Day of Victory over fascism

Famous Belarusians have told charter97.org what 9 May means to them.

Stanislau Shushkievich, first head of independent Belarus:

- For me it is a holiday of the victory over fascism. It is a great holiday. I realized the essence of this day somewhat later, then had started celebrating it, but my respect to it never changed because of that. On 9 May the process of brutal annihilation of Belarusians and other peoples of the Soviet Union has been finally stopped. I think that this holiday must remain in our memory for as long as possible.

It is also a day of commemoration of the people, who died in battlefronts. But at the same time we should not confuse this holiday with the actions of the political leaders, who did not spare the lives of people for making this day closer. Americans also made it closer, but less of their soldiers died, then Belarusians in the ranks of the Red Army. The war stared, among others, because of the absolutely incorrect actions of the Soviet leadership, including Stalin. The victory was reached at the price of the lives of millions of people. But this does not cancel the holiday. People fought, made heroic deeds, managed to protect their motherlands in the fight against fascism.

I often go to Europe and know how other peoples treat this day. I understand, why they do not celebrate it, for example, in Poland, for which it was the victory of one kind of occupants over the other.

Dzmitry Bandarenka, coordinator of the civic campaign European Belarus, former political prisoner:

- For me 9 May is first of all the day of memories. The memories of my grandfathers, who never came back from the war. There is an second degree order of the Great Patriotic war left from one of them. There is nothing at all left from the second one. The memories of my grandmothers, one of whom spent three months in Gestapo prison as the wife of a partisan commander, and the other one brought up five children on her own after the war. These are also the stories of my father’s about his partisan childhood.

In the recent years this holiday has been somewhat spoilt by that sabbath that Lukashenka’s family organizes. It seems to me that the way how this day has been celebrated in Belarus lately is not exactly what is needed.

But, of course, on this day I raise a glass for all those, who never returned from the war and for those, who are no longer with us.

Anatol Labiedzka, chairman of the United Civic Party:

- For me the Victory Day is a rather specific holiday, because it is connected with the war which has greatly affected my family. My grandfather died at the territory of Latvia, his grave is there. I have managed lately to find some documents. I tried to enter Latvia on the eve of the presidential elections 2010, but they then not allowed me to leave Belarus. That is why it is one of the tasks – to find the grandfather’s grave. Two of my uncles also died in the war. This holiday is for me rather a reminder that the fight for freedom, which I – the grandson of my grandfather – continue today, makes sense. I believe that they gave their lives, first of all, for the freedom of my country and my personal freedom. That is why it is my duty and a moral obligation to continue their fight for a free Belarus.

Unfortunately, no one asked Belarusians whether they needed that war. One totalitarian regime fought another totalitarian regime. People were in between millstones. The Second World war is a part of history for Belarus, but it must be remembered and studied as it actually was, but not how it is being pictured by today’s propagandists.

Mikalaj Khalezin, head of Belarus Free Theater:

- I believe it is the first time that I am in Berlin on 9 May. My play “Return to Forever” is being presented these days at the Berlin festival. I recalled that it was 9 May today  - the Victory Day and though what this day in the calendar meant to me. I realized that the think I want to think of the least on this day is the war. And there is nothing, actually, to celebrate. Military communism won over fascism, and millions of human lives were the price for it. We should commemorate all those, who died in that war, regardless of their nationality, and keep living solving the problems that we are facing today. They are important for the ones living today.

Ales Marashkin, artist, head of the Pahonia association:

- For me personally it is not a holiday, but a tragic day. It is a tragedy for Europe and the Soviet Union. Belarusians were pulled into that war. But nevertheless this is celebrated each year with pompous parades. It is a mourning day for me, because every victory is a defeat. Hitlerites attacked Poland and held a joint parade in Brest together with the Soviet Union.

Yes, we should come to the graves of those, who perished, and lay flowers. These are the graves of our parents, grandfathers, great-grandfathers and not only. My grandfather made it all the way to Berlin and returned, but my uncles died.  But it absolutely does not please me how they promote the Victory Day. I would like for this day to be a day of repentance.

Andrej Kurejchyk, script writer:

- For me it is a holiday of the victory over fascism in Europe. Oubviously, nazism and fascism were absolute misanthropy, which could have meant the end of the modern European civilization. That is why I believe that this victory is one of the most important events of the XX century

After that we kept suffering for another almost 50 years, but this time under the label of communism. Nevertheless, for our country fascism represented the danger of annihilation of the nation as such.  

That is why I consider it a holiday. Although I try not to watch TV on this day. I cannot watch highly patriotic movies: something in me rebels against it. I would recommend reading Vasil Bykau’s books on this day. The war is pictured in them as it actually was.

Jury Khashchavatski, documentary film maker:

- My father came back from the war with awards. As a four-year-old bit I put on the Glory Orders and medals “For courage” and went out to the street. And almost all the kids wear orders and medals. On this day my relatives and neighbors would gather under an apricot tree in a small courtyard in Odessa and every one of them brought what they could. They all sat at the table, drank a bit and recalled how they had saved themselves.

The Victory Day is the holiday of the people, who survived and saved us. Here goes a low bow to these people.

But this war has a different side: the occupation of Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and practically occupation of the countries of Eastern Europe. It was the policy of the “evil empire” – the Soviet Union. We must not forget about that either. We should understand that there was everything in the war: heroism,  glory, great people, who fought the fascism. But their heroism was used by the authorities, who extended the empire, suppressed and enslaved nations. Everything must be remembered.