On the occasion of Freedom Day Belarusian culture figures, sportsmen and media personalities have appeared in a Belsat TV new video and sung a song ‘Not to be cattle!’
ENG subs:
{movie}Freedom Day-2014, Belsat TV video, ENG subs|right|15772{/movie}
Lyapis Trubetskoy, a famous Belarusian musical band, created the song to a poem by the classic Belarusian poet Yanka Kupala (1882-1942). Written in 1908, the poem is a strong statement against dictatorship.
Freedom Day is an unofficial holiday in Belarus, which is celebrated on March 25 to commemorate the creation on that date in 1918 of the Belarusian Democratic Republic (BNR). It came into existence at the end of the First World War, when Bolshevik forces left Minsk and the city was occupied by German troops. On March 25, 1918 the Provisional Government (Rada) proclaimed the independence of the BNR. After the Red Army re-entered Minsk, the Communist government replaced the Rada; its members had to emigrate.
The current regime denies Freedom Day and often prevents the opposition forces from celebrating it.
