Scouting in Belarus
Encyclopedia
The Scout movement
in Belarus
consists of an unknown number of independent organizations. There are at least five nationwide associations as well as some regional associations. In addition, there were at one time Scouts-in-Exile
in metropolitan areas of the United States
, and there are presently international Scout units in Belarus.
, as part of the Russian empire
. A Scout organization was founded in Kletsk
, and Scouts appeared in Nyasvizh and other nearby village
s. In 1929, American
Methodists helped found a Girl Scout
organization in Vilna. It lasted until 1929, but by the end of the 1920s, Scouting had been banned by the Soviet Union
, and Scout activities ended, with many leaders and members arrested and imprisoned.
In the period following World War II
, ethnic Belarusians gathered in Scout troops in exile and in Scout troop
s in displaced persons camp
s throughout Europe, as did their counterpart Russians, Ukrainians
and Balts
. Belarusian Scouts formed the organization Belarusian Scout Association Abroad (Згуртаваньне Беларускіх Скаўтаў на Чужыне, English acronym BSAA, Cyrillic acronym ZBSCh), which existed from 1945 to 1951 in Germany
. Unlike the other organizations, however, the BSAA did not survive to witness the dissolution of the Soviet Union
. Whereas Russia, Poland and Ukraine in particular had ready-made Scouting available once allowed in 1990-1991, Belarus had to start essentially from scratch.
Emergence of democratic principles in the mid1980s made possible the creation of alternatives to the communist pioneer organization
s. Close connections were formed with Guide and Scout organizations of many Europe
an countries, when children from areas affected by the Chernobyl accident were invited to summer camps abroad during the Chernobyl Children's Project in 1990. Especially close links were developed with Cyprus
, and between Minsk
and the Guides
of Lincolnshire
. In 1992, Cyprus was officially appointed Link country to support the development of Guiding in Belarus, and in June 1993 the first conference of the Association of Belarusian Guides was held in Minsk.
Note: There may have been a link between one of the non-NSAB Belarusian Scout organizations and the Union Internationale des Guides et Scouts d'Europe
, a Christian-based Scout alternative, but it is uncertain to whom they were linked.
and Denmark
), ethnic identification (as is the case in Bosnia and Israel), or language (like Belgium
). Belarus instead has regional Scouting organizations. Regional Scouting divisions of Belarus include the GomelScouts in Gomel
. Because usage of the Belarusian language
and the Russian language
are contentious issues in the country, the emblem itself is captioned in English.
Scouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....
in Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
consists of an unknown number of independent organizations. There are at least five nationwide associations as well as some regional associations. In addition, there were at one time Scouts-in-Exile
Scouts-in-Exile
Scouts-in-Exteris, also referred to as Scouts-in-Exile, are Scouting and Guiding groups formed outside of their native country as a result of war and changes in governments...
in metropolitan areas of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and there are presently international Scout units in Belarus.
History
The initial development of Scouting in Belarus took place within the Russian Scout movementScouting in Russia
Scouting in Russia comprises several dozen Scout associations, based on religion, politics and geography.-History of Scouting in Russia:-1908 to 1922:...
, as part of the Russian empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
. A Scout organization was founded in Kletsk
Kletsk
Kletsk is a city in the Minsk voblast of Belarus, located on the Lan river. , it had ca. 10,000 inhabitants.- History :The town was founded in 11th century by the Dregovichs, who erected a large fort and a tribal centre there...
, and Scouts appeared in Nyasvizh and other nearby village
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
s. In 1929, American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Methodists helped found a Girl Scout
Girl Guides
A Guide, Girl Guide or Girl Scout is a member of a section of some Guiding organisations who is between the ages of 10 and 14. Age limits are different in each organisation. It is the female-centred equivalent of the Scouts. The term Girl Scout is used in the United States and several East Asian...
organization in Vilna. It lasted until 1929, but by the end of the 1920s, Scouting had been banned by the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, and Scout activities ended, with many leaders and members arrested and imprisoned.
