The International Day of Students’ Solidarity, which is celebrated on 17th, November, started with the meeting by the memorial “They fought for Homeland” and laying of flowers.

A.D. Gulyakov, Rector of PSU, reminded the participants the history of the Students’ Solidarity Day, which is now a symbolic union of students of all the faculties and all the educational institutions. Penza State University has about 22,000 students, 1,500 of them are international students.

Unlike the funny Tatiana Day, 17th of November is associated with the tragic events of the World War II. The Students’ International Day was announced in 1941 in London (Great Britain) on the international meeting of students from the countries fighting against fascism. The date was chosen to commemorate the Czech students who were heroes of opposition. On October, 28, 1939, in occupied by fascists Czechoslovakia (at that time it was called the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, now the Czech Republic) Prague students and their teachers organized a demonstration to celebrate the anniversary of the Czechoslovak Republic establishment. It had been established on October, 28, 1918. The occupants’ units suppressed the demonstration and opened fire. One of the students’ leaders, Jan Opletal, was seriously wounded and later died. His funeral on November, 15, 1939, also turned into the protest. In return, the Nazis closed all the Czech higher educational establishments, over 1,200 students were arrested and sent to the concentration camp in Sachsenhausen. 10 students and active participants of the students’ movement were executed without trial in jail in Prague district of Ruzyně on November, 17. On Hitler’s order all the Czech higher educational establishments were closed until the end of the war. The first International Students’ Day was celebrated in 1941.

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 “One of the most powerful uniting forces which we have nowadays is you, our students. You are educated, young, active, you have knowledge and active civil position. You should assist and support each other. I hope that within the walls of our University you can become a friendly family and will carry the idea of kindness and peace further”, - said the Rector, emphasizing the importance of team spirit concerning this idea in our hard times.

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 “International Students’ Solidarity Day is a holiday of our unity independent of nationality and culture. On behalf of all international students I want to thank the administration of the University for the opportunity to study at PSU and for the fact that we can feel at home here, for support of other students”, said Orkhan Novruzov, a PSU student, Chairman of International Students’ Association of the Penza Region.

Sergei Anisimov, Chairman of Student Council of PSU, agreed with Aleksanr Gulyakov and wished the students to actively prove themselves at University and follow the motto “Be in the team of the best!”

Rector’s Office representatives, teachers, University employees and students honoured the memory of the students – victims of the Nazi regime with a silence minute and laid the flowers to the memorial “They fought for Homeland”.

Photos are in the official PSU VK group.