Moscow and the Non-Russian Republics in the Soviet Union Nomenklatura, Intelligentsia, and Centre-Periphery Relations
Succession procedures in Soviet Moldavia were cumbersome. When a departing leader had the right c... more Succession procedures in Soviet Moldavia were cumbersome. When a departing leader had the right credentials and his activity had been praised, he could have a say on who should succeed him (Brezhnev, Bodiul, Lucin- schi). When the successor was named from the local nomenklatura, it was more likely that the leaving boss sent a good word about him to Moscow or even insisted that he was the best choice for continuing the policies and projects underway. Conversely, if the dismissed Party boss’s legacy did not look very impressive, he was not in a position to participate in the selection of his heir (Salogor, Coval, Gladchi, Grossu).
A book on political repressions, violence and resistance to collectivization in both interwar Mol... more A book on political repressions, violence and resistance to collectivization in both interwar Moldavian Autonomous Republic and postwar all-Union MSSR. Based on newly disclosed archival materials, including KGB and MVD.
www.cartier.md Taxele poștale sunt suportate de editură. Plata se face ramburs, la primirea colet... more www.cartier.md Taxele poștale sunt suportate de editură. Plata se face ramburs, la primirea coletului.
The Secret Police and the Religious Underground in Communist and Post-Communist Eastern Europe, edited by James Kapalo and Kinga Povedak, 2022
The chapter is based on newly disclosed KGB archives in Chisinau and represents the first attempt... more The chapter is based on newly disclosed KGB archives in Chisinau and represents the first attempt to deal with Soviet agent infiltration into JWs in the Romanian-Soviet borderlands during the early Cold War period.
ISBN 978-9975-80-534-6
Published by [KSA:K] - Center for Contemporary Art, Chisinau.
The public... more ISBN 978-9975-80-534-6
Published by [KSA:K] - Center for Contemporary Art, Chisinau.
The publication is an invitation to a virtual tour through a number of historical periods and political regimes that have shaped the city and the society and includes the contributions of theorists and the artists’ projects. While the theoretical contributions present the results of historical research and case studies concerning the various stages in the evolution of the city of Chisinau, the artists’ projects have followed to a great extent the logic of subverting and challenging the order established in the urban space by the state institutions in cooperation with the private sector. Finally, the project aim was not only to identify the decisive factors that have shaped the public and urban space in Chisinau throughout history, but also to see these spaces in confrontation with the political and cultural processes and factors identified today.
Contributions: Rael Artel(EST), Pavel Braila(MD), Valeria Barbas (MD), Igor Casu(MD), Vasile Ernu(RO), [STEALTH.unlimited] – Ana Dzokic & Marc Neelen (NL), Octavian Esanu (US/MD), Tatiana Fiodorova(MD), Societe Realiste – (Ferenc Grof & Jean-Baptiste Naudy (FR/HU)), Catalin Gheorghe(RO), Angela Harutunean(EG/AM), Augustin Ioan(RO), Indre Klimaite(NL), Flo Kasearu(EST), Max Kusmenko(MD), Sava Lucia(MD), Ana Marian(MD), Davor Miscovici(HR), Tamara Nesterova(MD), Dumitru Oboroc(RO), Kaja Pawelek(PL), The Bureau of Melodramatic Research (Alina Popa & Irina Gheorghe (RO)), Virgil Paslariuc(MD), Danilo Prnjat(SP), Ghenadie Popescu(RM), Joanna Rajkowska(PO), Rena Raedle & Vladan Jeremic(SP), Angela Serino(NL), Klaus Schafler(AU), Stefan Rusu(MD), Tilmann Meyer(NL), Ovidiu Tichindeleanu(RO/MD), Stefan Tiron(RO), Vadim Tiganas(MD), Octavian Tacu(MD), Nomeda&Gediminas Urbonas(LT), Vladimir Us(MD), Raluca Voinea(RO), Mark Verlan(MD)
Stefan Rusu (ed), Centrul pentru Artă Contemporană-[KSA:K]; trad.: Sorana Lupu, Jele Dominis, Marchin Wawryzncyak [et al.]. – [Ch. : S. n., 2011] (Tipogr. “Bons Offices” SRL). – 484, [2] p. : il., fot., fot. color. 1000 ex. ISBN 978-9975-80-534-6 A project organised by Center for Conbtemporary Art-[KSA:K]
