Belarus became a native for us: 34 foreigners took citizenship

The solemn ceremony of taking the oath to take citizenship of the Republic of Belarus was held in Minsk on October 14. As it was - in the material of the correspondent of the agency "Minsk-Novosti".

Among the participants were 34 foreign citizens, including 17 men and the same number of women. These are immigrants from Pakistan, Iran, Libya, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Egypt, Ukraine, as well as stateless persons. All of them have long linked their lives with Belarus, created families here and found their home.

- The path to this moment was long: it was necessary to undergo a strict selection, confirm legal income and collect the necessary package of documents, said the head of the Department for Citizenship and Migration of the Mingory Executive Committee, Lieutenant Colonel of the police Igor Shchesnovich. Immediately after the ceremony, all newly-minted citizens will be able to apply to the citizenship and migration units to obtain their main document – a passport of the Republic of Belarus

After receiving citizenship of the Republic of Belarus, each participant of the ceremony took an oath. All of them voluntarily and consciously swore to observe the Constitution and other legislative acts, to protect the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country, to preserve historical memory, to respect national traditions and to work for the benefit of society.

- We have been living in Belarus for 14 years. We came to visit our sister and decided to stay, starting from scratch. When the children went to kindergarten and school, I got a job as an assistant teacher, and then graduated from the State College of Cooking and for 10 years I have been working as a cook in a kindergarten, Gayane Sagatelyan commented. Over the years, Belarus has become truly native to our family. It is an incredibly calm, secure and safe country to live in, where we feel confident and can plan for the future.

To congratulate the new compatriots came the leadership of the capital police. The head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Minsk City Executive Committee, Major-General of the Police Mikhail Grib, stressed that taking the oath of allegiance is a conscious and very important step. Belarus is a peaceful, hospitable country with a rich history, traditions and strong values, the main asset of which are people.

- I come from Ukraine and first visited Belarus when I was six years old. I took a ride in Gorky Park on a carousel and then for the first time I thought how great it would be to live here. It turns out that thoughts have materialized, Valery Lukashenko shared with a smile. The road to citizenship has been difficult and slow, but I am sincerely grateful to the peaceful people of this country and all the competent authorities for their help and support. My wife and child live here, and in the future we want to apply for citizenship for them. By training, I am a civil engineer, I plan to continue working for the benefit of this state.

At the end of the ceremony, the newly-minted citizens were presented with memorable gifts, including the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus.

- I came to Belarus from Ukraine to my brother at the end of the last century and have lived here for 26 years. Here I got married, had children, had a job, friends and relatives. All these years he lived and rejoiced, and the registration of citizenship took about two years, said Sergey Zelensky. Belarus attracts with its purity, tranquility and incredibly good-natured people. In fact, I have long considered myself a Belarusian: here is my family and my children, and therefore my homeland.

Photo by Elizaveta Davidovskaya