"Minsk" is derived from the Slavic verb "meniaty," meaning "to change." It's an appropriate name for the capital of Belarus, perhaps even more now than when the city was founded in the 11th century. Minsk was a main industrial center and weapons producer during the Soviet era. Since Belarus gained independence in 1991, industrial production has steeply declined. Keeping order in the wake of Communism is perhaps a struggle for the city's 1.6 million people, evidenced by the fact that political dissent is still illegal in Minsk, despite recent mass demonstrations. Minsk was 90 percent destroyed during World War II, and, for its sufferings and reconstruction, named a Hero City in 1974. .