On holding the International Conference «Partisan Archive» in the National Archives of the Republic of Belarus
On September 12, 2024, the National Archives of the Republic of Belarus (hereinafter referred to as NARB) hosted the 1st International Scientific and Practical Conference «Partisan Archive», dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the complete liberation of the territory of Belarus from the Nazi occupiers.
The conference was attended by scientists, archivists and military history specialists from Belarus, Russia and Kazakhstan. The guests of the conference were the heads of the republican archival institutions of Belarus. Also, as part of the implementation of the «Archives for School» campaign, the event was attended by senior students of Gymnasium No. 21 and Secondary School No. 62 in Minsk, as well as history students of the Belarusian State Pedagogical University named after M. Tank.
The director of the Department of Archives and Records Management of the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Belarus O.L. Voinov addressed the conference participants with a welcoming speech. He emphasized the importance of the work carried out by the archival industry on the issue of preserving historical memory. Oleg Leonidovich also noted that archives are turning into full-fledged scientific and cultural-educational centers. The multi-million National Archival Fund of the Republic of Belarus is not only a documentary treasury of our country. It is also the main source of historical truth.
Deputy Director of the Institute of History of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, PhD in History, Associate Professor P.A. Trubchik addressed the conference participants and spoke about the extensive work carried out by the institute’s scientists and archivists to study little-known aspects of the history of the Great Patriotic War.
The grandson of the chief of the Belarusian partisan movement headquarters P.Z. Kalinin, First Deputy Chairman of the International Public Association «Federation of Martial Arts», Honored Trainer of the Republic of Belarus P.M. Kalinin shared his memories of his famous grandfather.
Director of the NARB A.K. Demyanyuk wished the conference participants good, fruitful work and interesting scientific reports. He also presented copies of the award documents for the partisan of the N.A. Shchors detachment, F.A. Pashenko, to the partisan’s daughter, Raisa Florianovna Kobyak (Pashenko), who took part in the conference.
The conference participants were shown newsreels about the partisan movement from the funds of the Belarusian State Archive of Film, Photo, and Sound Documents.
A cooperation agreement was signed in a solemn atmosphere between the NARB and the archive’s long-term partner in the field of publishing – the Historical Memory Foundation.
At the plenary session, a report was presented by the Deputy Director of the NARB, PhD in History S.V. Kulinka and a research fellow at the Center for Military History of Belarus, Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus V.N. Nadtachaev on the results of work with the documents of the V.I. Lenin Partisan Brigade of the Pinsk Unit, discovered in the summer of 2023 buried in the ground near the village of Gotsk, Soligorsk District.
The forum participants and guests were presented with NARB publications on the history of the partisan movement, published in 2024. The Director of NARB presented gift copies to reviewers, directors of archives that participated in the preparation of the books, and representatives of sponsored schools. The conference continued in two sections. The following NARB employees presented their reports: Head of the Department of Personal Origin Funds I.V. Dorogush (report «Personal Documents from NARB Funds as a Source for Studying the History of Partisan Struggle in the Occupied Territory of Belarus (Composition, Information Content, Use)»); Leading Researcher of the Publications Department, PhD in History V.D. Selemenev («NARB Documentary Publications on the Partisan Movement During the Great Patriotic War»); Leading archivist of the Department of Document and Information Use, PhD in History, Associate Professor V.P. Garmatny («Reconnaissance Activities of the Partisan Brigade named after P.K. Ponomarenko in the Kossovsky District in 1943-1944») and Leading archivist of the Department of Publications U.A. Kolobaeva («On the Issue of the Activities of «Forest Schools» in the Occupied Territory of Belarus During the Great Patriotic War»).
The conference was held at a high scientific level and received positive feedback from all forum participants.
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| 1. Program of the International Conference “Partisan Archive” |
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| 2. Welcoming speech by the Director of the Department of Archives and Records Management of the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Belarus O.L.Voinov |
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| 3. During the plenary session |
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| 4. Welcoming speech by P.M.Kalinin |
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| 5. During the screening of the newsreel |
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| 6. Signing of the cooperation agreement between NARB and the “Historical Memory” Foundation |
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| 7. Speech by Doctor of Historical Sciences, Professor B.N.Kovalev (Russian Federation) |
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| 8. Presentation of the book to the Director of Secondary School No. 62 in Minsk L.V.Asanovic |
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| 9. Presentation of the book by the Head of the Department of History and Social and Humanitarian Sciences of PSU named after Euphrosyne Polotskaya, PhD in History, Associate Professor A.I.Korsak |
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| 10. Presentation of copies of award documents to R.F.Kobyak (Pashchenko) |
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| 11. During the work of the first section |
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| 12. During the work of the first section |
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| 13. During the work of the second section |
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| 14. During the work of the second section |