State of Michigan, Executive Office. Lansing

Proclamation

Byelorussian Independence Day

The twenty-fifth of March is the traditional day of Byelorussian Independence. Thirty-nine years ago, on this day, a free and independent Byelorussian National Republic was proclaimed. The people of Byelorussia – or White Russia – north of Ukraine, have always adhered to the principle of self-rule and have desired to assist others in attempts to throw off the yoke of foreign rule. In 1812, in 1863, and on other occasions the Byelorussians gave forceful proof of this constant yearning to be free.

In 1918, these brave people were finally successful in establishing a new nation. But this freedom was not to live long. The young republic fell subject to the pressures of the Soviet Red Army and it was divided between the Soviet Union and Poland in 1921, despite gallant and courageous resistance.

Short-lived as this freedom was, its memory lingers on the hearts and minds of the Byelorussian people and their descendants and friends in America. The proper observance of this anniversary will give genuine moral support to the Byelorussians fighting behind the Iron Curtain to liberate their country from  the enslavement of the Communists and to defend the liberty, freedom and dignity of all oppressed peoples.

Therefore, I, G. Mennen Williams, Governor of the State of Michigan, do hereby proclaim Monday, March 25, 1957, as Byelorussian Independence Day in Michigan, and urge all our citizens to pay homage to the brave people both in America and in the mother country who continue to work for the restoration of freedom in this enslaved land.

Given under my hand and Great Seal of the State of Michigan, this Twentieth Day of March, in the Year of Our Lord, One Thousand Nine Hundred Fifty-Seven, and one of the Commonwealth the One Hundred Twenty-First.

(-) G. Mennen Williams, Governor

(-) James M. Hare, Secretary of State

***

Mr. Speaker, just 48 years ago, after centuries of enslavement and oppression, the Byelorussian people declared to all mankind they were a free and independent people. This declaration followed on the heels of the Russian Communist revolution and the downfall of the Romanovs. The reality of freedom was short lived, for before a full year had passed, the Russian Red Army marched through the countryside and Byelorussia was again under Russian control.

Rahel, the medieval Christian chronicler, wrote many years ago:

“To have freedom is only to have that which is absolutely necessary to enable us to be what we ought to be and to possess what we ought to possess.”

Today Byelorussia is not free. The Byelorussians have no way to assert their own national identity. They cannot be what they want to be, or possess that which they want to possess. They are being denied their own individual history, culture and national pride. They are clearly and simply a ward of the Kremlin.

As freemen who do not take our freedoms and liberties for granted, we are a link between the principles of freedom and self-determination and those who aspire to be free and guide their own destiny. On this 48th anniversary of Byelorussian independence, let us reaffirm to the Byelorussian people that their hopes have not been forgotten by the free world.

Source: Congressional Record

Since then, 25 March is celebrated as the Independence Day of Belarus, or Freedom Day (Дзень Волі).

Below an English translation of this historical document.

***

A year ago the peoples of Belarus, together with the peoples of Russia, threw off the yoke of Russian tsarism, which had oppressed Belarus most of all and, without asking the people, precipitated our land into the conflagration of war which totally destroyed Belarusian cities and villages. Now we, the Council (Rada) of the Belarusian Democratic Republic, havze cast off from our native land the last vestige of national dependence which the Russian tsars imposed by force upon our free and independent land. From this time on, the Belarusian Democratic Republic is proclaimed an independent and free state. The peoples of Belarus themselves, under the aegis of their Constituent Assembly, shall determine the future national relations of Belarus.

By virtue of this, all former national relations lose their force – relations which made it possible for a foreign government to sign the Treaty of Brest for Belarus, thus destroying the Belarusian people by partitioning their land.

By virtue of this, the government of the Belarusian Democratic Republic will establish relations with interested parties by proposing to them a review of that part of the Treaty of Brest which concerns Belarus and the signing of peace treaties with all belligerent states.

The Belarusian Democratic Republic should include all those lands where the Belarusian people constitute a numerical majority, namely: the Mahileŭ region, the Belarusian parts of the regions of Miensk, Horadnia (including the cities of Horadnia, Biełastok, and others), Vilnia, Viciebsk, Smalensk, and Čarnihaŭ, as well as adjacent parts of neighboring gubernias, inhabited by Belarusians.

The Belarusian Democratic Republic confirms all those rights and freedoms of the citizens and peoples of Belarus which were proclaimed by the Constituent Charter of March 9, 1918.

