Prosecutor General's Office: investigation of criminal case on genocide shown that this tragedy is of much greater scales

Topical issues of preserving historical memory, new projects dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the Victory and shocking facts revealed during the investigation of the criminal case on the genocide of the Belarusian people during the Great Patriotic War

The issue of preserving historical memory is more relevant today than ever, and – during the recently held meeting on the topic – Deputy Head of the Department for Supervision of Investigation of Particularly Important Criminal Cases at the Prosecutor General's Office, Sergei Shikunets, said, “The issue of preserving historical memory is extremely important for Belarus against the background of attempts undertaken by some neighbouring countries to rewrite history. The investigation of the criminal case on the genocide of the Belarusian people during the Great Patriotic War has been ongoing for more than four years, and the facts obtained confirm that the scale of the tragedy caused by the actions of punishers and their accomplices on the Belarusian land is much greater than previously believed.”

The official mentioned some shocking figures. During the investigation of the criminal case on genocide, more than 3,000 previously unknown rural settlements (burned down in whole or in part, including together with their residents) have been identified. Information has been obtained of about 102 more villages with the fate similar to that of Khatyn: they were burned down along with their residents and never been revived. By now, there are 278 such villages.

To confirm that the scale of the Belarusian people’s tragedy is truly great, Mr. Shikunets referred to a few more facts, “The Prosecutor General's Office has identified dozens of previously unknown punitive operations and more than 160 places of destruction and burial of people, more than half of them are places of mass destruction. It is not enough just to investigate the criminal case: the results of this work should be reported to all Belarusians and the whole world in order to preserve historical memory – especially addressing youngsters who are the first to be attacked by unfriendly countries in an attempt to rewrite history. Meanwhile, young people are interested in the true facts about the Great Patriotic War today.”