The Russian Federation gives their fallen in WWII a final military burial. To see a related story, click here.
by Oleg Pochinyuk
[RedStar] “Memory Watch – 2024” started in the Leningrad region.
The chairman of the legislative assembly of the Leningrad region, Sergei Bebenin, addressed the audience, who noted that the “Memory Watch” brought together a huge number of people, veterans, blockade survivors, youth, members of search teams, and volunteers took part in it. He expressed deep gratitude to everyone who is actively involved in this important work. He especially emphasized that the main task is to preserve memory and historical truth.
“This is important for us and for those who come after us, so that we understand the value of Victory, freedom and the right to live as we consider correct,” noted Sergei Bebenin. “Today, our guys, as part of a special military operation, are defending precisely these rights and fighting against revived Nazism. All of Russia supports them, and we are confident that the goals of the special operation will be achieved, victory will be ours.”
This season, representatives from different regions will take part in search work in the Leningrad region as part of the All-Russian “Memory Watch - 2024”. In particular, about 40 Severodvinsk residents from the search teams “Patriot”, “Return”, “Edelweiss”, “Paratrooper”, “Southern Road”, which are part of the ANO “Association of search teams of Severodvinsk “For the Motherland!”” will work.
At the Sinyavinsky Heights, the 13th Separate Ski Brigade, which included residents of Molotovsk (now Severodvinsk) and the entire Arkhangelsk region, broke through the blockade of Leningrad. They fought as part of the 33rd Separate Rifle Brigade and in other units. Search engines plan to find and rebury the dead fellow countrymen - soldiers and officers of the Red Army.
As Marina Grigorieva, chairman of the Leningrad Region Youth Policy Committee, said, according to preliminary data, the remains of about 40,000 dead soldiers are not buried in the region. Every year more than 2,000 searchers come to the region of 15 subjects of the Federation, and every year they recover about 3,000 remains. In some cases, it is possible to establish the names of fallen servicemen. For example, last year, 157 names were identified using medallions or archival data.
It is worth noting that the government of the Leningrad region pays great attention to search work. Since 2024, a holiday has been legally established in the Leningrad Region - Search Engine Day of the Leningrad Region - March 15. Now the regional youth policy committee is developing a badge “For Distinction in the Search Movement” and creating a Search Engine House in the Tosnensky district.
Search work in the Leningrad region is carried out in 15 municipal districts. In total, 918 objects with signs of military burials have been identified in the region, of which 547 are objects of cultural heritage. 751 out of 918 have registration cards and are registered with the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation as military graves, more than 150 require certification work, and in some cases, an examination.
In 2023, 41 burial ceremonies for defenders of the Fatherland took place in the Leningrad region
Last year, 41 solemn funeral ceremonies were organized; the remains of 1,747 defenders of the Fatherland and victims of war discovered by search teams were interred. The remains of five servicemen were transferred to their small homeland for burial.
As part of the ceremony, the best representatives of the search movement were awarded and a visit to the Krasnogvardeysky Fortified Area museum took place.
On the same day, the patriotic motor rally “Nobody is forgotten, nothing is forgotten” set off in the Gatchina district of the Leningrad region. Among its participants are veterans of the Great Patriotic War, children of wartime, combat veterans, deputies, representatives of district administrations and public organizations, activists of youth movements. The motor rally to places of military glory is being held for the nineteenth time, and this year its route passed through three districts of the Leningrad region: Gatchina, Kirov and Tosnensky.
The first “Memory Watch” in the Leningrad region took place in 1990 on the Nevsky Patch and has been held annually since then. During this time, over 30 thousand dead soldiers of the Great Patriotic War were found and buried on the territory of St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region, the names of more than seven thousand were established.