Opinions & Interviews
Kochanova: Events that influenced the country's life cannot be erased from history
MINSK, 19 September (BelTA) - Events that influenced the country's life cannot be erased from history, Chairwoman of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of Belarus Natalya Kochanova said during a meeting with the staff of the Belarus’ Presidential Library at the Council of the Republic on 18 September, BelTA has learned.
“In the current global situation, with dozens of hot spots, a country like ours must be led by a powerful politician with immense political experience. Poland is arming itself, and this worries us greatly. War is raging nearby. How events will unfold is, of course, hard to say. That is why it is so important to be united in our country,” said Natalya Kochanova.
According to the speaker, People’s Unity Day of is a landmark event in the country's life. It is truly a unifying one. The chairwoman of the Council of the Republic noted that the 17 September meeting of Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko with the with members of the expert community engaged in ideological work on the occasion of People’s Unity Day, provided another opportunity to delve into pressing issues, including those concerning the national idea. In the evening, a Forum of Patriotic Forces was held with the participation of representatives of public organizations and party leaders. “The mood was so magnificent [after these events]. There is much that unites us,” the speaker said.
Answering questions from the staff of the Presidential Library, the chairwoman of the Council of the Republic noted that Belarusians only recently began celebrating People’s Unity Day and explained why. Referring to the events that took place in the western lands of Belarus after 1921 and until 1939, the chairwoman of the Council of the Republic gave the example of the Braslav lands. She recounted how local people still remember the Poles destroying their native language. Books, textbooks, and monuments in the Polish language have been preserved. Those events cannot be torn from people's memory, the speaker emphasized.
At the same time, according to Natalya Kochanova, it was not customary to speak about this during the Soviet era. Poland was perceived as a friendly country, and twinning relations were established. Good relations were built with East Germany, including family ties. The topic of the Great Patriotic War was avoided in the name of friendship.
“Of course, we believed that there was no need to bring those events [of the Polish occupation period in the 1920s-1930s] to the surface. It was all in the past, people had forgotten, and we needed to build friendly relations. And while we thought that, Western politicians, who are not interested in friendship, were building their destructive policy, including against our country,” said the speaker.
The chairwoman of the Council of the Republic believes that events which influenced the life of the country cannot be thrown out of history. Natalya Kochanova emphasized that historians must write a truthful history of the country. She also noted the fact that a new National History Museum was being constructed in Belarus.
Commenting on a proposal to create a museum and a memorial to Poland's policy of ethnocide in the country, the speaker expressed the opinion that it was necessary to think carefully before making such a decision. Natalya Kochanova agrees with the head of state that everything possible should be done to settle relations with Poland, rather than inflaming them further.
A wide range of issues were discussed at the meeting, including the value of the family, family relations, spiritual and moral upbringing, and parental duty of support. The chairwoman of the Council of the Republic spoke about the work carried out by senators on the topics of citizens' appeals, rental housing, youth policy, and more.
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