Pentru a cita acest articol: Cașu, I., 2019-2020, "Discurs și putere în timpul foametei în masă d... more Pentru a cita acest articol: Cașu, I., 2019-2020, "Discurs și putere în timpul foametei în masă din Moldova sovietică, 1946-47". Romanian Studies Today. III-IV, p. 15-22. Discurs și putere în timpul foametei în masă din Moldova sovietică, 1946-47 (Abstract) The article analyses the Communist discourse strategies in Soviet Moldavia during the mass famine in the immediate postwar years. Based on recent archival findings from several post-Soviet archives as well as Western historiography, the article focuses on why it was so important for the Soviet regime to control language during mass famines. Controlling language was an intrisic part of controlling reality, designing scapegoats , and protecting the power from popular blame and wrath.
Valentina Ivanicova, Veaceslav Lupan, ed., Îndrumătorul Arhivei Organizațiilor Social-Politice din Republica Moldova, Chișinău, 2008.
The Archive of the Social-Political Organizations of the Republic of Moldova (AOSPRM) is based on... more The Archive of the Social-Political Organizations of the Republic of Moldova (AOSPRM) is based on the fonds of the former Archive of the History of (Communist) Party within the Central Committee of Communist Party of Moldavia. After 1991, it was supposed that all political parties would send their archive to be preserved in AOSPRM. However, only a few political parties in post-Soviet Moldova did so, especially in the 1990s. So even nowadays after about three decades after the fall of the USSR, AOSPRM contains basically documents related to the Soviet period. The largest fonds are 49 and 51. The former (Fond 49) contains documents related to the activity of Moldavian Regional Committee of the Communist (Bolshevik) party of Ukraine representing the highest local party authority in the former Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (MASSR) created in 1924 on the left bank of Dniester River, a part of Ukraine till 1940 when Romanian Bessarabia was occupied by the Red Army and a Union/federal republic of Moldavia was formed (MSSR). It documents the Sovietization of the Left bank since 1917, the creation of MASSR, NEP, collectivization, Great Terror, Cultural Revolution of the 1930s, resistance to Stalin’s Great Turn (including so called “bab’y bunty” (women’s rebellions)), Latinization and Romanianization policy in 1932-1938 etc. The second important fond is 51 and it represents the documents issued by the Central Committee of Communist Party of Moldavia since 1940 to 1991. Among the topics covered by this fond are the repressive policy in the first year of Soviet occupation of Bessarabia (1940-41) and late Stalinism (1944-1953), collectivization of the late 1940s, mass deportations of 1941, 1949 and 1951, mass famine of 1946-47, destalinization of mid 1950s and its limits, campaigns against nationalism in late 1960s-early 1970s and Moldavian/Romanian national revival of late 1980s. As the Central Committee was conceived to guide, supervise and control the government, it issued numerous documents pertaining to education, agriculture, industry, transport system, leisure, culture. The main activity of CC of CPM was in turn guided, supervised and controlled by CC of CPSU in Moscow, so this is why AOSPRM includes correspondence between the prime secretary of CC of CPM or other responsible cadres with General Secretary of CC of CPSU or other responsible cadres in the central apparatus of the party. AOSPRM contains as well numerous correspondence with its district party organizations that were responsible with implementation of republican and federal decisions at the local level. A valuable source of documents on the way the local cadres at the village level and enterprise level tried to implement the decisions of the higher party authorities is contained in the fond dealing with primary party organizations. Even though the destruction of documents is prohibited by the Law of 1992 On the Rehabilitation of the victims of the political repressions, sometimes political interference allows the destruction of very