Yabloko honoured the memory of the victims of the siege of Leningrad in World War II
Press Release, 27.01.2025
Photo by the Yabloko Press Service
Yabloko Chairman Nikolai Rybakov, Chairman of the St. Petersburg branch of Yabloko Olga Tsepilova, head of the Yabloko faction in the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg Alexander Shishlov, deputy of the Legislative Assembly Olga Shtannikova, member of the Yabloko Bureau Anatoly Golov and other party members came to honour the memory of those who died in besieged Leningrad during World War II.
Yabloko Chairman Nikolai Rybakov noted that the Piskaryovskoye Cemetery is a sacred place for every Leningrader, St. Petersburger, and Russian. “The great misfortune of our people is that the words of poet Olga Berggolts, carved in stone at the memorial “Nothing is forgotten” at the Piskaryovskoye Cemetry have become neglected over the years. “Human life, and the absolute value of peace – that’s what I think about when I come to the graves of Leningraders and defenders of the city,” the Yabloko leader emphasised.
The Chairperson of the St. Petersburg Yabloko, Olga Tsepilova, stressed that “our common duty is to remember the terrible price that Leningraders paid for the Victory over fascism, and the incredible and absolute value of peace”.
The head of the Yabloko faction in the Legislative Assembly, Alexander Shishlov, emphasised that the Day of the Lifting of the Siege is a special day for the city. “Every family in St. Petersburg has its own memory of the siege, the memory of those who defended besieged Leningrad, dreamed of a future peaceful life and did not live to see this day… We remember those who left and will preserve the peace they left us,” Alexander Shishlov noted.
The siege of Leningrad lasted 872 days from 8 September 1941 to 27 January 1944. During this time, 107,158 high-explosive and incendiary bombs and over 150,000 heavy artillery shells were dropped on the city. According to different sources, between 632,253 and 1.093 million people died during this period.
Piskaryovskoye Memorial Cemetry is the largest fraternal cemetery in the world: 500,000 people are buried here – these are the victims of the siege and soldiers of the Leningrad Front. Most of the deaths occurred in the winter of 1941-1942.
Posted: January 27th, 2025 under History, Human Rights, Yabloko's Regional Branches.