Proclaiming the independence of the Belarusian Democratic Republic, its Council expresses the hope that all freedom-loving peoples will assist the Belarusian people to achieve fully their political and national ideals.

The Council (Rada) of the Belarusian Democratic Republic
Given by Miensk, Belarus
March 24, 1918

It’s worth noting that Vasil Zacharka had previously served as the President of the Rada of the Belarusian Democratic Republic in exile from 1928 to 1943, while Łarysa Hienijuš held the position of General Secretary of the Government of the Belarusian Democratic Republic in exile from 1943 onwards.

In his letter, Źmicier Drozd highlights the self-sacrificing efforts of the Committee members. They provided the Volfson family with documents stating that they were Orthodox Belarusians, even though all parties involved were aware of their true Jewish heritage. This act placed the lives of all Committee members at risk, as they knowingly issued false documents to protect the Volfson family from Nazi persecution. Thanks to these documents, the Volfson family managed to survive the occupation.

Drozd’s assertion draws upon a combination of historical documents from the Russian State Archives (GARF) and the recollections of Łarysa Hienijuš, as documented in her work ‘Збор твораў’ (Collected Works) published in 2010.

According to Łarysa Hienijuš’s recollections, the Germans imposed stringent regulations during their occupation of Prague, forcing everyone to align themselves with officially sanctioned organisations. Belarusians were permitted to establish the Self-Help Committee, with Piotr Bokač as Secretary and Łarysa Hienijuš herself serving as Treasurer. Despite the dangers involved, the Committee took the brave step of accepting the Volfson family, who were Jewish, as members, thus providing them with the Committee’s protective credentials. This decision was not without risk, but trust prevailed within the group, and there were no traitors among them. The Committee did not engage in any political activities but instead adhered to the narrow confines of its self-help mission.

Arkadź Volfson, a Jew, was able to survive the war due to his association with the Belarusian Self-Help Committee. Łarysa Hienijuš’s memoirs confirm that the Volfson family managed to evade detection during the war, despite their limited involvement with the Committee.

Notably, Łarysa Hienijuš expressed concern about potential repercussions in the post-war period, particularly regarding Volfson, who could have unintentionally caused harm to their group.

Further corroborating Łarysa Hienijuš’s recollections, Źmicier Drozd includes a questionnaire that Arkadź Volfson and his children, Anatol and Jaryna, filled out when they joined the Belarusian Self-Help Committee in Prague. These documents are archived in the State Archive of the Russian Federation (Государственный архив Российской Федерации, фонд ГАРФ_Ф_р-5875 оп 1 д 31. листы 5, 6 и 7).

It’s important to note that after the war, Łarysa and Janka Hienijuš, Vasil Rusak, and Piotr Bokač faced repression by the Soviet regime.

Additionally, there is evidence that Vasil Rusak, an active figure in the Belarusian diaspora in interwar Czechoslovakia, played a role in saving two Jewish families from Nazi persecution by helping them obtain certificates of Belarusian origin.

In conclusion, Źmicier Drozd asserts that all members of the Belarusian Self-Help Committee in Prague demonstrated immense courage by knowingly risking their lives to protect a Jewish family. He argues that these individuals meet the criteria for posthumous recognition as “Righteous Among the Nations.”

Furthermore, historical accounts reveal that Vacłaŭ Ivanoŭski, former Minister of Education of the Belarusian Democratic Republic, contributed to rescuing Jews from the Nazis during the war. His family provided shelter to two Jewish women and later received the title of “Righteous Among the Nations” in 2001. Lastly, the memoirs of late Anton Šukiełojć, a well-known member of the Belarusian diaspora in the United States, mention that Vacłaŭ Ivanoŭski, while appointed mayor of Minsk by the German occupiers, secretly hired Jews and members of the underground Polish resistance as workers, providing them with documents to protect them from Nazi persecution.

Jewish political parties actively participated in the First All-Belarusian Congress and played a significant role in the early stages of the Belarusian Democratic Republic’s governance. Several notable Jewish Belarusians held important positions within the government, such as Majsiej Hutman, one of the co-authors of the Third Constitutional Charter of the Belarusian Democratic Republic; Isak Łurje, who headed the Belarusian diplomatic mission in Scandinavian countries; and Samujił Žytłoŭski, the Minister of National Minorities, among others.

During the first half of the 20th century, Belarus was home to more than one million ethnic Jews. Tragically, the majority of Jewish Belarusians fell victim to the Holocaust and were murdered by German Nazis and their collaborators. The majority of those who survived emigrated from Belarus during the Soviet occupation and the 1990s.

