Press Release, October 29, 2013

YABLOKO leaders and activists participated in the memorial action organised by the Memorial human rights society commemorating the victims of political reprisals during Stalin’s period. The action took place by the FSB (former KGB) building at Lubyanka square.

The YABLOKO party commemorates the victims of the Great Terror every year. “It’s not the only area of YABLOKO and Memorial cooperation, our organisations are of one blood, we have published the book “Overcoming Stalin’s Legacy” together. It’s very important to realise Russia’s totalitarian history and make its appraisal”, said Secretary of YABLOKO Political Committee Galina Mikhaleva.

“May the memory of the victims of the Great Terror live forever and shame on their executioners and those who try to justify and glorify them [executioners]”, said YABLOKO leader Sergei Mitrokhin.

“The more people come here, the more people will remember this, the more hope that such tragedy will never take place again”, said Grigory Yavlinsky.

According to Yavlinsky, state terror is a lot worse than the terror that we face in everyday life. “The state terror kills the best, most honest, talented, special people “.

Every participant of the action received a list with the names of Muscovites – victims of Stalin’s terror of 1937 – 1938, their age, posts and dates of execution. YABLOKO activists and Muscovites read out loud the names of the victims and put a candle to the Solovetsky Stone.

30,000 people were shot only in Moscow in1937-1938.

The action takes place annually on the threshold of October 30, the Day of Political Prisoners, established in 1974 by Soviet political prisoners who conducted hunger strikes and lit candles in memory of the victims on that day. Also on that day Sergei Kovalyov conducted in Andrei Sakharov’s flat a press-conference devoted to this action of political prisoners. Since 1974 hunger strikes of political prisoners in prison camps have been taking place annually marking a new stage in the human rights movement.