MINSK, 7 November (BelTA) – Belarus is marking October Revolution Day on 7 October.
October Revolution Day was established by Decree No. 157 “On state holidays, public holidays, and days of remembrance in the Republic of Belarus” signed by the President of the Republic of Belarus on 26 March 1998. This day is a public holiday in the country.
The Great October Socialist Revolution took place on 25 October (7 November, New Style) 1917. It became one of the most significant events of the 20th century and fundamentally influenced the course of subsequent history. The revolution stirred and inspired millions of people to fight against oppression and inequality. For the older generation in particular, October 1917 became a symbol of the transformation of life in Belarus. Thanks to the revolution, the Belarusian people gained statehood, built economic and intellectual potential, and preserved and enriched their national culture.
Following the October Revolution, Belarus underwent self-determination, creating a national state on a Soviet foundation. The advisability of this particular form of statehood was confirmed by the sentiments of Belarusian society, the appeal of the Bolsheviks' political program, and the growing military might of Soviet Russia on the Western Front. Initially, the BSSR occupied the territory of just six uyezds (districts) of the former Minsk Governorate - only a part of central Belarus. But this small republic, with an area of just 50,000 square kilometers and a population of 1.5 million people, became one of the co-founders of the Soviet Union and subsequently gathered around itself first the eastern Belarusian, and then the western Belarusian lands. Modern Belarus is the direct successor and legal continuator of the BSSR, which itself was only made possible by the October Revolution.
It has been 108 years since the events of the October Revolution. But it was in 1917 that our people took important steps on the path to building a modern Belarusian state. Today, Belarus is confidently following its own path of sovereign development, having managed to preserve and build upon the achievements of the Soviet period. The country has developed its own model of a state with a strong social policy and a socially oriented economy, aimed at improving the quality of life for its citizens and society as a whole.
A unique political model with a developed system of representative bodies of power has been formed in Belarus. Granting the Belarusian People's Congress constitutional and legal status has strengthened the foundations of Belarusian statehood and demonstrated that Belarusians are a united nation capable of independently setting and achieving goals.
By preserving this day among other significant dates, we pay tribute to that time when our people received the impetus for the development of Belarusian statehood. On 7 November 2024, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko, congratulating his compatriots on October Revolution Day, stated: “The events of the autumn of 1917 made the world hear the voice of the people, who boldly and openly declared their age-old dream. The proclamation of the Socialist Soviet Republic of Belorussia was a true triumph of historical justice.” The head of state emphasized that “by safeguarding the achievements of our predecessors and drawing inspiration from their deeds, we are confidently writing a new page in the millennium-long chronicle of the Belarusian people.”
On 7 November many Belarusian cities host flower ceremonies at the Lenin monument, festive concerts, various discussion platforms, and educational events. Traditionally, as part of the October Revolution Day celebrations, a number of important and large-scale facilities, including social ones such as residential buildings, kindergartens, educational institutions, clinics, sports complexes, bridges, and roads, are reconstructed and put into operation across the country.
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