The historical significance of the Day of National Unity was discussed at the Vitebsk Region Media Center
An open online meeting "Our Strength and Future Lie in Unity" was held at the Vitebsk Region Media Center. Participants discussed the historical and socio-political significance of the Day of National Unity.
A new state holiday appeared in the country two years ago. It was designed not only to recall the events of 1939 and the importance of the reunification of the Western Belarusian lands with the BSSR, but also to help the current society unite and protect it from external division. Therefore, September 17 has undoubtedly ceased to be just a date from a history textbook. It is also a reminder of today's realities, of a new level of our statehood.
Anatoly Gutsulyak, Deputy Head of the Main Department of Ideological Work and Youth Affairs of the Regional Executive Committee – Head of the Department for Public Relations and Media Interaction, Igor Marzalyuk, Deputy of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Professor, Irina Nikolaeva, Director of the Vitebsk Branch of the International University "MITSO", Candidate of Historical Sciences, Associate Professor, and Rostislav Timofeev, Candidate of Historical Sciences, Associate Professor of the Department of History and Cultural Heritage of VSU named after P. Masherov, lecturer of the regional organization of the Belarusian Society "Znanie", shared their views on the Day of National Unity and the events of the 1920s-1930s at the meeting in the Media Center.
The hall and 100 online studios were attended by heads of structural divisions of the regional executive committee, representatives of city and district executive committees and labor collectives, and university students from the Vitebsk region.
"Independent, sovereign, and happy" are the adjectives that Anatoly Gutsulyak associates with the Day of National Unity.
He noted:
— This is the youngest state holiday, but it is truly important and in no way inferior to other significant dates, such as Victory Day, Independence Day of the Republic of Belarus.
And Igor Marzalyuk emphasized that this day is a colossal lesson and a colossal memory. The deputy and renowned historian thoroughly debunked the fallacies of the theses that portray Western Belarus as prosperous, and attempt to turn the reunification of our country's territory in 1939 into acts of aggression. In reality, after the Treaty of Riga, most Belarusian national figures opposed the Polish occupation. Guerrilla anti-Polish struggle was waged in the western territories. And the policies pursued by the authorities – the destruction of Belarusian political parties, the closure of schools where one could study in the national language – did not at all contribute to positive sentiments among the local population. There was a targeted destruction of culture, language, and national consciousness – in essence, an attempt was made to completely assimilate and erase the ethnic group. So, the Red Army's march into Western Belarus was truly liberating, no matter how much some may argue otherwise.
Source: vitebsk-region.gov.by