Formation of the Belarusian military prosecutor's office bodies

History of the Belarusian military prosecutor's office dates back to the beginning of the XVIII th century. It is closely related to Peter the Great's reforms and creation of the regular Army. 

Peter the Great's Decree dated January 12, 1722 prescribed to the Senate the following: "Be it a general-prosecutor and a chief-prosecutor in the Senate as well as a prosecutor in every collegium". Tsar Peter the Great clearly expressed the tasks facing the prosecutors: "This rank is our eye and solicitor of the State affairs". 

In 1922 a single centralized Prosecutor's Office of the USSR was established. The Regulation of the Central Executive Committee and the Soviet of the People's Commissars of the USSR dated August 20, 1926 gave effect to the Statute of the military tribunals and the military prosecutor's office, being a fundamental document for constituting military prosecutor's offices in districts, corps and divisions. The military prosecutor's office of the Western military district was organized. Later on it was reorganized to the military prosecutor's office of the Western special and Belarusian military districts. 

In January 1992 by the Regulation of the Supreme Soviet of the Republic of Belarus the military prosecutor's office of the Belarusian military district was given the name of Belarusian military prosecutor's office and subordinated to the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Belarus. 

First military prosecutors of the Western military district were Viacheslav Konstantinovich Blumfeldt and Lev Matveevich Subbotsky. 

Military prosecutors and investigators underwent a lot of severe trials during the Great Patriotic War. The military prosecutor of the front was major general of justice S.A. Smirnov. During the ordeals of the war years most military prosecutors and investigators performed their duties directly in the front line. Together with the soldiers and commanders they defended their homeland against the fascist invaders and liberated the peoples of Europe. 

Thus, military prosecutor of the 28 th Army Boris Ivanovich Alekseev, when getting in August 1941 out of the encirclement, fulfilled by order of the Military Soviet of the Army the duties of a commissar of the Army headquarters echelon and a commander of the assembled detachment of officers and soldiers. He personally took part in battles showingwill, courage and initiative. He ended the War in the rank of military prosecutor of the front and was awarded many orders and medals for his feats of arms. 

Military investigator Naum Iliich Zheludev was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union for forcing a crossing over the Dnepr. More than 1800 prosecutors and investigators were awarded orders and medals for displaying courage, bravery and heroism during the Great Patriotic War, 278 officers of the military prosecutor's offices perished. 

Post-war period was also hard for military prosecutors and investigators. Under the conditions of devastation and reconstruction of the national economy, displacement of lots of troops through the territory of Belarus, mobilization of millions of front-line soldiers, reorganization of the Armed Forces the prosecutors carried out a fierce struggle against stealing of weapons as well as of public and military property. 

The Belarusian military prosecutor's office trained a number of officers who then successfully headed prosecutor's offices of military districts, fleets (groups of forces) as well as subdivisions of the Chief military prosecutor's office. They are major generals of justice V.A. Makarchenko, A.P. Korotkov, V.A. Kovalev, V.G. Melnichuk, B.I. Alexeev, S.V. Bernatsky, A.K. Glyukov. 

Special thanks are tendered to those military prosecutors who have recently retired on a deserved rest and prepared a number of honest, competent and responsible military justice officers: to colonels of justice E.E. Vesenin, A.M. Pervushin, A.I. Pilyavsky, A.A. Kenik, E.V. Khrushchev, N.F. Simonov, V.V. Lyubovitsky and others. 

We always keep in our memory military prosecutors of the Belarusian military district who have already left this world: S.A. Smirnov, P.P. Roginets, I.P. Pastrevich, A.L. Kalenik, Yu. F. Kindaev, V.I. Ivakhnyuk. 

With a view to improving the system of prosecution bodies of the Republic of Belarus and optimizing their activities, on 26 March, 2014, the President of the Republic signed Decree No. 137 “On Elimination of Military Prosecutor's Offices”.  

In accordance with the Decree, on 1 September, 2014, the Belarusian military Prosecutor's Office and 11 interdepartmental military prosecutor's offices were liquidated. 

Powers for exercising supervision over the implementation of legislation in the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus, other troops and military formations, state bodies in which military service is provided are assigned to the Prosecutor General’s Office and the territorial prosecutor's offices.