70 years after his death, Stalin’s polarizing legacy looms large – #years #death #Stalins #polarizing #legacy #looms #large
MOSCOW/GORI, Georgia, March 3 (Reuters) – In the run-up to the 70th anniversary of Joseph Stalin’s death, attitudes to the Soviet Union’s wartime leader remain mixed in the nations he once ruled with an iron fist.
During his thirty years of dictatorial rule, Stalin led rapid industrialization and victory over the Nazis, as well as the cleansing of millions of people, the Gulag labour oversaw their camps and famine.
Russia’s involvement in the Ukraine conflict again, the Kremlin national Memories of the Soviet dictator expand as he says it’s a new existential battle for survival.
“First of all, thank you for the victory (in World War II),” said 21-year-old Medina, confused about Stalin’s legacy among people on the streets of Moscow.
“Secondly, he is a negative person for me because there were a lot of deaths. There were many executions, shootings, expulsions, art was banned, etc. Therefore, it is impossible to state an exact position in one way or another,” he added. , declined to give his middle name.
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Stalin died on March 5, 1953 at the age of 74.
Although public memories remain largely taboo and streets no longer bear his name, his reputation has enjoyed a renaissance in recent years.
For example, polls conducted by Russia’s Levada Center in 2021 showed that 45% supported “respect” for Stalin, and 48% supported erecting a monument to him.
“Why should I be mean to him?” Moscow resident Andrei Stalin, 31, hailed Stalin as a strong unifying figure and said his victory in the war should be applauded.
Presenting himself as the heir of the former tsars Russia President Vladimir Putin He praised Stalin’s war leadership and called his internal policy “totalitarian” and gave him a measured assessment.
Since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine, Ukraine The Kremlin, which says it is fighting “neo-Nazis,” is trying to claim Stalin’s wartime mantle, framing its campaign as ending the unfinished business left over from World War II.
IN GEORGIA IS BORN
In February Putin in Volgograd, nicknamed Stalingrad for short, to mark the 80th anniversary of the turning point in the war trip did
“Unfortunately, we see that the ideology of Nazism in its modern form and manifestation again directly threatens the security of our country.
Ukraine says that Putin It shows the same “genocide” brutality as Stalin.
In Stalin’s hometown of Gori, Georgia, many view the Soviet leader favorably, even though their people have seceded from Russia and support for Ukraine is widespread.
“The majority in Gori appreciates Stalin, of course. As a historical figure, a great person and a person who rules with an iron fist,” says 48-year-old resident Jacob Kikriashvili.
“But the attitude towards him is changing. The younger generation is more aggressive towards him.”
Born Ioseb Dzhugashvili to a humble family in 1878, young Stalin grew up in the nearby capital of Georgia, Tbilisi. education before buying it, he spent his childhood in Gori. Today, Gori’s Stalin Museum, located on the city’s Stalin Avenue, is the city’s most famous tourist attraction, attracting visitors from all over the world.
2010In 2010, the Georgian government ordered the removal of Stalin’s statue from the city, saying that he did not deserve it.
Tsotne Gogiashvili, a resident of Gori in his twenties, says that older people in the city still “worship” Stalin, while younger generations have changed their minds: “Most young people don’t like him, and I think that’s good. “
Reuters report; Edited by Andrew Cawthorne
Our standards: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
2023-03-03 22:46:44
Source – reuters
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