MINSK, 12 September (BelTA) - Without the events of 17 September 1939, Belarus would still be torn apart today, with families divided and Belarusians having forgotten their native language, faith, and traditions, Chairman of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus Igor Sergeyenko said at a meeting in the Oval Hall to mark the Day of People's Unity, BelTA has learned.
The chairman of the House of Representatives recalled that 86 years ago, an act of the greatest historical justice was committed. It was in the Oval Hall, on 14 November 1939, that an extraordinary session of the Supreme Soviet of the BSSR of the first convocation adopted the law on the incorporation of Western Belarus into the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic.
The restoration of national unity became a major milestone on the path of further national and state development, emphasized Igor Sergeyenko, adding that this was preceded by years of selfless resistance to police terror and the policy of Polonization of the Belarusian people carried out by the authorities of bourgeois Poland.
“We see what is happening today on our borders, how modern Poland behaves towards our country. I am not afraid to say this, but the most friendly period in our relations on the part of our neighbors was the Soviet period,” the representative of the House of Representatives said.
The struggle for national dignity found a fervent response in the hearts of the broad masses, he said. When the process of forming local self-government bodies began in Western Belarus after its liberation, high public activity was observed everywhere.
“Those who made the fateful decision in 1939 and then defended their choice with their lives during the Great Patriotic War and rebuilt the country from the ruins were the most ordinary people, just like you and me - farmers, workers, students, women and men, the elderly and the young,” Igor Sergeyenko said, noting that this is an important lesson for everyone, as no one has the right to separate themselves from the historical process.
“Through our joint efforts, each in our place, remembering our duty to the Motherland, we are writing the modern page of history of sovereign Belarus and thereby laying the foundations for our future,” he emphasized.
Igor Sergeyenko quoted President Aleksandr Lukashenko's words that it is necessary to know, including for children, when and how the borders of Belarus were redrawn to suit foreign national interests, and what it is like to live on one's native land but in a foreign state.
In this regard, Igor Sergeyenko pointed out that the hall was attended by yesterday's schoolchildren, now students, who showed brilliant results in the 2025 admissions campaign. This format is not accidental; it reflects the connection between times. “If MPs are already well-known figures, and our young colleagues are beginning to learn the science of being a MP in practice under the guidance of their mentors, then it is precisely the current first-year students who will have to take up this generational baton,” he explained.
Addressing the young people, the chairman of the House of Representatives urged them, no matter how their fate unfolds, not to forget the land that raised them or their parents.
He expressed confidence that all participants of today's meeting are united by a sense of patriotism. He emphasized that today, more than ever, active patriotism and a proactive personal civic stance are needed. This is what the head of state focused on when he said that patriotism cannot be taught; one can only set an example with their sincere love for their native land.
The chairman of the House of Representatives also noted that the main heroes of today's celebration are people for whom protecting the historical truth and consolidating society around true values is not just a job, but the meaning of their lives. These people are modest, they are not media figures, they do not advertise their achievements, but routinely, day after day, they conduct search operations and motor rallies, open and preserve monuments and memorial signs, establish the names of those killed during the Great Patriotic War. They make a major personal contribution, including from their own funds, to the patriotic education of youth and society as a whole.
“Without these events, without the will demonstrated by each of their participants, Belarus would still remain torn apart, families would be divided, and Belarusians would have forgotten their language, faith, and traditions,” Igor Sergeyenko said.
The restoration of national unity became a major milestone on the path of further national and state development, emphasized Igor Sergeyenko, adding that this was preceded by years of selfless resistance to police terror and the policy of Polonization of the Belarusian people carried out by the authorities of bourgeois Poland.
“We see what is happening today on our borders, how modern Poland behaves towards our country. I am not afraid to say this, but the most friendly period in our relations on the part of our neighbors was the Soviet period,” the representative of the House of Representatives said.
The struggle for national dignity found a fervent response in the hearts of the broad masses, he said. When the process of forming local self-government bodies began in Western Belarus after its liberation, high public activity was observed everywhere.
“Those who made the fateful decision in 1939 and then defended their choice with their lives during the Great Patriotic War and rebuilt the country from the ruins were the most ordinary people, just like you and me - farmers, workers, students, women and men, the elderly and the young,” Igor Sergeyenko said, noting that this is an important lesson for everyone, as no one has the right to separate themselves from the historical process.
“Through our joint efforts, each in our place, remembering our duty to the Motherland, we are writing the modern page of history of sovereign Belarus and thereby laying the foundations for our future,” he emphasized.
Igor Sergeyenko quoted President Aleksandr Lukashenko's words that it is necessary to know, including for children, when and how the borders of Belarus were redrawn to suit foreign national interests, and what it is like to live on one's native land but in a foreign state.
In this regard, Igor Sergeyenko pointed out that the hall was attended by yesterday's schoolchildren, now students, who showed brilliant results in the 2025 admissions campaign. This format is not accidental; it reflects the connection between times. “If MPs are already well-known figures, and our young colleagues are beginning to learn the science of being a MP in practice under the guidance of their mentors, then it is precisely the current first-year students who will have to take up this generational baton,” he explained.
Addressing the young people, the chairman of the House of Representatives urged them, no matter how their fate unfolds, not to forget the land that raised them or their parents.
He expressed confidence that all participants of today's meeting are united by a sense of patriotism. He emphasized that today, more than ever, active patriotism and a proactive personal civic stance are needed. This is what the head of state focused on when he said that patriotism cannot be taught; one can only set an example with their sincere love for their native land.
The chairman of the House of Representatives also noted that the main heroes of today's celebration are people for whom protecting the historical truth and consolidating society around true values is not just a job, but the meaning of their lives. These people are modest, they are not media figures, they do not advertise their achievements, but routinely, day after day, they conduct search operations and motor rallies, open and preserve monuments and memorial signs, establish the names of those killed during the Great Patriotic War. They make a major personal contribution, including from their own funds, to the patriotic education of youth and society as a whole.
Speaking about the upcoming holiday, the Day of People's Unity, Igor Sergeyenko noted that these days, Belarusians pay tribute to the historical past, honor the memory of heroic ancestors thanks to whom they live on their own land, in their own state, and retain the sovereign right to independently determine their destiny.
“At the same time, we ask ourselves, what will our country's tomorrow be like? The answer is simple - it will be what we, the currently living generation of Belarusians, make it,” the chairman of the House of Representatives emphasized.
Before the event, its participants, representatives of civil society from the regions and Minsk, members of the Youth Council under the House of Representatives, and school graduates who showed high results in the 2025 admissions campaign, viewed the exhibition “Belarus United. The History of the Event” in the foyer of the Oval Hall, which was timed to coincide with the Day of People's Unity. The exhibition is dedicated to the historical destiny of the Belarusian people, their path to national and state self-determination, and the key event in the country's history, the unification of Western Belarus and the BSSR in 1939. It features book and documentary exhibits, as well as illustrative materials that reveal the meaning and significance of the holiday, which symbolizes the unity of the people of Belarus in their striving for peace and independence.
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