Address of the Vitebsk Regional Coordination Council of Public Organizations and Political Parties

The reason for this appeal is the campaign of demolition of monuments dedicated to significant events of World War II and the Great Patriotic War, which has unfolded in countries neighboring the Republic of Belarus and has recently gained particular resonance. We view it solely as a disregard for the common history and memory of those generations of citizens of the USSR republics and Eastern European countries who fought shoulder to shoulder against the Nazi invaders who sought to enslave our lands and peoples.

The unprecedented facts of desecration of memory cause condemnation and concern among the public of the Vitebsk region, which is brought up in the traditions of careful attitude towards the events of the Great Patriotic War and is ready to resist attempts to falsify its history. We declare with full responsibility that monuments to people who gave their lives for the liberation of Europe from the "brown plague," fascism, deserve at least respectful treatment; they embody the context of historical reality.

Therefore, we call on the leadership of Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland not to cross out the pages of our common history, not to wage war against monuments like medieval barbarians, but to preserve the memory of those who, at the cost of their own lives, brought victory over fascism, peace, and freedom to the peoples of Europe. They deserve to be remembered for their feat!

Without the past, there is no future! We will do everything to ensure that future generations know at what cost the undoubtedly simple and eternal truths – the freedom and independence of our states – were achieved. We ask you to stop this outrage. In the event that, for the sake of fleeting political expediency, the authorities of certain European countries are not ready to preserve monuments to our common Great Victory, the Vitebsk region is ready to accept these works of monumental art, reflecting the historical policy and trends in art of their period, for further restoration and installation in the region.