In the period following World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, ethnic Belarusians gathered in Scout troops in exile and in Scout troop
Scouting in displaced persons camps
Scouting has been active in displaced persons camps and in the lives of refugees since World War II. During and after World War II, until the early 1950s, Scouting and Guiding flourished in these camps. These Scout and Girl Guide groups often provided postal delivery and other basic services in...
s in displaced persons camp
Displaced persons camp
A displaced persons camp or DP camp is a temporary facility for displaced persons coerced into forced migration. The term is mainly used for camps established after World War II in West Germany and in Austria, as well as in the United Kingdom, primarily for refugees from Eastern Europe and for the...
s throughout Europe, as did their counterpart Russians, Ukrainians
Plast
The Plast National Scout Organization of Ukraine commonly called Ukrainian Plast or simply Plast is the largest Scouting organization in Ukraine.-First Phase: 1911-1920:...
and Balts
Balts
The Balts or Baltic peoples , defined as speakers of one of the Baltic languages, a branch of the Indo-European language family, are descended from a group of Indo-European tribes who settled the area between the Jutland peninsula in the west and Moscow, Oka and Volga rivers basins in the east...
. Belarusian Scouts formed the organization Belarusian Scout Association Abroad (Згуртаваньне Беларускіх Скаўтаў на Чужыне, English acronym BSAA, Cyrillic acronym ZBSCh), which existed from 1945 to 1951 in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. Unlike the other organizations, however, the BSAA did not survive to witness the dissolution of the Soviet Union
Dissolution of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the Soviet Union was the disintegration of the federal political structures and central government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , resulting in the independence of all fifteen republics of the Soviet Union between March 11, 1990 and December 25, 1991...
. Whereas Russia, Poland and Ukraine in particular had ready-made Scouting available once allowed in 1990-1991, Belarus had to start essentially from scratch.
Emergence of democratic principles in the mid1980s made possible the creation of alternatives to the communist pioneer organization
Pioneer Organization
The Pioneer Organization was a pioneer movement in Communist Romania, founded on April 30, 1949.Most students joined the organization while in the second grade and remained pioneers throughout eighth grade, therefore, in practice, the normal age range extended from seven to fifteen, or nearly...
s. Close connections were formed with Guide and Scout organizations of many Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an countries, when children from areas affected by the Chernobyl accident were invited to summer camps abroad during the Chernobyl Children's Project in 1990. Especially close links were developed with Cyprus
Girl Guides Association of Cyprus
The Girl Guides Association of Cyprus is the national Guiding association of Cyprus. Guiding in Cyprus started in 1912 and became a member of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts in 1962...
, and between Minsk
Minsk
- Ecological situation :The ecological situation is monitored by Republican Center of Radioactive and Environmental Control .During 2003–2008 the overall weight of contaminants increased from 186,000 to 247,400 tons. The change of gas as industrial fuel to mazut for financial reasons has worsened...
and the Guides
Girlguiding UK
Girlguiding UK is the national Guiding organisation of the United Kingdom. Guiding began in the UK in 1910 after Robert Baden-Powell asked his sister Agnes to start a group especially for girls that would be run along similar lines to Scouting for Boys. The Guide Association was a founder member of...
of Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
. In 1992, Cyprus was officially appointed Link country to support the development of Guiding in Belarus, and in June 1993 the first conference of the Association of Belarusian Guides was held in Minsk.
National associations
- Belarusian Republican Scout Association (Белорусcкая Республиканская Скаутская Ассоциация), member of WOSMWorld Organization of the Scout MovementThe World Organization of the Scout Movement is the Non-governmental international organization which governs most national Scout Organizations, with 31 million members. WOSM was established in 1920, and has its headquarters at Geneva, Switzerland...
- The Association of Belarusian GuidesThe Association of Belarusian GuidesThe Association of Belarusian Guides is the Belarusian member organization of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts , with a membership of 1,274 Girl Guides ....
