REPRESSIONS AGAINST THE UKRAINIAN POPULATION SOUTHERN BESSARABIA (1940 - 1953): TRAGEDY, MEMORIALISATION, COMMEMORATION
REPRESSIONS AGAINST THE UKRAINIAN POPULATION SOUTHERN BESSARABIA (1940 - 1953): TRAGEDY, MEMORIALISATION, COMMEMORATION

Summary/Abstract: The emergence of Soviet power in the Danube region dates back to the end of June 1940. It was here, on the lands of Southern Bessarabia, that the centre of mass repressions and so-called «purges» actually moved. The Soviet totalitarian power in practice demonstrated a purposeful and openly negative attitude towards the Ukrainian population of the region, seeking to «cleanse» this border region of «undesirable Ukrainian elements». Illegal arrests and repressions, forced evictions and prohibition to live in cities, deportation to Siberia and South Kazakhstan, imprisonment and shootings – this is not a complete list of «innovations» of the Soviet authorities. A certain document was chosen for the object of study. It is preserved in the funds of the Izmail Museum of History and Local Lore of the Danube region, and in the author's opinion, this archive file can be considered a kind of marker of the era. The article analyses the age, gender, corporate (professional) characteristics of the Ukrainian population of Southern Bessarabia in the period June 1940 – July 1941 and August 1944 – March 1953. In addition, the author researched and systematized aspects related to the reasons for arrests, the time spent under investigation, and the sentences handed down. As a result of analyzing the materials, the author came to the conclusion that the authorities used a «traditional set» of accusations of counter-revolutionary activities against the Ukrainian population of the region. The accusation of creating bases and supporting the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists was unconventional for the region. The eviction of a part of the Ukrainian population from Southern Bessarabia in 1947 coincided with a similar process in the western Ukrainian regions, which is a clear evidence of a purposeful policy of persecution of Ukrainians, the purpose of which was to radically change the socio-ethnic landscape of the Ukrainian lands, especially those regions that were included in the USSR at the initial stage of the Second World War. These actions of the authorities led to long-term consequences for the demographic, political, cultural structure of the region. Commemorating tragic events is an important process that helps society cope with the consequences of a traumatic past. The memory of tragedies can become the basis for collective identity and strengthening of social solidarity, which becomes especially important for our country, especially in the conditions of war.

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