Addresses delivered in the general policy debate by the Head of Delegation at the General Conference

37 session of the General Conference

His Excellency Mr Pavel Latushka Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of Belarus to UNESCO

Speech delivered during the General Policy Debate of the 37th session of the General Conference - revised and corrected version of the verbatim records of plenary meetings

36 session of the General Conference

S.E. M. Uladzimir Shchasny, Président de la Commission nationale pour l'UNESCO

Speech delivered during the General Policy Debate of the 36th session of the General Conference and posted as received

35 session of the General Conference

S.E. M. Uladzimir Shchasny, Président de la Commission nationale pour l'UNESCO

(Traduction du russe)
“L’activité à la fois stable et dynamique de l’UNESCO repose sur plusieurs principes fondamentaux. L’application du principe de la décentralisation a favorisé le développement de nouveaux axes de collaboration au niveau national et régional.”
“L’accord de collaboration entre l’UNESCO et la Communauté d’États indépendants, conclu avec le concours du Bureau de l’UNESCO à Moscou, en est un exemple. L’efficacité de ce Bureau permet de tenir compte de façon satisfaisante des besoins concrets des États qui composent ce groupe de pays. C’est l’illustration même du principe fondamental de fonctionnement de l’Organisation: garantir la visibilité de son action. Le Programme de participation joue un rôle majeur dans ce domaine.”
“Le principe selon lequel l’UNESCO joue un rôle de catalyseur pour des activités concrètes (…) a permis de créer des réseaux écologiques transfrontaliers en Polésie, notamment avec le concours du Fonds-en-dépôt japonais et de mettre plus d’accent sur les questions d’éthique et de mener à bien de nombreux autres projets d’envergure.”
“L’un des principaux moyens de surmonter la crise qui touche aujourd’hui le monde entier consiste à garantir l’accès universel à une éducation inclusive de qualité, que ce soit au niveau de l’enseignement primaire, secondaire ou supérieur. Le développement de l’enseignement technique et professionnel sera incontestablement un moyen de réduire la pauvreté et de relancer la croissance économique. L’UNESCO doit devenir un chef de file et une organisation capable de mobiliser les gouvernements, les organismes spécialisés et les communautés scientifiques sur les questions de la science, de l’innovation et des nouvelles technologies.”
“La recherche sur le changement climatique, la biodiversité, l’atténuation des effets de catastrophes naturelles et « technogéniques », la gestion des ressources en eau et la bioéthique doivent constituer des priorités dans les programmes de l’UNESCO.” “La culture et l’éducation contribuent à renforcer la paix, en particulier dans les situations post-conflictuelles, ainsi que la tolérance et le respect des droits de l’homme et de la dignité humaine. L’UNESCO doit continuer à œuvrer pour la réalisation de projets phares comme Mémoire du monde ou la Bibliothèque numérique mondiale qui garantissent l’accès aux ressources des bibliothèques et des archives du monde entier, y compris aux personnes ayant des besoins particuliers, facilitant ainsi le dialogue et le rapprochement des cultures.”
“Le succès futur de l’Organisation dépendra surtout de la transparence, de la responsabilité, des approches axées sur les résultats, d’une coordination plus intersectorielle et d’une approche plus interdisciplinaire.”
“Il est cependant important que ces idées rejoignent la vision du rôle de l’UNESCO que Mme Irina Bokova a exposé aux membres du Conseil exécutif. Son savoir, son expérience et ses capacités organisationnelles permettront de faire des progrès remarquables dans la réalisation des objectifs fixés et de maintenir l’immense prestige dont jouit notre Organisation.”

34 session of the General Conference

H.E. Mr Vladzimir Shchasny, Chairperson of the National Commission

Belarus praises UNESCO’s ability to achieve consensus, without making compromises on global problems. This approach is especially evident in standard-setting activities.
The successful work of the UNESCO Office in Moscow confirms the correct nature of the policy of decentralization initiated and implemented by the Director-General.
UNESCO should take into account global processes and local conditions in the field of education. Activities and programmes have to be adapted to the needs of the Member States. The intersectoral approach is also of great importance for the effectiveness of the Organization’s work.
The adoption of the Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights drew attention to the importance of bioethics and prompted the establishment of national bioethics committees.
The cooperation between Belarus, Poland and Ukraine on the rational use of water resources and the preservation of biodiversity in the Polesie region was successful, thanks to UNESCO’s assistance and Japanese funds-in-trust.
Belarus also expects UNESCO to develop actions to counter technological disasters, an issue that has become highly topical with the threat of terrorism.
To ensure UNESCO’s visibility, it is vital to retain its attractive features: the desire for cooperation, the ability to take the opinions of others into account, the breadth of vision and the spirit of initiative.
Belarus is satisfied with the work accomplished by the National Commissions for UNESCO, the UNESCO Chairs and the Associated Schools and UNESCO Clubs. Furthermore, the country considers that it is necessary to maintain and even increase the funding for the Participation Programme.
While supporting the new Budget, the country notices however that it is essential to avoid reducing the volume of activities and programmes, particularly in the fields of the natural and the social and human sciences.
The World Heritage Centre deserves special support: its action is considered to be one of the most effective operations in the entire Organization.