valuable files, as happened in 1994 (a minute of CC from 1989 involving M. Snegur, the first President of Moldova, 1990-1994). In the recent years, AOSPRM is the among the most opened archives in the former Soviet Union as it gives unrestricted access the personal files of the nomenklatura including of the top dignitaries of Central committee of the Communist Party of Moldavia and to the top secret documents contained in the Osobaia Papka focusing on the most sensible political issues. The later contains also documents related to the Cold War issues, the measures to be taken in case of the breaking up of a nuclear war between United States and Soviet Union (including the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962). The archive also gives unrestricted access to two important fonds, the one on the revolutionary movement in Moldavia staring 1898 to 1940; and the fond on partisan movement in the Second World War, or the Great Patriotic War (1941-1944) in Bessarabia and Transnistria (more than 1000 files/delo) which in reality deals mainly with the activity of Soviet secret services in 1941-44 in the Romanian controlled Bessarabia and Transnistria, subversive activities against the Romanian and German Armies etc. The relatively low score of openness (56.61 %) is mainly due to the fact the archive do not have web versions of inventories and do not offer services modern archive should do. AOSPRM is a place to be visited by every researcher interested in the history of Soviet Moldavia in particular and Soviet Union in general. The archive works only 3 days a week, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, from 8.30 to 16.30, but one can order 15 files/delo per day, so in one week one can consult and photocopy if need be 45 files no matter how many pages one file/delo contains. The personnel of the archive is very keen to help find needed information and the foreign scholars are served the same day on arrival according the Rules of the Reading Room as well as in practice. The fee for photocopying with ones own camera is 10 MDL, i.e. 50 euro cents per file/delo. Last but not least, another reasons to visit AOSPRM is that from 2013 this archive opened the access to all personal data related to nomenklatura of all levels for research purposes. This was the result of my letter (I.C.) to the government in which I explained the need to give access to personal files of nomenklatura and Osobaia Papka.
Открытый доступ к архивам КГБ: Украинский опыт для стран Восточного партнерства. Аналитический до... more Открытый доступ к архивам КГБ: Украинский опыт для стран Восточного партнерства. Аналитический доклад / Когут А., Зейналов Э., Мартиросян С., Дрозд Д., Хвадагиани И., Кашу И., Олейник А. (ред.) — Київ. — 2017. — 60 с. Переломный момент в сфере доступа к архивам КГБ в Украине произошел 9 апреля 2015 года. В этот день Парламент Украины принял закон «О доступе к архивам репрессивных органов коммунистического тоталитарного режима 1917-1991 годов». Законопроект, который рассматривал Верховный Совет, был подан Кабинетом Министров вместе с тремя другими «декоммунизационными» законами. Специальный закон, который регламентирует вопросы доступа к документам бывших спецслужб репрессивных органов тоталитарных и авторитарных режимов, - это не новая практика. Почти во всех центральнои восточноевропейских странах бывшего социалистического лагеря и некоторых бывших республиках СССР действуют такие акты. До этого доступ ко всем архивным документам в Украине регламентировал общий закон «О Национальном архивном фонде и архивных учреждениях», который был принят в конце 1993 года. Основа закона «О доступе к архивам репрессивных органов» - это понимание, что демократический транзит невозможен без уважения прав и свобод человека. Для того чтобы тоталитарный режим с его политическими репрессиями и другими преследованиями больше не повторялся, его нужно анализировать и изучать. В частности, по архивным документам, которые часто служат единственным источником информации о трагических событиях прошлого. Демократизация спецслужб и полиции не может произойти должным образом, если они будут продолжать