Professor: Belarusians’ consolidation in 1939 resulted in historical justice

The consolidation of the Belarusian people in 1939 made it possible to achieve historical justice – as noted by the Chairman of the Standing Committee of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly on Education, Culture and Science, corresponding member of the National Academy of Sciences, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Professor Igor Marzalyuk

The historian believes that, if it had not been for September 17th, 1939, Belarus would not have been able to preserve its ethnic identity, so that day was actually predetermined. “Any violation of national consolidation can lead to the destruction of the country, of the state. This happened in December 1917 during the Belarusian Congress: at first, everyone was united as never before, but then that unity was destroyed. The result is known,” he said.

According to Mr. Marzalyuk, it is important to remember the true meaning of National Unity Day and the price Belarusians paid for independence.

“Only the consolidated, united position of all the elites in both the east and the west of Belarus led then to the fact that unity became a reality. There was another historical milestone: in 1939, there was not a single force in the BSSR that opposed reunification. Everyone understood that territorial integrity, sovereignty and creation of a single republic were more important than personal political ambitions,” the historian added.