Portal:Heraldry/Selected article/F/14
The current national flag of Belarus was formally adopted on June 7, 1995, following the result of a referendum voted on by the Belarusian people in the previous month. This new design replaced a historical white and red flag used by the Belarusian People's Republic of 1918, before Belarus became a Soviet Republic, and again after it regained its independence in 1991. A few groups have continued to use the white and red flag, though its display in Belarus has been restricted by the government of President Alexander Lukashenko.
The current flag is a modification of the 1951 flag used while the country was a republic of the Soviet Union, mainly in the removal of the hammer and sickle and the red star, and the reversal of red and white in the hoist pattern. The Standard of the President of Republic of Belarus is identical to the national flag with a 5:6 ratio with the addition of the National emblem of Belarus. (more...)