Moldovan president conveys message of commemorating victims of Stalinist deportations

Eighty-four years ago, on the night of June 12 to 13, 1941, the first operation of Stalinist deportations took place in Moldova, when thousands of families found armed soldiers in their yards. Grandparents, parents and children were forcibly taken from their homes, loaded into freight wagons and deported thousands of kilometers away.

“The Soviets tore apart destinies, separated families and condemned innocent people to death. Those deported lost everything they had built over the years and ended up in forced labor camps, from where many never returned,” said President Maia Sandu in a commemorative message for the victims of deportations.

The head of state noted that the pain of those times still unsettles Moldovans. “We feel it whenever someone tries to deny the facts or hide the truth. The deepest form of respect for our ancestors is to keep the memory of their suffering alive – and to ensure that such tragedies never happen again. We have the duty not to forget. To tell the truth,” President Maia Sandu said.

The head of state also said that, on 11 June, after eight decades of waiting, an important step towards truth and recognition had been made: about 20,000 files of those deported were transferred to the National Archive. “Starting from next July, every family can finally search for their uprooted roots and reclaim the names of those lost in the darkness of dictatorship. With this transfer, all files of persons subjected to political repression during the communist regime are now gathered in one place – at the National Archive,” President Maia Sandu added.

Photo source: National Archives Agency