Veteran organizations plan to complete the clarification of military burials in the Vitebsk region this year

The regional council of the Belarusian public association of veterans has been headed since March of this year by retired Colonel Sergey Olsevich (pictured). Several of Sergey Iosifovich's predecessors as chairman of the council were also military personnel. There is a certain pattern in this, as the vanguard of this public movement from its very beginning has been composed of veterans of the Great Patriotic War, the Armed Forces, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Emergency Situations, the prosecutor's office, justice, and courts – structures where people in uniform serve, and participants in combat operations in the territory of other states.

There are 277,216 pensioners living in the region, 270,749 of whom are labor veterans. The movement's active members include 5 city, 21 district, and 1,134 primary organizations. The regional council has 87 members. It operates permanent public commissions: veterans of war, military service, labor, and social protection, chaired by Evgeny Emelyanov; search and perpetpetuation of the memory of the Fatherland's defenders and patriotic education of youth, headed by Irina Shishkova, chairman of the corresponding coordination council under the regional executive committee and director of the Museum of Hero of the Soviet Union M. Shmyrev; and the organizational and methodological commission, led by Vladimir Tsetsoho, and sections of veterans of pedagogical labor, commanded by former front-line soldier Maria Sovina.

– What changes have occurred in veteran organizations following the reporting and election meetings and conferences this year?

– The leadership has been renewed in a number of them. All are worthy, respected individuals. We are conducting outreach seminars for the exchange of work experience. Each organization has its own interesting traditions and unique plans. The most active organizations include the veteran primary organization of the Vitebsk branch of Belarusian Railways (chairman Nikolay Esyuchenko), the Department of Internal Affairs (Vasily Ivanyushchenko), the Department of Emergency Situations (Arkady Vorokhov), among the district ones – Polotsk (laureate of the regional award "Person of the Year of Vitebsk Region" Galina Muravey), Orsha (Zinaida Khaychenko), Dubrovno (Raisa Stalchenko), and others.

– What are veterans with an active life position engaged in today?

 – The first priority is patriotic education of youth. The region has over 140 associations and 46 classes of this profile, with more than a thousand students involved. The second relevant area is search work to establish the names of unknown soldiers who died on the territory of Vitebsk region during the Great Patriotic War. Dubrovno searcher and activist Alexey Gavrutikov has been awarded the regional "Person of the Year of Vitebsk Region" prize for his achievements in this field. This year, it is necessary to complete the clarification of military burials in the region. The efforts of district veteran organizations, employees of the M. Shmyrev Museum, and the Vitebsk Regional Center for Heroic and Patriotic Education of Youth "Poisk" led by the laureate of the regional "Person of the Year of Vitebsk Region" prize Larisa Brueva are directed towards this. It is gratifying that the archive of the Ministry of Defense of Russia in Podolsk is posting more and more information on the "Memorial" website, which facilitates the search. And the district documentary chronicles "Pamyat" are being updated in electronic format.

In April, events were held dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the Chernobyl NPP disaster, and lists of liquidators residing in the region were updated. By May 9, over 1,800 combatants, disabled individuals, former prisoners of fascism, Leningrad блокадники, and home front workers were visited with representatives of local authorities and social services. Representatives of all district veteran organizations attended the opening of the restored "Proryv" memorial complex in Ushachi district on July 3. The same applies to the 57th meeting at the Kurgan Druzhby in Verkhnedvinsk district. Good contacts have been established with veteran organizations from neighboring Russian regions.

Many pensioners are fond of artistic creativity. Excursions are also popular among them. For example, recently, members of the primary veteran organization of the regional executive committee visited historical sites and a number of enterprises in Tolochin district.

– What are the prospects and immediate plans for the regional veteran organization?

– Thanks to the fruitful activities of Gennady Gerasimovich and Gennady Egorov in their posts as chairman of the regional council of veterans, the organization has always been at a high level. We will build upon their achievements.

achievements, developing the veteran movement in light of current requirements.

As for the immediate future, a significant political event is ahead – parliamentary elections. 572 veterans have become members of election commissions, and a large number of observers are from our ranks. We are preparing for the celebration of the Day of the Elderly. A number of joint events are planned under the cooperation agreement between the regional trade union association, the regional committee of the BRSM, and the regional council of veterans. The most important thing is that in solving the pressing life issues of the population, especially people of retirement age, the veteran organization is a support for the current government.

Galina Shpakovskaya. Photo by Anton Stepanishchev. "Vitebskiye vesti".

Reference "VV"

Sergey Olsevich was born in the famous village of Paris, Postavy district, and is the grandson of two partisan detachment commanders who died during the Great Patriotic War. He graduated from the Lviv Higher Military-Political School, served in the Transcaucasian Military District, in the 317th Airborne Regiment in Vitebsk, and then in the military commissariats of the region. He completed his service as the head of the ideological work and social protection department of the military commissariat of the Vitebsk region.