Text of the mentioned statement:

On 25th March 1921, three years had passed since the Belarusian people, represented by their finest individuals, demonstrated their unwavering commitment to self-sustaining state-building by declaring the Independence of the Belarusian Democratic Republic.

Neither the age-old rule of feudal Poland nor the oppressive grip of the Russian autocracy could extinguish the burning desire for liberation from these historical oppressors in the hearts of our people.

On the contrary, the centuries-long struggle for national existence instilled an unyielding quest for freedom and steeled the resolve of our best sons and daughters in the pursuit of our national ideals.

The historical journey was long and arduous. The Belarusian people made numerous sacrifices on the altar of freedom. Many among the living perished in the self-sacrificing struggle for the welfare and prosperity of our people. Eternal glory to these valiant giants. The Motherland shall forever honour their names.

Yet, the Belarusian people did not stand alone in their struggle. Beside them, another people, the ancient and martyred Jewish community, toiled and fought, their sweat, tears, and blood mingling with the soil of Belarus for centuries.

The torment inflicted by the oppressors upon the faith and lives of the children of Israel was immeasurable. The Russian autocracy believed that it could quench the people’s anger with Jewish blood, even though the Jewish community had repeatedly attempted to break the chains of tyrannical rule. The Polish feudals, in collusion with their oppressors, actively participated in fanning the flames of hatred.

The Jewish people comprehended that they could not hope for compassion from their captors, and that only through struggle could they secure the right to life and freedom.

With this understanding, the Jewish community extended a fraternal hand to their brethren in adversity, the Belarusian people, in pursuit of their shared goal: the struggle for their homeland, culture, and national sovereignty.

On the momentous day of 25th March 1918, the day of the Declaration of Independence of the Belarusian People’s Republic, the collective will of these two sovereign nations resonated loudly and clearly throughout the world for the first time. No mercenary bayonets, no machinations or schemes of chauvinistic imperialists shall deter the Belarusians from the path they have chosen. The inexorable logic of history shall compel recognition of those peoples who earnestly seek an end to fratricide, as they pursue their national ideals, to pacify the turbulent passions and afford our neighbouring nations the opportunity to exchange swords for ploughshares and hammers.

On this momentous day in history, the Belarusian Council [the BNR Rada], upon assuming power from the All-People’s Belarusian Congress, raised a true national flag for the first time, bearing the hallowed inscriptions:

1. The Independence of the Belarusian Democratic Republic as a free and sovereign state.

2. The transfer of all land to the working people, safeguarding their labour.

3. The sovereignty of the Belarusian and Jewish nations and their complete union into one state, the Belarusian People.

4. The civil equality of all nations residing in Belarus, regardless of their faith, and the full fulfilment of their religious and cultural requirements.

These are noble ideals. To live, to strive, and to honourably give one’s life beneath this banner is a source of great happiness.

On the third anniversary of this grand national celebration, the Belarusian Rada and the executive authority, represented by the Council of Ministers, do not call upon you for death, but for life and the pursuit of the sacred ideals bequeathed to us by the heroic champions of happiness and freedom for the Belarusian people.

Citizens! We have unwavering faith that on this momentous day, every honest Belarusian heart beats in unison with ours and resounds with the cry: Glory to the Belarusian Democratic Republic! Long live Belarusian Independence!

First Constituent Charter

To the people of Belarus

Our native land has found itself in a new and difficult situation. The fate of the regime that was here previously is not known. We face the possible occupation of our land by German troops.

We must take our fate into our own hands. The Belarusan people must assert their right to full self-determination, and the national minorities their right to national and personal autonomy.

The rights of nation should find realization by means of a Constituent Assembly convened on democratic principles.

However, even before convening the Constituent Assembly, all power in Belarus should belong to the peoples residing therein.

The Executive Committee of the Council (Rada) of the First All Belarusan Congress, supplemented by representatives of the revolutionary democracy of the national minorities and fulfilling the goals imposed upon it by the Congress, declares itself to be the Provisional Authority in Belarus to govern the land and to convene as soon as possible an All-Belarusan Constituent Assembly based on universal voting rights for the entire adult population without distinction of nationality, religion, or sex.

The Provisional National Authority in the land, having assumed the tasks of defending and strengthening the revolutionary achievements, will carry out these tasks through the National Secretariat of Belarus, which has been established and which, from this date on, has assumed the exercise of its responsibilities. The names of the members of the Secretariat will be published later.

