NUR-SULTAN – An online event dedicated to the memory of World War II veterans from Kazakhstan and Victory Day will be held May 9 on Tengrinews.kz agency website, reported press service of Nur-Sultan akimat (city administration).
The official platform, where people may share stories of their grandparents, who participated in World War II. Photo credit: Tengrinews.kz
The stories about war veterans and their exploits will be discussed by soldiers’ friends and families. Since the project’s launch in 2014, more than 3,500 stories about veterans of the Great Patriotic War and homefront workers have been published so far.
The action is one of numerous events to be held across the country to honor not only those heroes who passed away, but also the ones who are still alive and share their narratives of wartime hardships.
Commemorating War Veterans
To date, 381 war veterans and 97,758 people who contributed to the victory in the Great Patriotic War (as World War II used to be known in the former Soviet Union) live in Kazakhstan, said Vice Minister of Labor and Social Protection of Population of Kazakhstan Ruslan Sakeyev during a May 5 briefing at the Central Communications Service.
“Ninety-two residents of the besieged Leningrad, 212 former juvenile prisoners of concentration camps, 3,221 wives (husbands) of dead veterans with disabilities, six widows of those killed during the war, 74,116 homefront workers, and other 20,111 persons assimilated to war participants and people with disabilities because of war are among them,” Sakeyev continued.
Overall, every second Kazakh participated in the war. Hundreds of thousands of Kazakhs were awarded medals and orders for military service, while nearly 500 people were honored as Heroes of the Soviet Union. Four Kazakhs became heroes twice and 110 Kazakhs were awarded the Order of Glory in all three classes.
On May 6, President Kassym Jomart-Tokayev presented the title of People’s Hero of Kazakhstan to three Kazakh soldiers posthumously. These were sniper Tulegali Abdybekov, rifle battalion commander Alexander Nesmiyanov and sniper Ibrahim Suleimenov.
Suleimenov, Nesmiyanov and Abdybekov. Photo credit: Tengrinews.kz
Beside awarding these Kazakh soldiers, the government allocates them social payments monthly. The average amount of social benefits, including pensions, is 194,000 tenge (US$400) for war participants, 202,000 tenge (US$460) for people with disabilities as a result of the war, and 132,000 tenge (US$302) for homefront workers.
In addition, local executive bodies are expected to provide one-time financial support at a rate of 5.4 billion tenge (US$12 million) for war participants.
“All war participants and persons with disabilities as a result of war will be paid at least one million tenge (US$2000) in all regions and two million tenge (US$4,500) in Aktobe Region. Former juvenile prisoners of concentration camps will receive no less than 100,000 tenge (US$230), inhabitants of the besieged Leningrad and widows of soldiers who died during war – no less than 60,000 tenge (US$137),” added Sakeyev.
Celebrating Defender of the Fatherland Day on May 7 and Victory Day on May 9 Across Country
This year, a military parade dedicated to the 77th anniversary of victory in the World War II and 30th anniversary of the Kazakh Armed Forces, which was marked by several events, will not be held due to the unstable epidemiological situation, reported the Kazakh Ministry of Defense.
Nevertheless, an array of memorable events will take place, including President Kassym Jomart-Tokayev’s special congratulation on May 9.
Various festivities from concerts to special performances at theaters will be held in all regions.
The traditional Zhauzhurek Polk (Brave Regiment or Immortal Regiment), a procession of civilians holding portraits of their grandparents and great-grandparents before the pandemic began will be streamed online this year. In terms of the new format, people may share information about their relatives who participated in the war on the campaign’s informational platform.
On May 5, representatives of the Consulate General of Kazakhstan in Saint Petersburg laid flowers at the monument to the Hero of the Soviet Union Aliya Moldagulova, which was installed in 2019.
Representative of the Consulate General of Kazakhstan in Saint Petersburg standing near monument to Aliya Moldagulova. Photo credit: Kazakh Embassy in Russia
According to the article published on Polisia.kz information media website on May 6, the memorial complex of the Kazakh Ministry of Internal Affairs dedicated to Victory Day and the memory of those employees of the internal affairs agencies who showed exceptional heroism in defending their homeland recently opened in the capital.
“This memorial is dedicated to the exploits of our veterans, who served for the sake of our country and were examples of valour and honour,” said Minister of Internal Affairs of Kazakhstan Marat Akhmetzhanov at the opening ceremony.
Wall of Memory (memorial complex) installed by Kazakh Ministry of Internal Affairs. Photo credit: Polisia.kz
Earlier in March, the Uralsk International Airport was renamed after Manshuk Mametova, machine gunner and the Hero of the Soviet Union, while an exhibition dedicated to the 100th anniversary of another female war hero Khiuaz Dospanova opened in May.