стеречь архивы, содержащие информацию о массовых нарушениях прав человека, и продолжать использовать методы из архивов своих предшественников. Построить новые силовые институты можно, в том числе, разорвав цепочку преемственности, которая де-факто существовала до весны 2014-го. Открытый доступ к архивам коммунистических спецслужб не только дает возможность восстановить нарушенные права, но также показывает, что информация обо всех преступлениях рано или поздно станет известна общественности. Для того чтобы не повторять тоталитарные практики прошлого, важно информировать общество о том, как формируются репрессивные режимы и какие методы они используют. Когда в начале 2014 года украинская власть попыталась возобновить тоталитарные методы управления («диктаторские законы 16 января»), чтобы сохранить свое положение, это привело к человеческим жертвам и оккупации части страны российскими войсками. Это яркий пример того, что иногда право на информацию имеет преимущество над правом на приватность. Право на информацию в конечном итоге способствует обеспечению права на жизнь. До архивного закона 2015-го Архивисты учитывали много документов, решая, предоставлять доступ к архивам КГБ или нет. Кроме рамочного архивного закона «О Национальном архивном фонде и архивных учреждениях» во внимание принимался еще ряд законов и других нормативных актов. Их можно интерпретировать неоднозначно, поэтому их использовали как для того, чтобы предоставить доступ, так и для того, чтобы его ограничить. Все зависело от политической ситуации и желаний руководства того или иного архива, главы Укргосархива и соответствующего органа в случае, если речь шла об отраслевых государствен-ных архивах (например, голоса Службы безопасности или министра внутренних дел).
ЭХО БОЛЬШОГО ТЕРРОРА Сборник документов в трех томах. Том 3: Том 3: Чекисты Сталина в тисках «соц... more ЭХО БОЛЬШОГО ТЕРРОРА Сборник документов в трех томах. Том 3: Том 3: Чекисты Сталина в тисках «социалистической законности». Эго-документы 1938–1941 гг. Третий том сборника документов «Эхо Большого террора» включает в себя «письма во власть» сотрудников государственной безопасности НКВД СССР – организаторов и исполнителей массовых карательных операций 1937–1938 гг., оказавшихся в 1939–1941 гг. под следствием, арестом и судом в ходе широкомасштабной кампании по восстановлению социалистической законности, организатором и дирижером которой выступал союзный центр. Кроме того, в сборник вошли различные комплексы документов, которые задают контекст кампании по дисциплинированию НКВД, раскрывают ее цели и обозначают границы. Речь идет о «письмах во власть» жертв Большого террора и их родственников, чекистских рапортах, приказах НКВД СССР за 1938–1939 гг., материалах проверки сотрудников госбезопасности, осуществлявшейся организациями ВКП(б), газетных репортажах об открытых судебных процессах над чекистами и т. п. Ряд документов, таких как разнообразные материалы личных дел сотрудников госбезопасности, дает возможность проследить жизненные траектории чекистов и охарактеризовать генезис формирования этой специфической группы советского общества.
Open access to the KGB archives in Eastern Partnership, 2017
Open access to the KGB archives in Eastern Partnership. Analytical report, edited by Anna Oliiny... more Open access to the KGB archives in Eastern Partnership. Analytical report, edited by Anna Oliinyk, foreword by Andriy Kohut, Kiev, 2017.
ЧЕКИСТЫ НА СКАМЬЕ ПОДСУДИМЫХ. СБОРНИК СТАТЕЙ/ Составители Марк Юнге, Линн Виола, Джеффри Россман, Москва: Пробел-2000, 2017, 680 с., 2017
Исследуется специфика «чистки» сотрудников НКВД МАССР на завершающем
этапе «Большого террора» и... more Исследуется специфика «чистки» сотрудников НКВД МАССР на завершающем
этапе «Большого террора» и после официального прекращения массовых
репрессий (сентябрь–декабрь 1938 г.) на примере деятельности И. Т. Широкого-Майского и его коллег. Ключевые слова: политические репрессии, МАССР, НКВД,
«Большой террор».
Опубликовано в Чекисты на скамье подсудимых. Сборник статей. Составители Сборник статьей. Составители Марк Юнге, Линн Виола, Джеффри Россман, Москва: Пробел-2000, 2017, 680 с. (595-630).
