Anniversary of Belarusian Independence Declaration marked today

The Declaration announced the independence of Belarus based on self-determination, the Belarusian language as the state language and the supremacy of the people in taking decisions about the future. The top priority of the sovereignty was the securing of free development and well-being of the citizens of the Republic of Belarus. The Belarusian people was announced to be the bearer of the state sovereignty and the only source of the government.

July 27 was Belarus' Independence day in the first years of the Independence. Then Alyaksandr Lukashenka changed the date to July 3 after a referendum - the day Minsk was liberated from the Nazi.

In the photo: Celebration on July 27, 1999 in Minsk: Police and opposition. Photo by — bymedia.net