Kochanova at opening of Partisans of Belarus exhibition in Council of the Republic

Partisans of Belarus – a joint project of the Belarus Segodnya Publishing House and the National Archives – has been traveling around the country for about five years, and during this time it has managed to visit 150 locations. On the eve of the Great Victory Day, the exhibition was unveiled within the walls of the Council of the Republic. The opening ceremony was attended by Natalya Kochanova, the Chairperson of the Council of the Republic, Dmitry Zhuk, the Deputy Chairman of the Standing Commission on International Affairs and National Security of the Council of the Republic, Director and Editor-in-Chief of the Belarus Segodnya Publishing House, and Andrei Demyanyuk, the Director of the National Archives.

Ms. Kochanova thanked the organisers for their hard work in bringing the Partisans of Belarus exhibition to life, “We have many guests and delegations, young people come here, and it will be very useful for everyone to familiarise themselves with this exhibition,” the Speaker of the Council of the Republic noted. “The war left indelible scars in the hearts and souls of all Belarusians. And every year I realise it more and more acutely, just like each of us.”

According to Ms. Kochanova, it is one thing for people to voluntarily take up arms and go to the front, and quite another for them to resist in the fascist-occupied territories.

“Our partisan movement and our underground are a unique page in the history of Belarus,” she emphasised. “This feat is embedded in our genetic code. People did not think of themselves personally, did not think about how to save their own lives, but did everything for victory. And they did the hardest work, sometimes without even realising it. The stories of those people who went to partisan units, who worked underground, are our pride. And it is also an example for us: an example of courage, strength and indomitable will. We must remember them because the contribution of the Belarusian people to the Great Victory is incalculable.”