The Executive Committee of the Council of the First All-Belarusan Congress
Given in Miensk, Belarus, February 21 (8), 1918.

Second Constituent Charter

To the people of Belarus

During this World War in which some powerful states have been destroyed and others liberated, Belarus has awakened to national life. After three and a half centuries of subjugation, the Belarusan nation again declares to the entire world that it is alive and will remain alive. The Great National Assembly the All-Belarusan Congress of December 5-17, 1917, concerned about the fate of Belarus, confirmed a republican government within its territory. Carrying out the will of the Congress and defending the national rights of the people, the Executive Committee of the Council (Rada) of the Congress, decrees the following concerning the political structure of Belarus and the rights and freedoms of her citizens and peoples:

1. Belarus, within the borders of the numerical majority of the Belarusan people, is declared to be a Democratic Republic.
2. The fundamental laws of the Belarusan Democratic Republic will be confirmed by the Constituent Assembly of Belarus, convened on the principles of a universal, equal, direct, secret, and proportional voting law without regard to sex, nationality, or religion.
3. Until such time as the Constituent Assembly of Belarus convenes, the legislative authority in the Belarusan Deratic Republic shall belong to the Council of the All-Belarusan Congress, augmented by representatives of the national minorities of Belarus.
4. The executive and administrative authority in the Belarusan Democratic Republic shall belong to the National Secretariat of Belarus which shall be appointed by the Council of the Congress and be responsible thereto.
5. Within the borders of the Belarusan Democratic Republic freedom of speech, press, assembly, and the right to strike and organize unions are proclaimed; as well as unconditional freedom of conscience, and the inviolability of the individual and of residence.
6. Within the borders of the Belarusan Democratic Republic all peoples have the right to national and personal autonomy; and equal rights for all the languages of the peoples of Belarus are proclaimed.
7. Within the borders of the Belarusan Democratic Republic the right to private ownership of land is abolished. The land is to be given over without payment to those who till it. Forests, lakes, and natural resources are declared to be the property of the Belarusan Democratic Republic.
8. Within the borders of the Belarusan Democratic Republic a working day of a maximum of eight hours is established.

Proclaiming all these rights and freedoms for the citizens and peoples of the Belarusan Democratic Republic, we, the Executive Committee of the Council of the Congress pledge to guard the legal order of life in the Republic, ensure the interests of all the citizens and peoples of the Republic, and preserve the rights and freedoms of the working people. We shall also apply all oui, strength to convene the Constituent Assembly of Byelorussia in the very near future.

We call on all faithful sons of the Belarusan land to assist us in our difficult and responsible labors.

The Executive Committee of the Council of the First All-Belarusan Congress
Given in Miensk, Belarus, March 9, 1918.

Third Constituent Charter

A year ago the peoples of Belarus, together with the peoples of Russia, threw off the yoke of Russian tsarism, which had oppressed Belarus most of all and, without asking the people, precipitated our land into the conflagration of war which totally destroyed Belarusan cities and villages.

Now we, the Council (Rada) of the Belarusan Democratic Republic, have’cast off from our native land the last vestige of national dependence which the Russian tsars imposed by force upon our free and independent land.

From this time on, the Belarusan Democratic Republic is proclaimed an independent and free state. The peoples of Belarus themselves, under the aegis of their Constituent Assembly, shall determine the future national relations of Belarus.

By virtue of this, all former national relations lose their force relations which made it possible for a foreign government to sign the Treaty of Brest for Belarus, thus destroying the Belarusan people by partitioning their land.

By virtue of this, the government of the Belarusan Democratic Republic will establish relations with interested parties by proposing to them a review of that part of the Treaty ol Brest which concerns Belarus and the signing of peace treaties with all belligerent states.

The Belarusan Democratic Republic should include all those lands where the Belarusan people constitute a numerical majority, namely: the Mahileu region, the Belarusan parts of the regions of Miensk, Horadnia (including the cities of Horadnia, Bielastok, and others), Vilnia, Viciebsk, Smalensk, and Charnihau, as well adjacent parts of neighboring gubernias, inhabited by Belarusans.

The Belarusan Democratic Republic confirms all those rights and freedoms of the citizens and peoples of Belarus which were proclaimed by the Constituent Charter of March 9, 1918.

Proclaiming the independence of the Belarusan Democratic Republic, its Council expresses the hope that all freedom-loving peoples will assist the Belarusan people to achieve fully their political and national ideals.

The Council (Rada) of the Belarusan Democratic Republic
Given in Miensk, Belarus, on March 25, 1918.