"Independent Belarus Exists Due To Kalinouski’s Heroes"

The people's memorial to the rebels of 1863 is being restored in Lida district.

Activists of Lida regional political parties and public organizations are restoring the people's memorial to the rebels of 1863 at the Kresty tract, racyja.com reports.

They are restoring the commemorative crosses, established here 22 years ago. According to Vitold Ashurka, local authorities must recognize this memorial and legalize it for commemorative events: "There is a memorial where people are buried. And it demands respect. We hope that the authorities will not face off against us absurdly. This is a matter of ordinary respect for people."

The activists, who are restoring the memorial, hope that eventually this place will become memorable not only in Lida district, but in Hrodna region as well, and will be granted a national status.

As representative of the Belarusian National Congress in Lida Valer Minets notes, for this to be possible we need to popularize the memorable place among young people within the bounds of patriotic education: "This is work with young people, there must be excursions. So that we can tell what happened here, which the memory of the dead rebels means for us. And thanks to what and to whose deeds our sovereign and independent Republic of Belarus exists today."

The memorable place at the Kresty tract, at the site of the battle of unknown insurgents in 1863, between the villages of Malae Olzhava and Mokhavichy, arose in the interwar period. There was a stone monument here, which at some point was destroyed by the communist authorities. A wooden cross stood here until the mid-1990s, after which it was replaced by modern ones, which the activists have restored.