On amending the Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus (amendments to Decree No. 157 of 26 March 1998)

Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko has signed Decree No. 198 to establish a new holiday - Father’s Day. It will be marked on 21 October.

The document amended Decree No. 157 “On national holidays, public holidays, commemorative dates in the Republic of Belarus” as of 26 March 1998.

The initiative to establish Father’s Day was put forward during the president’s Address to Belarusian people and the National Assembly on 28 January 2022. The head of state upheld the idea and instructed the government to develop an appropriate document.

21 October was chosen to mark Father’s Day for a reason. In fact, Belarus has a long history of celebrating Mother’s Day on 14 October, and thus the period from 14 to 21 October will be referred to as a parents’ week. This week is meant to highlight traditional family values and the important of the family policy pursued by the government.