Opinion: The world must remember the terrible truth about the war
BELTA
23 March 2021, 20:53
MINSK, 23 March (BelTA) - The world must remember the terrible truth about the war, Chairman of the House of Representatives Vladimir Andreichenko said during the international conference "Historical memory and patriotism - the most important fundamental values of the Belarusian society and the state, the factors of consolidation in the face of modern challenges and threats” in Minsk on 23 March, BelTA has learned.
“The issues that we will be discussing today are of the utmost importance for our country, the huge Eurasian region and humanity as a whole. Remembering the past means taking care of the future. The wide-ranging public discussions that took place in Belarus showed that people want to ban the attempts to distort the history and glorify Nazism at the level of the Constitution and the law. Therefore, the main task of our conference is to sum up the accumulated experience of preserving historical memory in Belarus and to develop concrete proposals on what should be done to protect it in the face of modern challenges and threats. The importance of fulfilling this mission was emphasized by the head of state in his address to the compatriots on the occasion of the 78th anniversary of the Khatyn tragedy," Vladimir Andreichenko said.
According to him, the fact that the conference is held alongside the events to honor the memory of the genocide victims is not accidental. "In no other war the threat of physical annihilation of the Belarusian people was so real. It is the memory of these sacrifices and the great feat of our ancestors that has always been the most important part of the national identity and the source of spiritual strength and will for Belarusian people in defending national interests. It is impossible to put into words what the Soviet people had to go through during the occupation. But no matter how fragile a person may seem, in crucial moments he can show tremendous fortitude. Despite the scorched earth tactics, the enemy was unable to conquer our people,” the speaker said. “Belarus put up fierce resistance to the invaders. The city underground and partisan units helped the Soviet Army to conduct one of the most powerful offensive operations in the history of the Second World War."
The contribution of the Belarusian people to the defeat of fascism received high recognition: on 27 April 1945, an international conference convened to set up the United Nations decided to include the BSSR among its founding countries. “In our foreign policy, we have always assumed that the world must remember the terrible truth about war, and international law must protect all the inhabitants of the earth. Belarus' peaceful initiatives have always found a positive response in the international community. But today we are living in a fundamentally different reality. Several generations have already grown up who know about the Second World War from textbooks at best. Moreover, today's youth are cosmopolitan. Therefore, it often falls victim to those who try to revive the ideology and symbols of Nazism, to justify genocide. This is a serious challenge not only for Belarus," Vladimir Andreichenko said.
The House of Representatives played host to the international conference "Historical memory and patriotism - the most important fundamental values of the Belarusian society and the state, the factors of consolidation in the face of modern challenges and threats" on 23 March. The focus is on ways to preserve the historical memory and to promote patriotic upbringing in Belarus. The event brought together MPs, representatives of the executive branch, scholars, students and foreign guests.
The conference was prepared with the participation of the National Academy of Sciences and the Academy of Public Administration under the aegis of the President of Belarus.
23 March 2021, 20:53
“The issues that we will be discussing today are of the utmost importance for our country, the huge Eurasian region and humanity as a whole. Remembering the past means taking care of the future. The wide-ranging public discussions that took place in Belarus showed that people want to ban the attempts to distort the history and glorify Nazism at the level of the Constitution and the law. Therefore, the main task of our conference is to sum up the accumulated experience of preserving historical memory in Belarus and to develop concrete proposals on what should be done to protect it in the face of modern challenges and threats. The importance of fulfilling this mission was emphasized by the head of state in his address to the compatriots on the occasion of the 78th anniversary of the Khatyn tragedy," Vladimir Andreichenko said.
According to him, the fact that the conference is held alongside the events to honor the memory of the genocide victims is not accidental. "In no other war the threat of physical annihilation of the Belarusian people was so real. It is the memory of these sacrifices and the great feat of our ancestors that has always been the most important part of the national identity and the source of spiritual strength and will for Belarusian people in defending national interests. It is impossible to put into words what the Soviet people had to go through during the occupation. But no matter how fragile a person may seem, in crucial moments he can show tremendous fortitude. Despite the scorched earth tactics, the enemy was unable to conquer our people,” the speaker said. “Belarus put up fierce resistance to the invaders. The city underground and partisan units helped the Soviet Army to conduct one of the most powerful offensive operations in the history of the Second World War."
The contribution of the Belarusian people to the defeat of fascism received high recognition: on 27 April 1945, an international conference convened to set up the United Nations decided to include the BSSR among its founding countries. “In our foreign policy, we have always assumed that the world must remember the terrible truth about war, and international law must protect all the inhabitants of the earth. Belarus' peaceful initiatives have always found a positive response in the international community. But today we are living in a fundamentally different reality. Several generations have already grown up who know about the Second World War from textbooks at best. Moreover, today's youth are cosmopolitan. Therefore, it often falls victim to those who try to revive the ideology and symbols of Nazism, to justify genocide. This is a serious challenge not only for Belarus," Vladimir Andreichenko said.
The House of Representatives played host to the international conference "Historical memory and patriotism - the most important fundamental values of the Belarusian society and the state, the factors of consolidation in the face of modern challenges and threats" on 23 March. The focus is on ways to preserve the historical memory and to promote patriotic upbringing in Belarus. The event brought together MPs, representatives of the executive branch, scholars, students and foreign guests.
The conference was prepared with the participation of the National Academy of Sciences and the Academy of Public Administration under the aegis of the President of Belarus.
