MINSK, 12 February (BelTA) - The Belarusian People's Congress has showed that the society is highly interested in preserving the country's system of values and priorities, Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko said at the 6th Belarusian People's Congress on 12 February, BelTA has learned.
“The present and the future of Belarus depend on us, and first of all on the delegates present here, for you are the highest elite of our society. We are moving forward, others will follow us, if they want to live in a peaceful and calm country. Everything depends on us,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.
The delegates of the 6th Belarusian People's Congress approved the basic guidelines of the five-year social and economic development program. The head of state underlined that social focus of the Belarusian economic model remains unchanged. “The forum has showed that the society is highly interested in preserving the country's system of values and priorities. This proves that during the years of independence we have managed to build a system based on the inviolability of the sovereignty of the country. The sovereignty, which is based on traditions, patriotism, and the people's desire for peace,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.
The president stressed that Belarus, as a sovereign state, remains open for equal and mutually beneficial cooperation with the whole world. At the same time, Belarus invariably seeks an alliance with Russia, Eurasian integration and development of relations with China.
The two-day forum highlighted the future development areas for Belarusian society and necessary changes for more active participation of the population in the country's decision-making. These include the steps to redistribute powers between the branches of power, grant the Belarusian People's Congress with a constitutional status, strengthen local self-governance, and increase the role of public organizations in the political life of the country.
“This is not dogma. Everything that has been said here, including by me, will be analyzed. Life goes on and changes, many points of view may emerge. Perhaps, some issues, as they were outlined at the Belarusian People's Congress, will undergo alterations. I am sure they will. We will by no means be dogmatists and will not cling to this or that opinion (this is particularly true with respect to me). Everything should be democratic taking into account the experience of civilized countries,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.
