Top 7 Vasil Bykaŭ Quotes

Bureaucracy and culture are incompatible. Bureaucracy needs power, and culture is not wanted by it.

After making public the gruesome discoveries made at the wasteland near Minsk, dozens of reports appeared in the press about similar mass graves uncovered in all regional centres of the Republic and many lesser towns. Who lies in these graves, who were the people shot in all those years, and - most importantly - who were the murderers? We have no answer yet to these questions, and one gets an impression that there are powerful forces not interested at all in such answers ever being given.

Publishers have no tight to saturate the book market with works which have no demand, which do not get sold. It would be unnatural, both economically and also, probably, morally.

“Ён Прыехаў, Сам Памёр, Усё Спакойна…” Апошнія Тыдні Васіля Быкава // svaboda.org (in Belarusian)

Today he (Lukashenka) won by the hands of "gorillas" in black masks. Already it is clear that there will be no Parliament in Belarus, no democratic election. The remains of a free press will disappear. A presidential Junta will govern the country... Well, we can congratulate Belarusians on the previous elections. Worse cannot be done. For ourselves, for society and for future generations.

Вялікія словы на вялікай мове // dumki.org (in Belarusian)

In a society where every third person is a communist and every second person is an informer, it is difficult to expect to win by democratic means.