Dzmitry Bandarenka: Belarusians Are Creative — They Will Find Way To Celebrate Freedom Day

Today, millions of Belarusians celebrate March 25.

Today marks the 107th anniversary of the proclamation of the Belarusian People's Republic — Freedom Day.

On March 25, 1918, the Rada of the Belarusian People's Republic adopted the Third Charter, which proclaimed the BPR a free and independent state.

What is the importance of Freedom Day for Belarusians? What will this holiday be like in independent Belarus? The Charter97.org website spoke with Dzmitry Bandarenka, the coordinator of the European Belarus civil campaign, about this and more.

— Why is Freedom Day important to you personally? What memories do you have associated with this day?

— I learned about this holiday in 1989, when an action took place, the main participant of which was Ales Pushkin, bless his memory. I had friends who taught at the Minsk Theatre and Art Institute and told them about this event. Pushkin came out with a poster: “No to Soviet Belarus! Yes to People's Belarus!”

Naturally, the whirlwind of the national liberation revolution affected me and my entire family. We had to celebrate this holiday in different ways. Often at demonstrations and rallies, permitted and prohibited. At the table with family and friends — with the toast “Long live Belarus!” Several times I had to celebrate Freedom Day in prison — both for criminal and administrative cases. For many years, I have been celebrating March 25 in exile. This day is important for me, my family and friends.

Unfortunately, many of my friends are in prison today, some are no longer alive. There are fewer close people who congratulate me. However, this is one of the new holidays that came into my life already in adulthood.

— Hundreds of thousands of Belarusians celebrate Freedom Day in forced exile. What is the best way to celebrate this day?

— The most important thing is to celebrate this holiday, and how — Belarusians are creative people, they will always find a way to celebrate it. People should remember that they had to leave and suffer for Belarus. The vast majority of those who left are those who went out to protest in 2020. Many left the country because of repression or simply could not live in the stuffy atmosphere of Lukashenka's Belarus.

Most will celebrate it with their families, tell their children about this holiday, drink a hundred grams of wine or something stronger, congratulate their friends and acquaintances both abroad and inside the country.

We must remember how many national flags were on the streets in 2020. Today we have a temporary retreat, we have retreated to new positions, but we will return and go on the offensive at a decisive moment.

— How do you see this holiday in a free Belarus? Perhaps it will be Independence Day?

— I would like to say that we, Belarusians, should remember that the independence of our country did not begin on March 25, 1918. We had our own state for hundreds of years — both the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

Historians know that in 1918, Belarusians expected that Lithuania would proclaim its independence as a federal and multinational state. The leaders of the Belarusian movement, who lived in Vilnius, were especially hopeful about this. However, in February 1918, Lithuanian patriots proclaimed Lithuania as an independent Lithuanian Baltic state. Therefore, the need to proclaim the Belarusian People's Republic was unexpected for many patriots. The independence of the BPR was proclaimed in Minsk.

In the new Belarus, perhaps this will be the Day of Restoration of Independence. Our statehood did not come from nowhere, for hundreds of years we had our own state, albeit with other nations, but the Grand Duchy of Lithuania — and our state.

On March 25, 1918, the word “Belarus” was first heard in the name of our country. And this is important, from this we need to draw fundamental conclusions that we do not need to be indifferent, we need to have friends and allies, but we can only rely on ourselves. And Freedom Day will become a big holiday, it will be important not only because it was proclaimed on March 25, 1918, but also how Belarusians fought for the right to celebrate this holiday for decades — both in the USSR itself, and in exile during the Soviet era, and in a short period in independent Belarus, when it was allowed, and under Lukashenka's bans.

Today, this holiday is not as new as it was for my generation. Of course, this will be one of the main state holidays. Congratulations to all readers of the Charter97.org website on the holiday! Long live Belarus!

You can support the website Charter97.org

MULTI-CURRENCY ACCOUNT FOR ASSISTANCE:

Bank's name: Bank Millennium S.A.
Address: ul. Stanislawa Zaryna, 2A, 02-593, Warszawa
IBAN: PL97116022020000000216711123
SWIFT: BIGBPLPW
Name of the account holder: Fundacja “KARTA ‘97”
Purpose/title of payment: Donation for statuary aims

You can contact us by the e-mail charter97@gmail.com