The National Archives of the Republic of Belarus has prepared an exhibition marking the 100th anniversary of the Belarusian Red Cross Society
To the 100th Anniversary of the Founding of the Belarusian Red Cross Society
The National Archives of the Republic of Belarus has prepared an exhibition marking the centenary of the founding and development of the Belarusian Red Cross Society as part of the Twenty Fifth Belarusian Red Cross Congress. The exposition presents the original documents kept in the archives.
The Minister of Health of the Republic of Belarus, Chairman of the Presidium of the Belarusian Red Cross, Secretary General of the Belarusian Red Cross, representatives of all regional and district organizations, and volunteers were present at the opening of the exhibition.
Throughout its century-long activity, the Belarusian Red Cross has been guided by the principles of humanitarian law, based on the Geneva Conventions, to which all the states of the world are signatories, making them the most universal of all international agreements. The main of them is providing assistance to the victims of armed conflicts, internal disturbances, man-made and humanitarian disasters and natural calamities, regardless of nationality, religion or political views of the person.
On display are the statutory documents and minutes of the Central Executive Committee meeting regarding the necessity to create the Belarusian Red Cross, as well as documents describing the activities of the Belarusian Red Cross to provide humanitarian assistance to the starving people in the Volga region in 1922, care and medical assistance to the Soviet soldiers and officers returning from Polish captivity after the Polish-Soviet war of 1919-1920. In the 1920s and 1930s, Red Cross workers focused their efforts on helping the most vulnerable social groups – children, the disabled, and the elderly.
The Great Patriotic War interrupted this noble work. Immediately after the liberation of the Republic from the Nazi invaders, the Red Cross resumed its activities and took an active part in the elimination of foci of infectious diseases, helping wounded soldiers and officers of the Red Army who were in hospitals for treatment, caring for orphans, invalids of the Great Patriotic War and all those in need of help.
An unforgettable page in the history of the Belarusian Red Cross is its participation in the liquidation of the consequences of the man-made disaster at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. The sanitary teams of the Red Cross carried out the decontamination of contaminated areas and premises, took part in the evacuation of the population, distributed medicines and humanitarian aid.
In its activities the Belarusian Red Cross has always adhered and still adheres to the fundamental principles of humanitarian law, first of all coming to the aid of those in need.
The original documents on the 100-year history of the Belarusian Red Cross are available at the National Archives of the Republic of Belarus. The temporary exhibition will run until November 2021.
