Lukashenko: maintaining interethnic peace is one of Belarus’ state policy priorities

Maintaining interethnic peace is one of the priorities of Belarus’ state policy – as noted by President Aleksandr Lukashenko at today’s meeting with representatives of different nationalities who live in Belarus

photo: www.president.gov.by

Opening the meeting, the Head of State noted, “I always ask of the purpose of any meeting before its start. I want you to hear first-hand about our national policy, religious policy in the coming months, years, and maybe forever. It depends not on us, it depends on all of you.”

The President said that he often meets with different people, “However, since Soviet times, I have not been used to dividing them by nationality. It does not matter to me where a person was born. I value decency, kindness, and industriousness in people mostly. Actually, Belarusians never demonstrate national superiority, because they know what it means to fight for their own culture and faith. There is no talk of a titular nation in our society, and the experience of dividing people by nationality into citizens and non-citizens (which is observed among some of our neighbours) is alien to us. The idea of national unity permeates our entire history.”

Aleksandr Lukashenko stressed that people fleeing religious wars, civil strife and persecution have been finding shelter in Belarus from time immemorial. “In the days of hard times, they united with the local population, rebuffed the enemy, won and jointly built their Belarusian happiness. This is the key to understanding the cipher of life on our land. It is no coincidence that today's meeting is taking place on the eve of the youngest, but very significant state holiday: National Unity Day. Maintaining interethnic peace is one of the priorities of our state policy, and we are proud of it. The Constitution of our country guarantees the same rights and freedoms to foreign citizens and stateless persons as to citizens of Belarus. Everyone has the right to preserve their national identity, and insulting national dignity is prosecuted by law,” he stressed.

The President emphasised that representatives of 156 nationalities work in peace and harmony in the spirit of good neighbourliness in Belarus, they create families and raise children in the republic, “They all become ours – and even mine – here: they are my Russians, Ukrainians, Poles… So it was, so it is and so it will always be!”