The books contains 11 case-studies by Western and post-Soviet historians and an introduction by L... more The books contains 11 case-studies by Western and post-Soviet historians and an introduction by Lynne Viola. It is focused on the purge of the purgers in Soviet Union following the Great Terror of 1937-38.
Sample chapter: Игорь Кашу. «Чистка» сотрудников НКВД
Молдавской АССР после Большого террора.
Дело Ивана Тарасовича Широкого-Майского, 595-630.
This is the first article dealing specifically with Brezhnev in Soviet Moldavia. The article draw... more This is the first article dealing specifically with Brezhnev in Soviet Moldavia. The article draws mainly on recently disclosed files from the Archive of the Social-Political Organizations of the Republic of Moldova, the former archive of the Central Committee of Communist Party of Moldavia. The authors are trying to understand the importance of the period when Brezhnev served as First Secretary of Central Committee of Moldavia from 1950 to 1952 for his subsequent career. In order to understand better the results of Brezhnev’s rule in Moldavian SSR and the impact on his leadership style, the authors discuss the previous career of Brezhnev as well as the activity of the previous First Secretaries in Soviet Moldavia. One of the main results of Brezhnev period in Moldavia was the consolidation of kolkhozes. In a broader sense, since this period at least, Brezhnev favoured quantity over quality.
Remembrance, History, and Justice: Coming to Terms with Traumatic Pasts in Democratic Societies, 2015
The Soviet Union as Empire: Theoretical considerations; Moldova under the Soviet Regime: What was... more The Soviet Union as Empire: Theoretical considerations; Moldova under the Soviet Regime: What was Specific? The Rehabilitation of the Victoms of Communist Terror; Politics of Memory and the Victims after 1989; The Creation of the Commission for the Study and Evaluation of Totalitarian Regime in the Republic of Moldova; Conclusions.
Moscow and the Non-Russian Republics in the Soviet Union Nomenklatura, Intelligentsia, and Centre-Periphery Relations
Succession procedures in Soviet Moldavia were cumbersome. When a departing leader had the right c... more Succession procedures in Soviet Moldavia were cumbersome. When a departing leader had the right credentials and his activity had been praised, he could have a say on who should succeed him (Brezhnev, Bodiul, Lucin- schi). When the successor was named from the local nomenklatura, it was more likely that the leaving boss sent a good word about him to Moscow or even insisted that he was the best choice for continuing the policies and projects underway. Conversely, if the dismissed Party boss’s legacy did not look very impressive, he was not in a position to participate in the selection of his heir (Salogor, Coval, Gladchi, Grossu).
A book on political repressions, violence and resistance to collectivization in both interwar Mol... more A book on political repressions, violence and resistance to collectivization in both interwar Moldavian Autonomous Republic and postwar all-Union MSSR. Based on newly disclosed archival materials, including KGB and MVD.
www.cartier.md Taxele poștale sunt suportate de editură. Plata se face ramburs, la primirea colet... more www.cartier.md Taxele poștale sunt suportate de editură. Plata se face ramburs, la primirea coletului.
The Secret Police and the Religious Underground in Communist and Post-Communist Eastern Europe, edited by James Kapalo and Kinga Povedak, 2022
The chapter is based on newly disclosed KGB archives in Chisinau and represents the first attempt... more The chapter is based on newly disclosed KGB archives in Chisinau and represents the first attempt to deal with Soviet agent infiltration into JWs in the Romanian-Soviet borderlands during the early Cold War period.
ISBN 978-9975-80-534-6
Published by [KSA:K] - Center for Contemporary Art, Chisinau.
The public... more ISBN 978-9975-80-534-6
Published by [KSA:K] - Center for Contemporary Art, Chisinau.
