Memorials for members of the ‘SMO’ in Crimean educational institutions or how Russia continues to influence the minds of children under occupation
A memorial is an object or an architectural, sculptural structure, architectural and landscape ensemble in memory of something or someone, usually a person who has died or an event.
A plaque is an architectural and sculptural work intended for installation on building facades, which is made of durable materials (metal, natural stone, bronze alloys, etc.).
The unveiling of memorials in the temporarily occupied territories of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol is one of the tools used by Russia to rewrite history and create an alternative version of events that emphasises Russia’s role as a liberator or defender. It is also a way to gradually assimilate the local population, including children, into the Russian cultural and historical context: the installation of memorial signs (plaques, stands, ‘heroes’ desks’, etc.) connects local history with Russian national memory, displacing Ukrainian identity.
In 2014-2022, the occupation authorities of the so-called Republic of Crimea used the theme of the ‘Great Patriotic War’ to unveil memorials in honour of ‘heroes of the Soviet Union’. And after 24 February 2022, they began to erect them ‘in honour’ of the so-called ‘heroes of the SVO’: servicemen of the Russian Armed Forces who studied in the TOT of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol, including those who were children at the time of the occupation of the peninsula in 2014, later studied under Russian programmes and were under Russian ideological influence, especially militaristic. Various kinds of memorials are installed in the educational institutions where the victims studied (mostly secondary and incomplete higher education institutions: schools and colleges) to exert ideological influence on the new generation of Crimean students.
In 2023, CCE “Almenda” conducted a detailed study “Commemorative Plaques as the Evidence of Crimes of the Russian Federation in Crimea” to establish the link between the militarisation policy implemented by the Russian Federation in educational institutions of the occupied Crimea and the impact on the minds of children who studied and are studying under occupation. The topic of this analysis remains relevant, as the installation of memorial signs in ‘honour of the participants of the “SMO” (special military operation) continues in 2024, constantly supporting militaristic rhetoric and strengthening the ideological influence on children. This process also serves to justify Russia’s actions towards Ukraine, presenting them in the light of heroism and sacrifice, and Russia uses these deaths to motivate other children studying in educational institutions today: to love their ‘homeland’, hate their ‘enemies’ – Ukraine and be ready to die for Russia, defending its interests.
Below are just a few examples of memorials unveiled in 2024 in ‘honour of the participants of the SMO’ in the TOT of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol:
October 2024.
- with the support of All-Russian Political Party “United Russia”, a memorial plaque was installed on the facade of school No. 37 in Sevastopol. Sevastopol, a memorial plaque was installed in ‘honour of the Hero of SMO’ Kirill Vytoptov. The educational institution already has a ‘Hero’s Desk’ with his name on it.
- Kirill Vytoptov, born on 08.07.2001, 12 years old at the time of occupation.
For information: all-Russian Political Party “United Russia”, together with the Ministry of Education, the Russian Military History Society and the Russian Historical Society, has been implementing the Faces of Heroes project since 2023. Information about ‘heroes who have gone down in the history of the Fatherland or are prominent people of our time’ is posted in educational institutions and on their facades.
- A memorial stand was opened at the Bakhchisaray College of Construction, Architecture and Design in honour of “the soldiers of the SMO” who were students of the college: Roman Orlov, Yuriy Kalinichenko, Dmytro Sivchenko, Svyatoslav Molchanov, and Oleksandr Bystrov. Among them:
- Dmytro Sivchenko , born on 11.02.2000, was 14 years old at the time of the occupation;
- Svyatoslav Molchanov, born on 21.12.1995, at the time of the occupation he was 18 years old, he was mobilised into the Russian armed forces and sent to the war against Ukraine;
- Bystrov Oleksandr, born on 15 January 1984;
- Roman Orlov, born in 1992;
- Kalinichenko Volodymyrovych, born on 21.08.1968.
September 2024. A plaque to Yevhen Oksynenko, who died in the ‘special operation’ zone, was unveiled at Simferopol school No. 18.
- Oksynenko Yevhen, born on 09.04.2003, was 10 years old at the time of the occupation.
June 2024. This month, a memorial plaque was unveiled on the territory of school No. 13 in Feodosia. Feodosia, a memorial plaque was unveiled to the fallen member of the ‘SMO’, Karsiuk Dmytro, born on 20.08.1990.
May 2024. On 20 May, a solemn line-up dedicated to the unveiling of a memorial plaque to Ruslan Pilguk, a school graduate and ‘faithful defender of the Fatherland’, born on 01.09.1985, was held at the Tsvetoknenska secondary school in the TOT of the AR of Crimea.
As we can see, at the time of the occupation, most of the above-mentioned persons were under the age of 23 (including), and some of them were in the age range of 10 to 18 years. They have fully experienced the policy of destruction of Ukrainian identity, militarisation and Russification, which has been actively implemented by the Russian Federation and the occupation government of Crimea over the past 10 years. Children who were still studying in educational institutions after the occupation of Crimea in 2014 were particularly affected. That is why children – both those who, under the influence of Russian propaganda and contrary to the rules and laws of the occupation, were drafted into the Russian army upon reaching the age of majority, and those who are now at risk – are victims of Russia’s illegal practices on the occupied peninsula.
It should be noted that the practice of unveiling memorial plaques with Soviet ‘heroes’ in the TOT of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea also continues, although to a lesser extent compared to the period before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In particular, on 09.05.2024, a memorial plaque dedicated to the ‘hero of the Soviet Union’ Mykhailo Chupilko was ‘unveiled’ in the Yarkiv school. It was installed on the facade of the school, which also bears his name.
