Freedom Day (Belarus)

Freedom Day (Belarusian: Дзень Волі, Dzen Voli) is an unofficial holiday in Belarus celebrated on 25 March to commemorate the declaration of independence by the Belarusian Democratic Republic on that date in 1918. It is also known as the 25-aha sakavika day.

Freedom Day celebration rally held by the Belarusian opposition in 2007

Freedom Day
Freedom Day demonstration in front of the National Opera and Ballet of Belarus building in Minsk in 2018
Official name	Дзень Волі
Observed by	Belarus, Belarusian diaspora
Date	25 March
Frequency	annual
Related to	Declaration of independence by the Belarusian Democratic Republic in 1918

Freedom Day has been celebrated as the Independence Day of Belarus by the Belarusian independence movement since the early 1920s. It is widely celebrated by the Belarusian diaspora.

In the United States, governors and US presidents, including Dwight Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton, have traditionally issued official greetings to the Belarusian American community on 25 March.[1][2]

The Belarusian opposition to the dictatorial regime of Alexander Lukashenko celebrates Freedom Day annually. The protests in Belarus are regularly accompanied by mass detention and torture of the protesters. [3] The government does not recognize Freedom Day claiming that the Belarusian Democratic Republic was created by the Germans, which occupied Belarus in 1918.

In 2020, Belarusian musician Źmicier Vajciuškievič created a song commemorated to the day and named it 25aha sakavika.

See also

• Public holidays in Belarus
• Freedom Day (disambiguation) in other countries

References

1. BELARUSIAN INDEPENDENCE DAY IN NEW YORK – PROCLAMATION BY MAYOR RUDI GIULIANI
2. ANNIVERSARY OF THE BELARUSIAN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC – GREETING FROM US PRESIDENT BILL CLINTON, 1995
3. "Freedom Day in Belarus: mass detentions, water cannons and security forces".