actions that harm state or public interests or are aimed at discrediting the academic scientific title." What specific actions are meant is not specified in this point. Nor is the term indicated here, after which the listed acts cease to be an obstacle to nomination.
The decision of the NAS presidium to refuse to register a candidate is called final by the statute.
At the same time, a path to obtaining an academic title without elections is also provided. Lukashenka will be able to award it by his decree to those who, in his opinion, have made a significant contribution to the national economy, Belarusian and world science. Candidates will be proposed to him by the presidium of the NAS.
Simultaneously, the number of places in the Academy is being reduced: 90 are provided for academicians instead of 100, and 120 for corresponding members instead of 145.
Such a degree of state control over the Academy of Sciences did not exist even in Soviet times. This structure then maintained a high degree of autonomy.
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