The publication is an invitation to a virtual tour through a number of historical periods and political regimes that have shaped the city and the society and includes the contributions of theorists and the artists’ projects. While the theoretical contributions present the results of historical research and case studies concerning the various stages in the evolution of the city of Chisinau, the artists’ projects have followed to a great extent the logic of subverting and challenging the order established in the urban space by the state institutions in cooperation with the private sector. Finally, the project aim was not only to identify the decisive factors that have shaped the public and urban space in Chisinau throughout history, but also to see these spaces in confrontation with the political and cultural processes and factors identified today.
Contributions: Rael Artel(EST), Pavel Braila(MD), Valeria Barbas (MD), Igor Casu(MD), Vasile Ernu(RO), [STEALTH.unlimited] – Ana Dzokic & Marc Neelen (NL), Octavian Esanu (US/MD), Tatiana Fiodorova(MD), Societe Realiste – (Ferenc Grof & Jean-Baptiste Naudy (FR/HU)), Catalin Gheorghe(RO), Angela Harutunean(EG/AM), Augustin Ioan(RO), Indre Klimaite(NL), Flo Kasearu(EST), Max Kusmenko(MD), Sava Lucia(MD), Ana Marian(MD), Davor Miscovici(HR), Tamara Nesterova(MD), Dumitru Oboroc(RO), Kaja Pawelek(PL), The Bureau of Melodramatic Research (Alina Popa & Irina Gheorghe (RO)), Virgil Paslariuc(MD), Danilo Prnjat(SP), Ghenadie Popescu(RM), Joanna Rajkowska(PO), Rena Raedle & Vladan Jeremic(SP), Angela Serino(NL), Klaus Schafler(AU), Stefan Rusu(MD), Tilmann Meyer(NL), Ovidiu Tichindeleanu(RO/MD), Stefan Tiron(RO), Vadim Tiganas(MD), Octavian Tacu(MD), Nomeda&Gediminas Urbonas(LT), Vladimir Us(MD), Raluca Voinea(RO), Mark Verlan(MD)
Stefan Rusu (ed), Centrul pentru Artă Contemporană-[KSA:K]; trad.: Sorana Lupu, Jele Dominis, Marchin Wawryzncyak [et al.]. – [Ch. : S. n., 2011] (Tipogr. “Bons Offices” SRL). – 484, [2] p. : il., fot., fot. color. 1000 ex. ISBN 978-9975-80-534-6 A project organised by Center for Conbtemporary Art-[KSA:K]
Pentru a cita acest articol: Cașu, I., 2019-2020, "Discurs și putere în timpul foametei în masă d... more Pentru a cita acest articol: Cașu, I., 2019-2020, "Discurs și putere în timpul foametei în masă din Moldova sovietică, 1946-47". Romanian Studies Today. III-IV, p. 15-22. Discurs și putere în timpul foametei în masă din Moldova sovietică, 1946-47 (Abstract) The article analyses the Communist discourse strategies in Soviet Moldavia during the mass famine in the immediate postwar years. Based on recent archival findings from several post-Soviet archives as well as Western historiography, the article focuses on why it was so important for the Soviet regime to control language during mass famines. Controlling language was an intrisic part of controlling reality, designing scapegoats , and protecting the power from popular blame and wrath.
Valentina Ivanicova, Veaceslav Lupan, ed., Îndrumătorul Arhivei Organizațiilor Social-Politice din Republica Moldova, Chișinău, 2008.