, member of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl ScoutsWorld Association of Girl Guides and Girl ScoutsThe World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts is a global association supporting the female-oriented and female-only Scouting organizations in 145 countries. It was established in 1928 and has its headquarters in London, England. It is the counterpart of the World Organization of the Scout...
since 1996 - Belarusian Scout AssociationBelarusian Scout AssociationThe Belarusian Scout Association is one of the nationwide Scouting organizations in Belarus. The association was founded in 1991 and liquidated in 2005 by the Supreme Court of Belarus, but still continues to operate...
(Аб`яднанне Беларускiх Скаўтаў), founded in 1991, liquidated in 2005 by the Supreme Court of BelarusSupreme Court of BelarusThe Supreme Court of the Republic of Belarus is the highest-tier court inside of Belarus and acts as the final "court of review." Its general tasks include the oversight of lower-tier courts and can render justice in areas of general civil and criminal law... - Belarusian Scout Movement (Белорусское Скаутское Движение)
- YMCA Scouting in Belarus
Note: There may have been a link between one of the non-NSAB Belarusian Scout organizations and the Union Internationale des Guides et Scouts d'Europe
Union Internationale des Guides et Scouts d'Europe
The International Union of the Guides and Scouts of Europe is a traditional faith-based Scouting organization with 20 member associations in 17 European...
, a Christian-based Scout alternative, but it is uncertain to whom they were linked.
Regional associations
Several countries have multiple organizations, divided on the basis of religion (for example, FranceScouting in France
The Scout movement in France consists of about 80 different associations and federations with about 180,000 Scouts and Girl Guides. Next to Germany, France is the country with the most fragmented Scout movement....
and Denmark
Scouting in Denmark
The Scout and Guide movement in Denmark consists of about ten different associations. Most of them are members of two large federations, but there are also some independent organizations. Affiliated to Danish Scouting and Guiding are the organizations in Greenland, on the Faroe Islands and in...
), ethnic identification (as is the case in Bosnia and Israel), or language (like Belgium
Scouting in Belgium
The Scouting and Guiding movement in Belgium consists of 15 to 20 separate organizations serving about 160,000 members. Nearly all organizations are grouped by languages and confessions. The Crown Scout rank is the highest a Boy Scout can achieve.- History:...
). Belarus instead has regional Scouting organizations. Regional Scouting divisions of Belarus include the GomelScouts in Gomel
Homyel
Gomel ; also Homiel, Homel is the administrative center of Gomel Voblast and the second-largest city in Belarus. It has a population of 482,652...
. Because usage of the Belarusian language
Belarusian language
The Belarusian language , sometimes referred to as White Russian or White Ruthenian, is the language of the Belarusian people...
and the Russian language
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
are contentious issues in the country, the emblem itself is captioned in English.
International Scouting units in Belarus
- In addition, there are American Boy Scouts in MinskMinsk- Ecological situation :The ecological situation is monitored by Republican Center of Radioactive and Environmental Control .During 2003–2008 the overall weight of contaminants increased from 186,000 to 247,400 tons. The change of gas as industrial fuel to mazut for financial reasons has worsened...
, serving in Boy Scout Troop 1101, linked to the Direct Service branch of the Boy Scouts of AmericaBoy Scouts of AmericaThe Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
, which supports units around the world.
See also
- Belarusian Republican Youth UnionBelarusian Republican Youth UnionThe Belarusian Republican Youth Union , , transliteration: Belorusskij respublikanskij sojuz molodeži ) is a youth organization in Belarus. Its goals are to promote patriotism and to instill moral values into the youth of Belarus, using activities such as camping, sporting events and visiting...
- Scouting in displaced persons campsScouting in displaced persons campsScouting has been active in displaced persons camps and in the lives of refugees since World War II. During and after World War II, until the early 1950s, Scouting and Guiding flourished in these camps. These Scout and Girl Guide groups often provided postal delivery and other basic services in...