Today, September 7, there took place a meeting of the Organizing Committee on the preparation and holding of events dedicated to commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the Stalin’s Great Terror purge, the massive political repressions of 1937-1938. It was chaired by Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine Pavlo Rozenko.

"This year marks the 80 anniversary of the massive political repressions of 1937-1938, committed by the criminal communist regime. This is a huge tragedy for our state, because in those years, the cultural, military, artistic, scientific elite of our state was actually purged", told Pavlo Rozenko, opening the meeting.

The Vice Prime Minister recalled that the beginning of the Great Terror was decisions of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and the operational orders of the NKVD of the USSR to conduct arrests and executions of "anti-Soviet elements".

"Our duty is to make every effort to honor the victims of the Great Terror with dignity and preserve the memory of this heinous tragedy", urged Pavlo Rozenko.

The members of the Organizing Committee approved a draft Action Plan for 2017-2018 in connection with the 80th anniversary of the Great Terror. The document provides for the holding of memorial events in November this year in connection with the anniversary of the tragedy with the participation of top officials of the state, representatives of local self-government bodies, the public, the clergy, media and foreign guests. Apart from that, during the period from 2017 to 2018 it is planned to hold documentary exhibitions, as well as lectures, round tables, conferences, seminars, and other educational events in educational establishments, cultural establishments and for the military in order to provide objective information about the preconditions, the course and consequences of the Great Terror. Separately, the participants of the meeting emphasized the need to implement projects related to the production of films devoted to the events of 1937-1938.