The regional patriotic event "Roads of Burned Villages" was held at the "Shunevka" memorial complex in the Dokshitsy district
The sounds of a metronome echoed over the awakening forest, the rays of the rising sun reflected in the lit candles of remembrance, and specially created, unique maps of the region's districts with the names of burned villages resembled banners.
The event began exactly at 4 a.m., in memory of that terrible June dawn 80 years ago. The morning silence was broken by the loud crowing of a rooster, the whistle of a sharpened scythe, and the automatic gunfire of fascist invaders who had arrived in the village. All of this was part of a theatrical reconstruction of the horrific events of the Great Patriotic War. On May 22, 1943, as part of the punitive operation "Cottbus," Nazi invaders committed a brutal crime. The village of Shunevka was burned, and 66 civilians died, including 15 children under the age of 6.
– During the war, dozens of settlements in the Dokshitsy district were sacrificed for the victory. The villages of Azartsy, Zolotukhi, and Shunevka were never rebuilt. The "Shunevka" memorial complex is a symbol of the courage, heroism, and sacrifice of our countrymen, – said Oksana Polochinina, Deputy Chairman of the Dokshitsy District Executive Committee, addressing the participants of the event. – In total, on the territory of Vitebsk region, more than 160 settlements disappeared irrevocably. Thousands of obelisks, memorials, and mass graves testify to the tragic events of the past war. And today, our main task is to carefully preserve and pass down the history of the Great Patriotic War from generation to generation, not to allow its pages to be rewritten, to prevent attempts to glorify Nazism, and to educate future generations by the example of the heroism of their grandfathers and great-grandfathers.
Oksana Eduardovna thanked everyone who took part in this important patriotic event. The compiled maps will henceforth be stored in the Begoml Museum of Folk Glory, a branch of which "Shunevka" is.
– At the entrance to the memorial complex, the words "No one is forgotten, nothing is forgotten" are written. How often we hear and utter them, sometimes without thinking about their deep meaning, – emphasized Ekaterina Labuko, director of the regional methodological center for folk art. – Memory is not only words, but, above all, our actions. Participation in a patriotic event is an important act. I know that rallies were held in many districts at the sites of burned villages, and colossal research work was carried out on this topic. Thank you all for your efforts. As long as we perform such actions, the memory of the war will live in our hearts.
Participants of the event honored the memory of those who died during the Great Patriotic War with a minute of silence, lit candles of memory, many of which were stylized on the theme of war. Also, everyone broke off a piece of the Bread of Memory, symbolizing the connection between those who fell during the war and the living.
Photo by Diana BERNIKOVICH.