Council of Belarusian Intellectuals: You could check your deeds with Novodvorskaya

Novodvorskaya was never regarded as a foreigner in Belarus.

It is said in the statement of the Council of Belarusian Intellectuals on the passing of the human rights defender. Below is the full text of the document received by charter97.org:

“With great sorrow we learnt of the death of Valeriya Ilyinichna Novodvorskaya. She was born in Belarus, in the town of Baranavichy, and we have always regarded her as our citizen. We were proud of her and admired her.

We admired her ability to remain free in all conditions. We admired her courage, bravery and readiness to struggle against high-ranking rascals alone.

Her conscience is like a pure chemical element that can be rarely found in nature. She was a standard to check one's compromises, aspirations and deeds with.

Maybe it was her mission.

Her works and her remarkable life are the continuation of Chaadayev's great tradition to tell the truth to tsars. This tradition is important now like never before, because it, not tanks and Grad systems, can preserve respect for our languages and cultures.

Thank you, Valeriya Ilyinichna!”