“Dzyady” under our own flags (Photo, video)

About a thousand participants have taken part in the march held in Minsk on October 31.

The traditional rally “Dzyady” was held in Minsk, and its participants were flying white-red-white and European flags.

More than 1,000 persons have taken part in the march held in Minsk on October 31 from Minsk Watch Plant to the Kurapaty. “Dzyady” march is held annually. It is not a political, but a mourning event, when Belarusians do their duty of honouring the memory of innocent victims of Stalinism. According to estimations of historians, in 1930-1940ies about 200,000 people were executed in Kurapaty.

At 11 a.m. common Minsk dwellers and well-known politicians and public leaders gathered near the Watch Plant. Participants of the memorial rally unfurled about a hundred of national white-red-white flags and flags of the civil campaign “European Belarus”. Many had their children with them; they brought flowers and tied white-red-white ribbons to their clothes.

A presidential aspirant in Belarus, the leader of “European Belarus” Andrei Sannikov was among the first persons who came to the rally. Andrei Sannikov takes part in the memorial march every year. Among other participants were the leader of the Belarusian Popular Front Party Alyaksei Yanukevich, the head of Minsk city branch of the BPF party Viktar Ivashkevich, Andrei Sannikov’s campaign chief in Minsk Yauhen Afnagel, “Young Front” leader Zmitser Dashkevich, a presidential candidate of the Belarusian Popular Front party Ryhor Kastusyou, a co-chairman of the Belarusian Christian Democracy party Paval Sevyarynets, a presidential candidate of the BCD party Vital Rymasheuski, a prominent artist, the head of “Pahonya” creative association Ales Marachkin and others.

“Dzyady is a traditional day for me, I always commemorate it and participate in the march. It is a day of restoration of our memory, culture and history of Belarus. From 1988 we can date the Belarusian Renaissance, and it is a crucial event in our recent history.

Kurapaty is a place of a tragedy, the place where the nation was executed, where the memory of the nation was destroyed. It is an eternal memorial, a reminder of what can happen in a state where a totalitarian regime rules. Restoration of the memory is extremely important. We see that Lukashenka’s dictatorship started with negation of the history, there were attempts to restore the Soviet Union in a separate republic, but this day vividly shows the bankruptcy of such a policy,” Andrei Sannikov said in an interview to charter97.org website.

The demonstration to Kurapaty lasted for more than 3 hours. People were marching under national and European flags, chanting “Long live Belarus!”, “We believe! We can! We will win!” Policemen and riot policemen were accompanying the participants of the rally all the way. They were walking by, driving in buses and cars along the way the column marched. It is notable that a dozen of shaven-headed riot policemen in mufti where transported also in a “TV-Press” minibus.

As it was an organized march and it attracted attention of passers-by, who were numerous on a sunny weekend day, there were also provocations staged. Several young men of sound constitution with bottles of cheap wine tried to join the procession. They were leading the procession, drinking the wine for everyone to see, in front of policemen who did not react to that. The age of these persons and the fact that they were dressed rather well, disagreed with the wine they were drinking. Finally, with effort people on duty managed to remove the provocateurs from the column of demonstrators.

The response of Minsk citizens to the march was inspiring its participants. Car drivers beeped in sign of solidarity, Minsk dwellers came out of shops, looked out of windows and balconies, and one woman left her house and met the column with a white-red-white flag.

In the wooded area of Kurapaty, nest to the crosses raised in memory of victims of Stalin-era repressions, a meeting was held. Politicians and relatives of the victims of Stalinist repressions have taken part in the meeting. The persons who addressed the meeting, noted that for more than 20 years, since 1988, when Belarus learnt the awful truth about Kurapaty, thousands and thousands of Belarusians come there every year. Today Kurapaty is not only the place of memory and sufferings of the Belarusian nation, but the beginning of the Belarusian revolution.