Background
SHUSHKEVICH, Stanislav Stanislavovich was born in 1934 in Belarus.
SHUSHKEVICH, Stanislav Stanislavovich was born in 1934 in Belarus.
University of Belarus, Doctor in Technical Education.
On December 8, 1991, in Belavezhskaya Pushcha and together with the leaders of Russia (Boris Yeltsin) and Ukraine (Leonid Kravchuk), he signed a declaration that the Soviet Union was dissolved and replaced by the Commonwealth of Independent States; the declaration later became known as the "Belavezha Accords".
In late 1993, Alexander Lukashenko, the then-chairman of the anti-corruption committee of the Belarusian parliament, accused 70 senior government officials, including Shushkevich, of corruption, including stealing state funds for personal purposes. Lukashenko's accusations forced a vote of confidence, which Shushkevich lost. Shushkevich was replaced by Vyacheslau Kuznyatsou and later by Myechyslau Hryb.
In July, 1994 the first direct presidential elections were held in Belarus. Six candidates stood, including Lukashenko, Shushkevich and Kebich, with the latter regarded as the clear favorite. In the first round Lukashenko won 45% of the vote against 17% for Kebich, 13% for Paznyak and only 10% for Shushkevich.
In 2002 the world learned about a highly unusual court case. Shushkevich sued the Belarusian Ministry of Labor and Social Security: due to inflation, his retirement pension as a former head of state was the equivalent of one dollar and 80 cents monthly. To earn income, Shushkevich lectures extensively in foreign universities including in Poland, the United States and Asian countries.
In 2004 he attempted to participate in parliamentary elections, but was refused registration by the electoral commission. He continues to be active in politics nonetheless, heading the Belarusian Social Democratic Assembly party as well as working to unify the opposition.
Member, Academy of Education.
