The White Crane Day is celebrated on October 22 not only in post-Soviet countries but far beyond. This date was established over 40 years ago by a national poet of Dagestan Rasul Gamzatov and was originally dedicated to the memory of soldiers who lost their lives defending their homeland during the Great Patriotic War.
In 2009, UNESCO included the White Crane Day in the list of International Days as a reminder to the whole world of the soldiers who gave their lives for the freedom of the Fatherland.
On this day, numerous events are held to commemorate the soldiers who did not return home from the battlefields, who gave their lives in the name of peaceful life. Not only poems by Rasul Gamzatov are read aloud on this day, but also poems by other wartime poets and their followers, as well as songs about the war.
This memorable date is of particular importance for the Donetsk People’s Republic. In 2014, as in 1941-1945, our grandfathers and great-grandfathers, Donbass people stood up to defend our homeland and fight for our freedom.
On the White Crane Day, commemorative events are held in the Donetsk People’s Republic, devoted to those who were killed in the Great Patriotic War, the Afghan war and the war in Donbass, which continues to this day. “The White Crane Day is not only a symbol of memory, but, first of all, a tribute and gratitude to the fallen soldiers who remained committed to their Homeland, protecting it with their own lives. Every fallen soldier is a hero of his country, worthy of being an example for the younger generation of defenders. Our fellow citizens still take up arms to defend the Fatherland so that we and our children could live with dignity,” said Daria Morozova, Human Rights Ombudsman in the Donetsk People’s Republic.
