Three years have passed since the moment when hundreds of thousands of Belarusians across the country rebelled against Lukashenko’s dictatorship. In the struggle for a better future, many lost their freedom and home, and some gave their lives. Today, after so many years in exile, we may think that it was all in vain, and we should have sat and waited for a better life that the dictator would someday give us. But we believe that our struggle in 2020 was not in vain and is a continuation of the struggle of the peoples of Belarus for freedom and equality in the region.
Belarusians have been fighting against dictatorship not since 2020 or even since 1996. Throughout the history of the region, the flags of various kingdoms and empires have flown above us, trying to strangle the aspiration to freedom. But time and again, ordinary people have taken destiny into their own hands and continued the struggle. We stand on the shoulders of all those who were ready to fight against lords, kings and emperors, risking everything for the sake of that very freedom.
And even as the dark night descends upon our home today, we know that sooner or later we will see the dawn of freedom. Not just an accidental freedom that we will get from the death of a dictator or other unlikely events, but the freedom gained by the struggle not of hundreds of thousands, but of millions of those who dared to rise up before us. And on the ruins of the Belarusan dictatorship we will build a world that will remember not only August 9, 2020, but also all those who fought for freedom for centuries, not only in Belarus, but all over the planet.
Until everyone is free our uprising will continue!
Pramen 2023
