On June 27, 2009 opening ceremony of VIII Festival of National Cultures occurred in the Belarus State Philharmonic.
The opening ceremony included exhibition of masters of national cultures, which took place in front of the building of the Philharmonic, press-conference and concert of the laureates of national cultures. Place in front of the Philharmonic turned into fair of arts and crafts of masters of national cultures from Belarus, Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania, Greece. Stand with materials was presented by the UNHCR Office in the Republic of Belarus.
The Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Belarus, the Office of the Commissioner for the Religious and Ethnic Affairs, the Republic Center of National Cultures, Grodno regional executive committee and Grodno regional committee with the assistance of the UNHCR Office in the Republic of Belarus.
Head of the UNHCR Office in the Republic of Belarus Sholeh Safavi greeted all the guest of the Festival and made speech at the press-conference.
It's a great honor to participate in the opening ceremony of the Eighth Republican Festival of National Cultures which has been dedicated this year to the 65th anniversary of the liberation of Belarus. On behalf of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, she congratulated everyone on this important occasion and extended appreciations to the organizers of the festival and to all the participants in various cultural and artistic activities. UNHCR is proud to be associated with an important national event such as this, which aims to celebrate diversity and promote tolerance.
The theme of this year’s festival — Belarus is our common home — is very well chosen. Indeed, with open hearts and open minds, people of different social and cultural background, of different race, religion and ideology can live together peacefully, in unity like a family and generate synergies that lead them to bright horizons of social and economic advancement. This national festival offers a unique opportunity for over forty nationalities and all the foreigners who live in Belarus to reaffirm this commitment.
The Festival of National Cultures is of particular relevance for UNHCR because our organization that cares for 42 million refugees and displaced people around the globe, cannot achieve its goals if there’s no tolerance and understanding towards uprooted people. Every year on 20 June, the World Refugee Day, we pay tribute to the refugees for their courage and resilience and try to raise awareness about their plight and their rights. The best protection we can offer to refugees is acceptance within our community. And this festival is a best sign of that acceptance as we can see the participation of refugee communities among all other nationalities. Thousands of immigrants and refugees have found safety, home and job in Belarus and rebuilt their lives. Belarus can be proud of being a common hospitable home for people of diverse cultures and nationalities.