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Day in commemoration of the victims of political repressions. 27.10.16, settlement of Tugach, Sayan District

In Tugach there was an OLP (separate forced labor camp sub-sector) of the Kraslag at that time (Tugachinsk OLP), later it was attached to the Tugachinsk Camp, which, however, closed down one year later.

In the environs of this OLP arose a settlement for the camp staff; later, when the camps were closed, this place was called the settlement of Tugach. In the place of the former camp they organized a forestry operation. The erstwhile camp guards, who had built themselves houses and kitchen gardens, who had already settled in, now found jobs with the forest industry. Many former prisoners, who had no place where to go (among them Germans, who had spent years in the labor army), also began to work there. At first they lived in the same barracks as before, but without barbed-wire fences and guards; later, step by step, they build themselves little houses. They all peacefully co-existed and after a certain time entered into mixed marriages.


Ludmila Konstantinova Miller, daughter of the former head of the BUR (disciplinary camp barracks), who got married to the
 son of a German labor army member, who nowadays erected a memorial to the honor of the victims of political repressions in
 Tugach and published two books of memory about people repressed in Sayan District:
"From Siberia to Siberia" (Anthology of memories to Sayan people, who were to suffer during the period of political repressions).
Tamara Nikolayevna Petrova, daughter of a former prisoner of Tugachinsk OLP, nowadays principal of the Tugachinsk administration;
Emilia Andreevna Gorchatova, daughter of a German Tugachinsk OLP labor army member, who came to this place, where her father had served his sentence, for the very first time

The position of the Tugachinsk OLP camp cemetery did not correspond to the norm. Usually, it is about one or two kilometers away from the camp, but in this case it is literally just at a hundred meters distance from the living zone, just behind the horse stables.


The story goes that prisoners were at first buried in coffins. Later the corpses were only carried in caskets up to the cemetery,
 where they were then simply dumped out, while the coffin was taken back to the camp in order to use it this way, until its final
 amortization. Even later they completely renounced its use, pilng up the dead bodies on carts and taking them to the cemetery.


There were days, when many prisoners died, on other days there number was just a few.
 For that reason the graves are of different sizes – some are quite big, some considerably smaller.
According to the space needed, they excavate soil. But the mass graves are more or less parallel to each other.
It looks as if they were dug out in a way that step by step the distance from the camp increased.


On this cemetery there were neither plates nor names. The people were quite honestly hastily buried like dogs.
At first little grave-mounds could still be seen in these places; later, however, the soil caved in, and bones and skulls came up to
the surface. They were forced to fill up new soil. The bones stopped appearing on the surface, but the caves remained there.
 Moreover, in the course of time the whole area got overgrown with young copses.


Some time, long ago, someone put up a cross on the grave, but it all decayed.

Although the camp cemetery was practically situated right on the edge of the settlement, most of the inhabitants had no idea of its existence. In the 1960s bones would not become visible on the surface anymore. The Tugachinsk forest industry boomed, lots of young people arrived to work there and the cemetery began to get overgrown with young trees.

The new head of the Tugachinsk administration, Tamara Nikolayevna Petrova, was born in Tugach at a time, when the camp did not exist anymore, but its traces were still visible all-around. Tamara Nikolayevna worked in Sosnovoborsk, Berezovka, and then decided to return to her home settlement, which does not experience better times.

One of the most essential things she initiated was to remind the people of the existence of the camp cemetery. On October 27th a cross was erected right at the border between settlement and cemetery, although it turned out that it was barely the border – when digging out the soil for the cross, they came across bones, so that they were compelled to fill up the hole and dig another one. At that time it was already getting dark, as a consequence of which the cross was erected upside down. In the spring they will probably have to dig it out once again and put it up as it should be...

Yes, of course you can say that not all of those who have been buried in that place were of Orthodox faith. They were rather Lutherans, as the majority was German labor army members; but there were atheists and Catholics, too. The most important thing, however, is that a start was made – now there is not just a little forest with strange cavities in this place, where you can behave like in any other optional forest. There is a cemetery. And no business enterprises should operate in this area. For the moment this is not meant in the judicial sense, but from human sight. For it often happens that a burial place is being discovered by sheer chance, when excavating a pit for some reason or other. And, unfortunately, it often happens that mortal remains get shoveled up by a digger, loaded on tip trucks and taken to a waste disposal site. This will no longer be the case in Tugach now.
The start has been made. The juristic existence of the cemetery will be decided, the place will be subject to beautification. Probably nobody will donate money for this purpose, but there are some energetic men in the settlement and – a good deal of lumber. Of prime importance, however, is the existing enthusiasm with the head of the administration. By the wax, the memorial to the honor of the victims of political repressions in Tugach (I have already written about it) was produced by the previous head of administration, Nikolai Starikov, you can say - with his own hands.

The head of the Sayan District village council arrived to attend the inauguration of the memorial cross and the meeting, as well as the deputy head of the district administration and other officials from all over the district. It means that this was a vitally important event, which was not just considered within the settlement, but also on district level. The heads of the village councils agreed and decided with one consent to commemorate the victims of political repressions in Tugach once a year as inherent part of the district events.

From the cemetery the people went directly to the memorial place tothe honor of the victims of political repressions. In spite of the cold, there were a lot of people. Afterwards they met in the club hall (more precisely – the hall used by the former village council, as the club was destroyed in a fire a couple of years ago). Employees of the club had prepared a small exhibition and told the visitors details about some prisoners of the camp in Tugach.


This is where the living zone began.


The living zone was situated on a hillside. This is where the barracks stood.


Here was the work zone (business area).


This street separated living and work zone from each other. Ther living zone is where we nowadays have the – enclosure.
The big gates opened, a kind of corridor was built. In the evening the whole scenery repeated, but in reversed order.


Schematic representation of the Tugachinsk OLP. The work zone is on the left side, down in the middle – the living zone.
On top – the houses of the camp employees, camp staff etc. Below – barrier lake and dam.


The map showing the site of the exploitation of the forest resources of the Tugach OLP, has been properly nibbled by mice,
 but the most important separate forced labor camp sub-sectors can be recognized well.
Tamara Nikolayevna Petrova is keeping this map, as well as the previous one, safe.


Remains of the dam built by prisoners. In the winter-time timber was transported by horses on tracks only passable in winter and stored it at the banks of the river Tugachinka.
In the spring the locks were opened, the tree trunks got washed and were then swept away up to the river Kann.
In the 1960s the dam was no longer needed – all the timber was taken to the river Kann directls by truck.

Photos: Aleksei Babiy


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