Reaction to the inaction of the country's leadership

Why did the oath take place only more than a year after the declaration of independence of Belarus and why was it not organized by the state?

Despite the fact that in the fall of 1991 the Supreme Soviet decided to create the Ministry of Defense and the troops stationed on the territory of the country came under the jurisdiction of Belarus, the leadership of the Council of Ministers did not want to swear in the officers of the Armed Forces.

Unlike Ukraine, where military personnel began to be sworn in in January 1992, in Belarus soldiers of the spring 1992 draft were sworn in.

At the same time, an absurd situation arose, when soldiers and sergeants who swore allegiance to the people of Belarus were commanded by officers and generals who did not swear such an oath.

The entire composition of the Ministry of Defense, including the minister, was not sworn in.

Some officers stated that they had sworn allegiance to the USSR and, as they said, they had no intention of "re-swearing" independent Belarus.

The demands of the BNF deputies to bring the officers to the oath, expressed at the session of the Supreme Soviet, were ignored.

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Oath of loyalty to Belarus.

1992 year

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In such a situation, the leadership of the BPF, together with the leadership of the Belarusian Military Union (BZV), decided to take a symbolic oath, choosing for this purpose September 8, the day of victory in the Battle of Arsha in 1514 (Day of Belarusian Military Glory).

In order to hold a mass event at that time, it was enough for the deputies of the Verkhovna Rada to submit a statement to the local authority (city executive committee) about organizing a meeting with voters.

Statements were informative, so practically all mass actions, up to rock concerts in the squares, were held based on such statements of BNF Opposition deputies.

Vasyl Bykau among the guests of honor

On September 8, 1992, the scene on the square in front of the Government House was decorated with portraits of famous Belarusian soldiers.

State white-red-white flags flew.

Veterans of the war with Nazism were present, including

and

, People's Deputies of Belarus

and

, leaders of democratic parties.

Vasil Bykau, Anatol Hrytskevich, Zyanon Pazniak, Olga Galubovich September 8, 1992.

Chairman of the BPF and the parliamentary opposition ,

, spoke and explained the importance of taking the oath.

Active officers and reserve officers-deputies of the BNF Opposition in the Verkhovna Rada came out in front of the stage.

The first were in full uniform - these are

,

,

Birukou ,

,

,

,

,

,

Varanec ,

,

.

The deputies were in plainclothes —

,

Hermianchuk ,

,

,

Naumchyk ,

Papkov ,

.

There were hundreds of reserve and retired soldiers in uniform and in civilian clothes on the square.

In total, several thousand people gathered.

To Polyanez of Oginsky and the singing of "Vunia"

The oath was read by the chairman of the BZV ,

, and the audience repeated after him:

"I, a citizen of Belarus, entering the military service, swear allegiance to the Republic of Belarus and its people.

I solemnly swear to obey the Constitution and laws of the Republic of Belarus, military statutes, orders of commanders and chiefs, to uphold the honor and dignity of a soldier without sparing life, to protect the people and state interests of the Republic of Belarus.

I undertake to complete military service in any place on the territory of the Republic of Belarus or outside its borders, where the government of the Republic of Belarus sends me.

If I violate the military oath I took, I am ready to bear the responsibility established by the laws of the Republic of Belarus."

Mykola Statkevich gives signatures to military personnel and reserve officers.

Statkevich approached the officers in uniform and the deputies under the flag of Aginski, everyone wrote his surname and signed his name.

The "Vunia" choir sang.

The soldiers and reserve officers who were in the square also signed the oath.

One of Mihas Tkachev's last speeches

Doctor of historical sciences, editor-in-chief of the "Belarusian Encyclopedia", chairman of the Belarusian social-democratic party "Hramada"

addressed the participants of the ceremony .

He recalled the names of prominent Belarusian soldiers, including the winner of the Battle of Vorsha, Konstantin Ostrosky.

This was one of the last public appearances of Mikhas Tkachev - less than two months later he will die from a serious illness.

Mikhas Tkachev at a rally, early 1992.

KGB officers took the oath under the white-red-white flag

After the oath was taken on September 8, in November 1992, the Supreme Council of Belarus was forced to adopt a resolution approving the new text of the military oath and obliging all personnel of the Armed Forces, border and internal troops, and the personnel of the KGB to take the oath on December 31, 1992.

The oath of the Armed Forces, border and internal troops, as well as the KGB was held in the state Belarusian language under the state white-red-white flag.

Parade in the Belarusian military unit, early 1990s

Dismissal, early death, prison, emigration

Practically all active officers who took the oath of allegiance to Belarus were dismissed from the Belarusian army according to the order of the chairman of the Council of Ministers

and the order of the Minister of Defense

.

Several people died (lieutenant colonel

, MPs

,

, and

).

was convicted several times for political activity and is now behind bars

.

and

are in exile.

A separate column was made for Sheiman in the signature letter

Among the nearly two dozen people who took the oath in front of the tribune,

's closest allies , is sometimes mentioned

.

, who looks similar to him, is mistaken for Sheyman

.

Sheyman was not in the row in front of the tribune or among the officers in uniform, nor among the deputies.

Nevertheless, Sheyman's signature is indeed on the same sheet that was signed by active officers, including Statkevich, but at the end, the 15th count was specially made for him (the form was printed with 14 counts).

It remains unknown whether Sheiman signed it on September 8, 1992.

In 1992, Sheiman was a deputy of the Supreme Soviet and secretary of the Commission of the Supreme Council of Defense, National Security and Combating Crime (the commission was headed by

).

Sheiman was a member of the BZV, the chairman of the organization Statkevich sometimes turned to him for help as one of the heads of the commission.

Viktar Sheyman has been under the sanctions of the European Union for many years as a suspect in the disappearance

,

,

and

.

• Siarhei Naumchyk

  Siarhei Naumchyk was born in 1961 in Postavy.

  He graduated from the Faculty of Journalism of BSU, served in the army, worked in the Vitebsk regional newspaper.

  He was a deputy of the Supreme Soviet of Belarus and the coordinator of the BNF parliamentary opposition.

  In 1996, he received political asylum in the USA.

  navumchyks@rferl.org

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