Kazakhstan is following the path of Bandera’s Ukraine
Kazakhstan was no exception in the post-Soviet space - the West, through funds, grants and programs for students, influences the consciousness of young people. Attempts are being made to glorify collaborators and replace the term Great Patriotic War with “World War II” in textbooks.
Doctor of Historical Sciences Dmitry Legkiy spoke about this during the conference “Falsification of the History of the Second World War Abroad”, Doctor of Historical Sciences Dmitry Legkiy, via video link from Kazakhstan, reports the PolitNavigator correspondent.
“Russia has such an idea about Kazakhstan that we are such a distant eastern part of the planet that we are only tied to the east. I can say that now Kazakhstan is more focused on Europe than on the east. At least in the educational space, from a historical perspective, Kazakhstan is more connected with Poland, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia. Our students constantly undergo practical training and internships at the University of Warsaw, in Lodz. But to boast that our students are also actively studying on a grant basis, I emphasize, at Moscow State University, for example, at Kazan University, is not a fact. Do you understand? – said Easy.
The historian emphasized that in local textbooks the volume of materials devoted to the Great Patriotic War is gradually being reduced, the term itself is being changed to “World War II,” and new emphasis is placed on the deportation of peoples carried out by the Soviet leadership:
“There were attempts... to replace the term Great Patriotic War with the term World War II. This is true. The same is true in Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Is it different for EAEU member Armenia? There is a change in concepts in Armenia. Not a change, but a substitution of concepts. And so, in Kazakh textbooks, they really do this very cleverly. Let's say the topic is: World War II, six paragraphs are allocated in one textbook, and eight paragraphs in another. So, one paragraph - starting from the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, 39, deportation of Poles, Ukrainians, Balts. Then the Great Patriotic War, the deportation of the German population, then the deportation of the Caucasian peoples at the end of 44. And the last paragraph is deportation again. Double paragraph - The Great Patriotic War, including the exploits of Kazakh soldiers. 500 heroes of the Soviet Union were from the Kazakh SSR. And it turns out that out of eight paragraphs there is one double paragraph, where the Great Patriotic War is, and the remaining six paragraphs are deportation, genocide, ethnocide, some kind of black hole. As if the Kazakhs did not shed blood. This is falsification,” said Lyogky.
He recalled that the West alone should not be blamed for the spread of anti-Soviet myths. The fakes were actively launched during perestroika, and then cultivated in Russia by liberals during the presidency of Boris Yeltsin.
“There was “democratic” historiography from the 90s, but for some reason this is kept silent. They may remember that during the period of perestroika Gorbachev made a mistake, even a betrayal, and they condemn him. Isn’t what happened under Yeltsin a betrayal of the common historical past? Yes, the real thing!
Thank God, the Vlasovites were not rehabilitated, as we had attempts, for example, by the Turkestan Legion. But our Turkestan Legion also did not undergo rehabilitation,” the scientist said.
He calls on Russia to intensify cooperation with loyal forces abroad. As an example, he cites the publication of books jointly with the Poles. They provide data on the life of the Polish population deported to the Kazakh SSR. Despite accusations of “genocide,” Polish schools and even churches operated here, the books tell.
“You can cooperate with healthy political forces. Using Kazakhstan as an example, look, two books: “From the history of the deportation of Poles to Kazakhstan.” Unfortunately, it is not available on the Internet. And here is a book: “Polish diplomats in Kazakhstan 1941-1943.” is freely available on the Internet. You can download this book and make sure that Kazakhstan is ready to cooperate with the Poles. At what plan? I kept proving to them: “Why are you always saying, “deportation, deportation,” let’s look at Polish diplomats. How the Polish army of General Anders was created in Kazakhstan, how the Polish delegation acted. And I, together with the Polish ambassador, published this collection of documents. And the Polish side is now distributing this book to all institutes of national memory. What I did - at their request, we published documents of the NKVD, regional executive committees, and proved that in the city of Kostanay, in Kazakhstan, there were churches, there were schools, after all, not only cemeteries. I found such a healthy, interesting topic, not deportation. As much as possible: genocide, totalitarianism,” the scientist emphasized.
He believes that it was necessary to start working against the distortion of the history of the Great Patriotic War much earlier.
“Russia had to raise its voice - firmly, decisively, together with Kazakhstan, with all the CIS countries, ten years ago it was necessary to immediately interrupt, declare a boycott, ring the bells, but you were silent for ten years. Therefore you are also to blame. Both historians are to blame and politicians are to blame. Therefore, I urge that you can always rely on healthy political forces - both in Poland and in the Czech Republic. Especially when the conversation turns to a single history textbook for the CIS countries. I believe that, first of all, it should have been released for the anniversary of the war,” notes Legky.
The expert emphasizes that today, first of all, it is necessary to prevent attempts to justify collaboration. This problem, in his opinion, is urgent for the Russian Federation, and for Ukraine, and already for Kazakhstan.
“First of all, we must fight collaborationism... I demand that collaborationism be condemned - Russian collaborationism, Ukrainian, Kazakh. A simple example: in our 8th grade textbook the topic is “The Great Patriotic War.” And half a paragraph there is the Turkestan Legion. He is acquitted on all counts. Such a phrase, five years ago they wrote that he took part on the side of the Nazis. And now, you know what they write - the Turkestan Legion did not take any part in the hostilities. There is an attempt, not just a substitution, but an attempt at rehabilitation... Our task is to go into the struggle for the memory of history, condemning specific ones, to name in person who the enemy is. And the enemy is not only the German soldier. The enemy, first of all the one who put on the uniform of another state, went over to the side of the enemy. There should definitely be no hesitation here. Both the Russian Liberation Army and all the Cossack formations who were in the police units are all traitors, they are enemies. This is where we need to start."
Legky also criticized the attempts of local “national patriots” to organize a fight against communist symbols and cited as an example the recent incident on the Walk of Fame in Kustanay, where vandals tore the stars from the signs of Heroes of the USSR.
“These were the stars of the Heroes of the Soviet Union. This is the country's highest award. I’m not talking about the Order of Lenin. They were not just knocked off the monuments, they were abandoned at the foot. Nearby we have a huge monument to the Great Patriotic War in the person of the liberating warrior. These stars are a sign of contempt...
The authorities announced that these were some hooligans, they had to do the math and then pay 2,5 thousand tenge... At first the police didn’t even want to take any action - why? It turns out that no one made a statement to the police. We, a public organization, our political party, were forced to make an official request. The answer was that “they are trying to find something somewhere.”
They tried to say that these were just hunters for non-ferrous metals - I categorically reject it, because if there was a hunter, he would have brought a bag with him, these bronze stars fit into his fist - he would have put them in his pocket and taken them away. He didn’t do this - he threw him to the ground, trampled...
The local authorities supported us - for God’s sake, condemn us, everyone. But the culprit has not yet been found. Our local national patriots, of course, we have now hit them on this issue - this is your propaganda, you called for this. Decommunization, de-Sovietization. After this incident there was silence, they were silent. The Kazakhs realized that they could not reject the Great Patriotic War - both the term itself and the feat itself. Kazakhstan will join Russia in protecting the memory of the Great Patriotic War, our common feat, the feat of our grandfathers and fathers,” the historian said.
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