Celebration of anniversaries

500th anniversary of the beginning of the Belarusian Printing (1517) (2017)

The celebration of the 500th anniversary of Belarusian Printing will help promoting access to and use of knowledge in the region.
Francis Skaryna is considered to be the first Belarusian printer and Bible scholar. His contribution to the Belarusian literature and, on a broader level, to the beginning of the era of “mass culture” in the region, made possible the rapid dissemination of new ideas among a great number of people.
Because it is relatively widely recognized that after 1517 the printing spread rapidly to other European cities, the Communication and Information Sector considers that this subregional event fully corresponds to the Memory of the World Programme objectives and contributes to the efforts of promoting universal access documentary cultural heritage, universal access to information and knowledge and its preservation. More specifically, the event fully contributes to the UNESCO's objectives by preserving the cultural heritage and ensuring accessibility of information through the use of digitization. Hence, by supporting the celebration of this anniversary, the Organization will contribute to its objectives of increasing awareness of the importance of heritage and will emphases on its need for care and protection, with the purpose of preserving the collective memory.

150th anniversary of the birth of Lev Samoylovich Rosenberg, known as Léon Bakst, artist, theatre designer, decorator (1886-1924) (with the support of the Russian Federation) (2016)

Born in Belarus in 1866, Leon Bakst made a valuable contribution to world culture development as a pioneer and innovator of new scenography trends and visual arts. He produced scenery and costumes for Hermitage and “Alexandrinsky” Theatres (Russia) performances, worked as scene-painter for Diaghilev with the Ballets Russes (France); he used to work in theatres in America and in France (Grand Opera, “Michelle”, Ida Rubinstein's theatre) where his works always were creating a sensation. Leon Bakst greatly contributed to the development of Theatre Art. His works and creations, including bright scenery, luxurious costumes and decorations for ballet performances, proved that scenography is a self-sufficient kind of visual arts. Moreover, together with Benua and Sergey Diagilev he co-founded the influential World of Art (“Mir Iskusstva”) group in 1898, and was largely responsible for the technical excellence of its influential magazine.

250th anniversary of the birth of Michał Kleofas Ogiński, composer, writer and diplomat (1765-1833) (Belarus, Lithuania, Poland) (2015)

This request, submitted by three countries – Belarus, Lithuania and Poland – focuses on the 250th anniversary of the birth of a composer and politician of the Polish-Lithuanian Union, (which also included Belarus). Michał Kleofas Ogiński was a well-known composer in Europe, highly regarded for his polonaises, including the famous “A Farewell to the Homeland”. In addition to his musical activity, Michał Kleofas Ogiński worked for the liberation of his country, helped to reform the University of Vilnius and, towards the end of his life, attempted to introduce important social reforms on his estate (now in Belarus). This commemoration, supported by three countries of the former Polish-Lithuanian Union, is a remarkable example of close international cooperation in order to preserve a shared cultural heritage, and shows how a common history can be explored in a spirit of mutual understanding and reconciliation.

200th anniversary of the birth of Iosif Goshkevich, scientist and diplomat (1814-1875) (Belarus, with the support of Japan and Russian Federation) (2014)

This proposal calls on UNESCO to be associated with the 200th anniversary of the birth of one of the first Slavorientalists. A pioneer in Oriental Studies and fluent in the languages of the Far East – Chinese, Manchu, Korean and Japanese – Iosif Goshkevich devoted his whole life to the study of different cultures and to the fauna and flora of China, Japan, Korea and the Philippines. He also wrote the first Russian-Japanese dictionary. Goshkevich focused all his energy on enabling the mutual understanding of cultures and peoples (being a translator from Chinese himself). In view of the above, the organizers of the various events to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of Iosif Goshkevich in Belarus in 2015 call on UNESCO to extend its support. The project is supported by the Government of Japan.

1,150th anniversary of the city of Polotsk mentioned in the Primary Chronicle (862) (2012)

Polotsk is one of the most ancient cities of Eastern Europe. It was first mentioned in a chronicle of 862 and was at that time the capital of the Principality of Polotsk, one of the first Slavic States. The Principality, a vassal State of Kievan Rus’, was a major trading nation which traded with the other Slavic States and Scandinavia. The city was then one of the largest in the region and was described in Scandinavian sagas as the most heavily fortified city in Kievan Rus’. The Principality corresponded closely to what is now Belarus, so that Polotsk was in a sense the first Belarusian capital.

