Beginning in 1920 and ending only thirty years later, the Stalinist repressions were part of a long and focused policy by Joseph Vissarionovich and his entourage. Opponents of the current government at that time became their targets.
The word "repression" in Latin means repression, punishment applied by the state and government.
During the reign of Joseph Vissarionovich, repressions were carried out actively, massively and without question. What are the reasons for the punishments applied in the USSR? Stalin's repressions were carried out in accordance with the articles of the Criminal Code in force at that time. Here are some of their names: terror, treason, espionage, terrorist intentions, sabotage, sabotage, counter-revolutionary sabotage (for refusing to work in the camp, for escaping from a place of imprisonment), participation in conspiracies, anti-Soviet groups and organizations, agitation against the current government, families of traitors, political banditry and rebellion. However, in order to understand the essence of these articles, you need to familiarize yourself with them in detail.
What are the reasons that caused the Stalinist repression?
Disputes on this topic are ongoing to this day. Some historians believe that initially the repression pursued only one goal - the elimination of political opponents of Joseph Vissarionovich. Others believe that they were one of the methods of intimidation and pacification of the Soviet people, aimed at further strengthening the current government. And some even put forward a rather dubious version that the Soviet Union needed free labor for the construction of highways and canals . There is a point of view that the Stalinist repressions pursued anti-Semitic goals.
Who was the initiator of the mass imprisonment?
Despite the fact that in Soviet times, the close culprits of Stalin were considered to be the closest associates of Stalin: N. Yezhov (general secretary of state security) and L. Beria (commissioner of internal affairs), who supposedly brought the wrong information to the head of state , most historians say that repression is the work of only Joseph Vissarionovich. He was provided with reliable and verified information about future prisoners.
Since 1930, a system of camps for Gulag prisoners has been created in the USSR, which includes special settlements (intended for people sent to exile), colonies (for imprisonment for at least three years), camps (for prisoners who received quite a long term). A little later, the Correctional Bureau was included in this system . They dealt with convicts who were sentenced to forced labor without imprisonment.
Victims of repression
From declassified archives, it is known that for counter-revolutionary acts the number of people sentenced to serve sentences by 1954 totaled 3,777,380 people, while the highest measure was received by 642,980 prisoners. During the period of repression, more than 1.5 million convicts died under both political and criminal articles.
Few victims of Stalinist repression rehabilitated during the life of the Leader, many were able to achieve this only after his death. Persons leading the arrests (Beria, Yezhov, Yagoda, etc.) were subsequently convicted themselves. In perestroika and the post-Soviet period, almost all victims of repression were rehabilitated, with the exception of those responsible for the mass arrests. The state made monetary compensations for the loss of valuable property during “dispossession” carried out in 30 years during forced collectivization.
It is necessary to remember this bitter history of the past and try to do everything so that in the future nothing reminds of the period of life of the Soviet people, which can be succinctly described in two words: “Stalin. Repressions. "