18:19, 8 March 2015

Participants of rally in Nalchik pay tribute to memory of victims of Balkars' deportation

In Nalchik, the Balkar community held a rally at the Memorial to the victims of deportation. March 8, 2015. Photo by Lyudmila Maratova for the "Caucasian Knot"

In Nalchik, the Balkar community held a rally at the Memorial to the victims of deportation. The rally was also attended by delegations from Ingushetia and Karachay-Cherkessia.

At the rally, representatives of the NGO "Council of Elders of Balkar People" and of Balkar villages delivered their speeches. According to Tamara Gerieva, an organizer of the rally, a member of the Board of the "Council of Elders of Balkar People" (CEBP), the rally was attended by more than 1000 people.

Mass deportation of Balkars began on March 8, 1944. At least 37,713 Balkars were brought to places of settlement in Central Asia. In 1957, the Balkars were allowed to return to their homeland. In 1957, the Balkars were rehabilitated and returned to their homeland. In total, about 50,000 people returned home.

The "Caucasian Knot" correspondent has been told by Doctor of Philology Khamid Malkanduev that when examining the circumstances of the deportation of the Balkars, he found in the archives a lot of materials unknown earlier. "In particular, when the deportation of Balkars was underway, Beriya personally visited the republic. While being in the Elbrus Region, Beriya said: 'Great Mountain should belong to a great nation.' After the deportation of the Balkar people, the territory of the Elbrus Region and Mount Elbrus were granted to Georgia," the expert has noted.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.

Author: Lyudmila Maratova

Source: CK correspondent