200th anniversary of the birth of Ivan Khrutsky, painter (1810-1885) (2010)

In the first half of the nineteenth century, Ivan Khrutsky was the best master of still-life painting style. He developed his own type of still life by introducing it into portraits.
For his outstanding talent, Saint Petersburg Academy awarded him the title of Academician in 1839. The following year he settled in the family estate in the Polotsk region. This period was one of commissioned religious art, mostly from Lithuania. Besides religious paintings, he also worked on portraits of renowned personalities.
Photo legend: Portrait of unknown

600th anniversary of the Belovezhskaya Pushcha/Białowieża Forest Reserve (2008)

The Belovezhskaya Forest is located in Brest and Hrodna oblasts (provinces) of Belarus and in Bialystok, Suwalki, and Lomza wojewodztwos (provinces) of Poland.
Belovezhskaya Pushcha/Bialowieza Forest, the oldest nature reserve in Europe, is the largest remnant of the primeval lowland forests that have existed in Europe since prehistoric times. In 1979 the Bialowieza National Park (the Polish part of the site) and in 1992 the Belovezhskaya Pushcha National Park (the Belarusian part) were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

200th anniversary of the birth of Vincent Dunin-Martsinkevich, poet, playwright and actor (1808-1884) (2008)

Prominent Belarusian writer, poet and playwright Dunin-Martsinkevich stood at the origins of the New Belarusian literature and the Belarusian literary language. He is considered to be a founder of the professional national dramatic art. His works have been translated into Czech, English, German, Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish, Russian, Ukrainian etc.

200th anniversary of the birth of Napoleon Orda, artist and composer (1807-1883) (2007)

Napoleon Orda, artist and composer, born in Belarus, lived and worked also in France, Ukraine and Lithuania. He made more than a thousand of sketches and water-colours depicting various views of historical monuments and sites in Belarus, Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine, which are very detailed and important for the history of architecture and culture in general as many of those monuments no longer exist. He composed a number of polonaises, waltzes, mazurkas and serenades, thus making a valuable contribution to the music of Belarus and other countries of the region.

200th anniversary of the birth of Ignacio Domeyko (2002)

Ignacio Domeyko’s (1802-1889) intellectual legacy has a highly symbolic value. He really belongs to the constellation of men who have marked world history and whose ideas, activities and influence have transcended national boundaries, encouraging peoples to consolidate their cultural identities in a spirit of mutual respect. In 1855, a gold medal was struck in his honour with a motto “Science-Work-Disinterestedness”. Many localities and a chain of mountains in the Andes bear the name of Ignacio Domeyko as well as a mineral, various fossils and even a flower – “Viola Domeycana”.

Two hundredth anniversary of the birth of the Polish poet Adam Mickiewicz (Poland and Belarus) (24 December 1998).

As a poet and eminent cultural figure in Poland, Belarus and Lithuania and an advocate of the solidarity of peoples and their right to freedom, Adam Mickiewicz was known as the ‘Pilgrim of freedom’.
He is considered to be the greatest Polish poet; his periods of residence in Germany, Switzerland and France, and the influence of the poets of those countries, enabled him to impart a universal dimension to his work.
The Polish and Belarusian authorities have set up a national and international organizing committee for this celebration, which plans to organize exhibitions and lectures in Poland, Belarus and France, to re-issue the poet’s works, to publish new translations of his writings, to issue a postage stamp and a medal, etc.

100th of the birth of Maxime Bogdanovitch, the eminent Belorussian poet (1991)

Maxime Bogdanovitch, the eminent Byelorussian poet and translator of
literary works, critic and social commentator, was born in Minsk, Byelorussia,
on 9 December (27 November old style) 1891. He died on 25 May 1917, not yet
aged 26.
The literary work of M.A. Bogdanovitch is closely bound up with folk
poetry and is permeated with love for people and for nature in his home country. His
anthology of verse entitled ‘Venok’ (The Garland) was first
published in 1913 ,and had, and continues to have, a great spiritual influence
on the nation’s sensitivity and character. M.A. Bogdanovitch’s poetry gives
strong expression to the ideas of human solidarity, humanism and the worth of
the human person.
M.A. Bogdanovitch translated many literary works by Slav authors,
particularly Russian, Ukrainian, Polish, Serb and others, into the national
language, thereby strengthening ties and mutual understanding between nations,
Maxime Bogdanovitch was the author of a number of critical articles on
literature and some writings on contemporary social questions.

500th anniversary of the birth of Francisk Skorina, the pioneer of Belorussian and eastern Slavonic printing, an influential thinker, scholar and writer of the Renaissance period (Belarus) (1990)

Pioneer of Belorussian and eastern Slavonic
printing, an influential thinker, scholar and writer of the
Renaissance period,
The life and work of Francisk Skorina bore the stamp of
humanism and contributed to the development of printing and the
spread of knowledge, to the rise of culture and to the affirmation
of the dignity of the human being and of faith in the strength of
human reason.