The First Deputy Chairperson of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Iryna Herashchenko honoured the remembrance solemnities on the Victims of Political Repression with her presence
On May 20 the politician participated in the formal occasions held in the “Bykivnianski Mohyly” (Bykivnia Graves) State Historical and Memorial Preserve nearby Kyiv attended, too, by the President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko, dedicated to the Remembrance Day of Victims of Political Repression.
"Today, we commemorate the 80th anniversary of the mass political repressions of 1937-1938. Because of the ungraspably large scale that cannot be accurately identified so far, this crime of the communist totalitarian regime is called the Great Terror," Petro Poroshenko said during his speech at the event.
"In Ukraine, this crime was a logical extension of the Holodomor. Famine killed Ukrainian peasants. NKVD's bullets killed political, cultural, scientific elite. In such a combined way, they carried out denationalization, eradicated Ukrainians," he emphasized.
"Bykivnia Forest is a place of common memory of Ukrainian, Polish and other nations. Bowing heads and putting flowers to the memorials in the places of unnamed fraternal burials, on the ground, where, together with Ukrainians, thousands of Polish patriots, representatives of other nationalities were killed at Stalin's order, we declare: "We, Ukrainians, stand in solidarity with all the nations who have suffered from crimes of totalitarian regimes. We are determined to cooperate in overcoming the consequences of totalitarianism," said the President in conclusion.
The event attendees honored the memory of the victims of political repression by a minute of silence, laid flowers to the Common grave and a memorial sign of the Polish burials, installed icon-lamps near the central monument of the memory of the totalitarianism victims.
The ceremony was also attended by Ukrainian parliamentarians and representatives of the Government.