Vilhelm Knorin

Vilgelm Georgiyevich Knorin (Russian: Вильгельм Георгиевич Кнорин, Latvian: Vilhelms Vilis Knoriņš; (1890-1939)) was the second First secretary of the Central Committee of the Byelorussian SSR from 1920 to 1923 and from 1927 to 1928. He was killed in the Great Purge.

Being a Moscow-appointed de-facto head of state of Belarus, Knorin is known for his notorious quote about the Belarusian independence: "We believe that Belarusians are not a nation, and the ethnographic specifics, which differentiate them from Russians, must be erased. We, communists, in the region that you call Belarus, work without thinking of what tribe we are."[1]

A street in Minsk is named after Knorin[1]

References

  1. 1 2 Лукашевич, Татьяна (23 November 2017). "Именем революции. Гид по улицам Минска" [In the Name of the Revolution. A guide through the streets of Minsk]. Bolshoi.by. Bolshoi; original quote: Zviazda, 6 October 1918. Retrieved 27 November 2017. Мы считаем, что белорусы не являются нацией, и те этнографические особенности, которые отличают их от остальных русских, должны быть изжиты. Мы, коммунисты, в том крае, который вы называете Белоруссией, работаем, не считаясь с тем, какого мы роду и племени


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