Soviet of Nationalities

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The Soviet of Nationalities (Совет Национальностей in Russian), was one of the two chambers of the Supreme Soviet of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, elected on the basis of universal, equal and direct suffrage by secret ballot in accordance with the principles of Soviet democracy. As opposed to the Soviet of the Union, the Soviet of Nationalities was composed of the nationalities of the Soviet Union, which in turn followed administrative division rather than being a representation of ethnic groups.

The Soviet of the Nationalities was formed on the basis of equal representation of all the Republics of the Soviet Union (32 deputies from each republic, excluding other autonomous units inside that republic which used to send in separate members), autonomous republics (11 deputies from each republic), autonomous oblasts (five deputies from each oblast), national districts (one deputy from each district). In the Soviet of the Nationalities the largest of the republics, the Russian SFSR with a population of 147 million, and the smallest republic, the Estonian SSR with a population of about 1.5 million, both got 32 deputies each. Russians as an ethnic group made up more than half of the population of the Soviet Union, but the Soviet of Nationalities did not represent ethnic groups, it represented the different nationalities as expressed by the republics and various autonomies of the Soviet Union.

The Soviet of the Nationalities enjoyed the same rights as the Soviet of the Union both in the area of legislative initiative and resolving other issues inside the competence of the Union of the SSR.

The Soviet of the Nationalities elected a chairman (who would lead the sessions of the chamber), his four deputies and permanent commissions: Mandate Commission, Commission on Legislative Suppositions, Budget Planning Commission, Foreign Affairs Commission, Youth Affairs Commission, Industry Commission, Transportation and Communications Commission, Construction and Industry of Building Materials Commission, Agricultural Commission, Consumer Goods Commission, Public Education Commission, Science and Culture Commission, Trade Commission, Consumer Service and Municipal Economy Commission, Environmental Commission.