Kurapaty defenders holding rally near Stalinist repressions victims grave site (video)
At 18:00 a rally and concert of NAKA musical band have started in Kurapaty. Belsat TV is covering the event:
Вырашальны мітынг у Курапатах. Наш стрым #Курапаты
Opublikowany przez Белсат TV Piątek, 3 marca 2017
Last night, all was quiet at Kurapaty, a place on the outskirts of Minsk and a burial site of Stalinist repression victims.
There were no attacks on the activists who are still on the watch there. Builders are taking away concrete slabs. Kurapaty defenders need firewood as the weather is quite cold.
10 days ago, the Belarusian activists began a long-term action in defense of the memorial protesting against the construction of an office building started a few dozen meters from Kurapaty. According to them, it is fraudulent as the building permission was granted when the area was considered a protected zone.
The plot on which ‘Belrekonstruktsiya’ company undertook the construction of a four-storey business center was sold by the city authorities at the auction in 2013. In 2014 the protected zone was significantly cut. According to historian Ihar Kuznyatsou, it is highly likely that remains of the victims will be found here. KGB archives which could cast light on the burial plans are classified until now.
Kurapaty is not just the national memorial to the victims of Stalinist repression, it is a site of historical and cultural heritage. Belarusian Voluntary Society for Protection of Monuments appealed to the KGB and city authorities with a statement about possible corruption schemes and violations during the construction project design which is interfering with the protected zone.
On Wednesday, Andrey Shorats, chairman of Minsk city executive committee, met with a group of four people to discuss the conflict. The official promised that construction works near Kurapaty would be suspended for a week. According to politician Pavel Sevyarynets, it was a ‘battling draw’. Despite the decision, the activists refuse to displace the camp of Kurapaty defenders: they demand the construction of the business center be terminated.
After several-day protesting in Kurapaty, the developer decided to take away its building fleet. On Thursday morning, the company ordered to minimize any works and take the machines away. However, Minsk City Committee has not given up the idea to stop the construction of a business center here.