The Archive of the Social-Political Organizations of the Republic of Moldova (AOSPRM) is based on... more The Archive of the Social-Political Organizations of the Republic of Moldova (AOSPRM) is based on the fonds of the former Archive of the History of (Communist) Party within the Central Committee of Communist Party of Moldavia. After 1991, it was supposed that all political parties would send their archive to be preserved in AOSPRM. However, only a few political parties in post-Soviet Moldova did so, especially in the 1990s. So even nowadays after about three decades after the fall of the USSR, AOSPRM contains basically documents related to the Soviet period. The largest fonds are 49 and 51. The former (Fond 49) contains documents related to the activity of Moldavian Regional Committee of the Communist (Bolshevik) party of Ukraine representing the highest local party authority in the former Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (MASSR) created in 1924 on the left bank of Dniester River, a part of Ukraine till 1940 when Romanian Bessarabia was occupied by the Red Army and a Union/federal republic of Moldavia was formed (MSSR). It documents the Sovietization of the Left bank since 1917, the creation of MASSR, NEP, collectivization, Great Terror, Cultural Revolution of the 1930s, resistance to Stalin’s Great Turn (including so called “bab’y bunty” (women’s rebellions)), Latinization and Romanianization policy in 1932-1938 etc. The second important fond is 51 and it represents the documents issued by the Central Committee of Communist Party of Moldavia since 1940 to 1991. Among the topics covered by this fond are the repressive policy in the first year of Soviet occupation of Bessarabia (1940-41) and late Stalinism (1944-1953), collectivization of the late 1940s, mass deportations of 1941, 1949 and 1951, mass famine of 1946-47, destalinization of mid 1950s and its limits, campaigns against nationalism in late 1960s-early 1970s and Moldavian/Romanian national revival of late 1980s. As the Central Committee was conceived to guide, supervise and control the government, it issued numerous documents pertaining to education, agriculture, industry, transport system, leisure, culture. The main activity of CC of CPM was in turn guided, supervised and controlled by CC of CPSU in Moscow, so this is why AOSPRM includes correspondence between the prime secretary of CC of CPM or other responsible cadres with General Secretary of CC of CPSU or other responsible cadres in the central apparatus of the party. AOSPRM contains as well numerous correspondence with its district party organizations that were responsible with implementation of republican and federal decisions at the local level. A valuable source of documents on the way the local cadres at the village level and enterprise level tried to implement the decisions of the higher party authorities is contained in the fond dealing with primary party organizations. Even though the destruction of documents is prohibited by the Law of 1992 On the Rehabilitation of the victims of the political repressions, sometimes political interference allows the destruction of very valuable files, as happened in 1994 (a minute of CC from 1989 involving M. Snegur, the first President of Moldova, 1990-1994). In the recent years, AOSPRM is the among the most opened archives in the former Soviet Union as it gives unrestricted access the personal files of the nomenklatura including of the top dignitaries of Central committee of the Communist Party of Moldavia and to the top secret documents contained in the Osobaia Papka focusing on the most sensible political issues. The later contains also documents related to the Cold War issues, the measures to be taken in case of the breaking up of a nuclear war between United States and Soviet Union (including the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962). The archive also gives unrestricted access to two important fonds, the one on the revolutionary movement in Moldavia staring 1898 to 1940; and the fond on partisan movement in the Second World War, or the Great Patriotic War (1941-1944) in Bessarabia and Transnistria (more than 1000 files/delo) which in reality deals mainly with the activity of Soviet secret services in 1941-44 in the Romanian controlled Bessarabia and Transnistria, subversive activities against the Romanian and German Armies etc. The relatively low score of openness (56.61 %) is mainly due to the fact the archive do not have web versions of inventories and do not offer services modern archive should do. AOSPRM is a place to be visited by every researcher interested in the history of Soviet Moldavia in particular and Soviet Union in general. The archive works only 3 days a week, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, from 8.30 to 16.30, but one can order 15 files/delo per day, so in one week one can consult and photocopy if need be 45 files no matter how many pages one file/delo contains. The personnel of the archive is very keen to help find needed information and the foreign scholars are served the same day on arrival according the Rules of the Reading Room as well as in practice. The fee for photocopying with ones own camera is 10 MDL, i.e. 50 euro cents per file/delo. Last but not least, another reasons to visit AOSPRM is that from 2013 this archive opened the access to all personal data related to nomenklatura of all levels for research purposes. This was the result of my letter (I.C.) to the government in which I explained the need to give access to personal files of nomenklatura and Osobaia Papka.
