Soldier-compatriots honoured in Grozny

Since the death of Ahmat Kadyrov, traditional parades of participants in WW2 have not been taking place.
For several years now the first president of the republic has been celebrated alongside Victory Day. Ahmat Kadyrov was killed in a terrorist attack on May 9th 2004 at the main stadium in Grozny. That parade was the last to take place in Chechnya. Some WW2 veterans take part in religious ceremonies for the dead president, some are invited
to participate in parades in other big cities in Russia. "This year we are going to participate in parades in Rostov, Volgograd and Kursk, some are going to Moscow' - Ahmet Ustarhanov, the president of the council of veterans of Chechnya, told VK.

The council of veterans has existed since 1986. For the last several years its members have taken part in programs of patriotic education of the republic. The veterans go to mountain settlements, to schools and to universities. 'We are quite popular on the eve of May 9th, we don't even have enough time to go everywhere we are invited' - Ahmet
Ustarhanov says.

A Glorious Memorial will be unveiled in Grozny on Victory Day. The local government reports that this ceremony will be one of the most important among the events dedicated to the celebration of the 65th anniversary of Victory. The main idea of the project is to commemorate the heroes who have honoured Chechnya. The names of sons of Chechnya who participated in all the wars conducted by Russia throughout the
last three centuries will be immortalized. The memorial will be situated in the 15,000 capacity square. The architects have proposed an interesting artistic form for the memorial. Its main building consists of a two-levelled quadrangle. The first underground level will be occupied by the museum of the hero of Russia, Ahmat-Haji Kadyrov. An exhibition dedicated to his life and activities will be organized there.

On the second level, bas-reliefs of USSR-Chechen heroes of WW2 will be placed. A thematic retrospective will be also situated here: 'Khanpasha Nuradilov - defender of Stalingrad', 'The 28th cavalry regiment of Movladi Visaitov', 'Defenders of the Brest fortress' and 'Capture of the Reichstag'. She second level of the memorial will be
covered with a dome with the eternal flame under it.

Chechnya has become a participant in the relay race dedicated to Victory Day. The symbol of the relay race was solemnly given to the Border Authority of the FSB of North Ossetia (watch VK http://www.vestikavkaza.ru/articles/obshestvo/vov/17696.html).
'Everything for the battlefront, everything for Victory' - a slogan read, which called on everyone in the Chechen-Ingush SSR to defend their motherland. Over 16 thousand soldiers from this republic of the USSR took part in WW2. Now 153 veterans remain in the republic. Last year the government of the republic gave apartments to 80 veterans,
now there are no veterans in the republic with housing problems. In addition, the authorities promise to provide veterans' widows with apartments too. The pension fund of the republic will pay 5000 rubles to those disabled and veterans of concentration camps, ghettos etc. in their youth during WW2.

Timur Utsayev, Grozny. Exclusively for VK