FM: From Heart’s Bottom campaign indicates Belarus’ social focus
As noted by Belarus’ Foreign Minister Sergei Aleinik, the From Heart’s Bottom campaign emphasises the socially focused nature of the republic and the social responsibility of society towards the elderly. In a company of the foreign diplomatic corps, the Belarusian and foreign media accredited in the republic, Mr. Aleinik has visited today Minsk’s Psychoneurological Boarding House for the Elderly and Disabled, bringing there presents collected during the #Razam [Together] charity event organised by the Foreign Ministry. The campaign has been organised for the fourth time, and it became part of From Heart’s Bottom last year.
The campaign has traditionally witnessed among its participants employees of the Foreign Ministry and representatives of 30+ diplomatic missions operating in Belarus – including the embassies of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Bulgaria, Venezuela, the United Kingdom, Vietnam, India, Kazakhstan, Korea, Cuba, Pakistan, Russia, Syria, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Turkiye, Switzerland, Sweden, Apostolic Nunciature, WHO, IOM, UNDP, CIS Economic Court, honorary consulates of Hungary, Greece, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Iceland, Spain, Latvia, Thailand, Philippines, and Chile.
Belarusian and a number of foreign media joined the action, including NGTRK, ONT, STV, Mir, BelRos, BelTA, SB. Belarus Segodnya, Belarusian Radio, VGTRK, NTV, MIA Rossiya Segodnya, RIA Novosti, TASS (Russia), Al Arabiya (Saudi Arabia), France-Presse (France), as well as representatives of the media community, government agencies and public organisations of Belarus.
In total, about 100 boxes and packages of various formats and sizes have been collected as part of the campaign. The wishes for the gifts were formed by the boarding school’s directorate.
The Director of the institution, Elmira Shermetova, said that almost 500 people live in the boarding house, “These are special people who are deprived of legal capacity. The youngest of them is 22 years old, and the oldest is turning 96 this year. Our facility is special, as more than 14 social projects are being actively developed here. The most significant and most popular of them are our art workshop, a theatre studio, a pottery workshop, and a printing photo studio.”
Ms. Shermetova noted that From Heart’s Bottom once again confirms that nobody in Belarus is deprived of attention, care and love.
During his communication with the staff and patients of the institution, the Foreign Minister thanked its management for their caring attitude, sincere participation and involvement in helping and supporting people with special needs.
“It is not the first year that we have been taking part in the From Heart’s Bottom campaign. Moreover, the traditions of interaction with this facility began even before its start. That was our contribution to support people with disabilities, the elderly, and the older generation. The synergistic effect – that is transferred from Our Children to From Heart’s Bottom – symbolises the generational bond which exists in our country and which is multiplied thanks to campaigns of the kind. Today’s event is of an international nature, since it has attracted not only the employees of our ministry, but also the diplomatic corps and more than 15 media representatives,” Mr. Aleinik said.
