Day of Remembrance for Victims of Political Repression in Ukraine celebrated every third Sunday in May. IN 2021 year this date falls on 16th of May.
The memorable day was established by presidential decree Viktor Yushchenko № 431/2007 dated May 21, 2007 in connection with the 70th anniversary Great terror – massive repressions of the Stalinist regime in 1937-1938. More about what Ukrainians remember on this mournful date, says OBOZREVATEL.
Great terror in Ukraine
There is still controversy about the exact number of victims of political repression in Ukraine. By data parts of historians, from the beginning 20s to late 80s years of the XX century in Ukraine were arrested about 1.5 million people, many of whom were shot.
The rest received prison terms, were sent to exile, camps, hard labor, compulsory treatment in psychiatric hospitals.
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The repressions affected almost all categories of the population: scientists, creative intelligentsia, military men, politicians, villagers, clergymen.
IN 1937-38 years repression of the Stalinist regime reached its peak – this period went down in history under the name Great terror, or “Yezhovshchina” (on behalf of the head of the NKVD Nikolai Yezhov).
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In Ukraine then there were 198 thousand 918 people were convicted, about two thirds of them – to be shot. The rest were sent to prisons and camps.
Power of the USSR for a long time hid the traces of crimes: burial places were filled with concrete, leveled with bulldozers, planted with trees, built up with KGB regime facilities.
Tragedy in Bykovna
Bykovnya is one of the symbols of the era of repression. IN Bykovnyansky forest near Kiev is the largest burial place in Ukraine for the executed and tortured. There was a special purpose object NKVD, where in the late 30s – 40s took place mass graves of victims of the Stalinist regime.
The bloodiest night in Kiev was May 19, 1938 when in prisons shot 563 people. Currently known the names of more than 19 thousand people shot in Bykovna.
On the Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Political Repression, ceremonies of laying flowers at memorial signs, funeral veche and other events are held throughout Ukraine.
As reported OBOZREVATEL, earlier in Dnieper on the roof of one of the buildings on Kalinova street unknown persons hung out a huge flag with a portrait of Stalin and symbols of the USSR.
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