Vadzim Saranchukou: People Across Country Prepare To Celebrate BPR' 100th Anniversary

Organizing committees are established in all regional and large district centers.

The Homel Regional Executive Committee sent a response to the proposal of the Homel based Belarusian Popular Front organizations to decorate Homel and other cities of the region with festive banners and posters on the occasion of the BPR' 100th anniversary.

In their response, officials inform that the patriots' proposal to celebrate March 25 was "taken into consideration" and note that "the date of proclamation of the Belarusian People's Republic is not a state holiday determined by decree, hence it does not involve large-scale events," Radio Racyja reports.

The appeal of the Homel region and Homel city organizations of the Belarusian Popular Front party was sent to the authorities on the decision of the city organizing committee on the celebration of the BPR anniversary. This organizing committee was created with the participation of a wide range of democratic organizations of the Homel region.

Deputy Chairman of the BPF Party Vadzim Saranchukou commented on the response of the Homel authorities to the press service of the BPF Party:

– The answer is ambiguous – it can be interpreted in various ways. It can be seen that the local authorities are unable to formulate an official ideological line in this matter: on the one hand, state newspapers and universities hold round tables and conferences on the occasion of the BPR anniversary, on the other hand, the vertical did not receive a clear ideological signal from above. If festive decorations or stretches dedicated to the BPR anniversary appear in Minsk, they will soon appear in Homel and other cities.

Organizing committees for celebrating the centenary of the BPR arose in all regional centers, and in some other cities, for example, in Slonim, Lida.

These regional organizing committees, as well as the National Organizing Committee headed by the academician Haretski, have chosen to have a dialogue with the authorities, trying to make it clear to them that the glorious jubilee of Belarusian independence is important for all Belarusians, regardless of their political beliefs.

But we see that in the regions the authorities treat the proposals for dialogue with caution. This answer of the Homel Regional Executive Committee, as well as the previously received reply from the Hrodna City Executive Committee, testify: local authorities will refrain from joining the celebration until an agreement on holding a festive event in Minsk is reached. Unfortunately, this testifies to the lack of autonomy of local authorities in Belarus, – Deputy Chairman of the Belarusian Popular Front Party Vadzim Saranchukou said.