Открытый доступ к архивам КГБ: Украинский опыт для стран Восточного партнерства. Аналитический до... more Открытый доступ к архивам КГБ: Украинский опыт для стран Восточного партнерства. Аналитический доклад / Когут А., Зейналов Э., Мартиросян С., Дрозд Д., Хвадагиани И., Кашу И., Олейник А. (ред.) — Київ. — 2017. — 60 с. Переломный момент в сфере доступа к архивам КГБ в Украине произошел 9 апреля 2015 года. В этот день Парламент Украины принял закон «О доступе к архивам репрессивных органов коммунистического тоталитарного режима 1917-1991 годов». Законопроект, который рассматривал Верховный Совет, был подан Кабинетом Министров вместе с тремя другими «декоммунизационными» законами. Специальный закон, который регламентирует вопросы доступа к документам бывших спецслужб репрессивных органов тоталитарных и авторитарных режимов, - это не новая практика. Почти во всех центральнои восточноевропейских странах бывшего социалистического лагеря и некоторых бывших республиках СССР действуют такие акты. До этого доступ ко всем архивным документам в Украине регламентировал общий закон «О Национальном архивном фонде и архивных учреждениях», который был принят в конце 1993 года. Основа закона «О доступе к архивам репрессивных органов» - это понимание, что демократический транзит невозможен без уважения прав и свобод человека. Для того чтобы тоталитарный режим с его политическими репрессиями и другими преследованиями больше не повторялся, его нужно анализировать и изучать. В частности, по архивным документам, которые часто служат единственным источником информации о трагических событиях прошлого. Демократизация спецслужб и полиции не может произойти должным образом, если они будут продолжать стеречь архивы, содержащие информацию о массовых нарушениях прав человека, и продолжать использовать методы из архивов своих предшественников. Построить новые силовые институты можно, в том числе, разорвав цепочку преемственности, которая де-факто существовала до весны 2014-го. Открытый доступ к архивам коммунистических спецслужб не только дает возможность восстановить нарушенные права, но также показывает, что информация обо всех преступлениях рано или поздно станет известна общественности. Для того чтобы не повторять тоталитарные практики прошлого, важно информировать общество о том, как формируются репрессивные режимы и какие методы они используют. Когда в начале 2014 года украинская власть попыталась возобновить тоталитарные методы управления («диктаторские законы 16 января»), чтобы сохранить свое положение, это привело к человеческим жертвам и оккупации части страны российскими войсками. Это яркий пример того, что иногда право на информацию имеет преимущество над правом на приватность. Право на информацию в конечном итоге способствует обеспечению права на жизнь. До архивного закона 2015-го Архивисты учитывали много документов, решая, предоставлять доступ к архивам КГБ или нет. Кроме рамочного архивного закона «О Национальном архивном фонде и архивных учреждениях» во внимание принимался еще ряд законов и других нормативных актов. Их можно интерпретировать неоднозначно, поэтому их использовали как для того, чтобы предоставить доступ, так и для того, чтобы его ограничить. Все зависело от политической ситуации и желаний руководства того или иного архива, главы Укргосархива и соответствующего органа в случае, если речь шла об отраслевых государствен-ных архивах (например, голоса Службы безопасности или министра внутренних дел).
ЭХО БОЛЬШОГО ТЕРРОРА Сборник документов в трех томах. Том 3: Том 3: Чекисты Сталина в тисках «соц... more ЭХО БОЛЬШОГО ТЕРРОРА Сборник документов в трех томах. Том 3: Том 3: Чекисты Сталина в тисках «социалистической законности». Эго-документы 1938–1941 гг. Третий том сборника документов «Эхо Большого террора» включает в себя «письма во власть» сотрудников государственной безопасности НКВД СССР – организаторов и исполнителей массовых карательных операций 1937–1938 гг., оказавшихся в 1939–1941 гг. под следствием, арестом и судом в ходе широкомасштабной кампании по восстановлению социалистической законности, организатором и дирижером которой выступал союзный центр. Кроме того, в сборник вошли различные комплексы документов, которые задают контекст кампании по дисциплинированию НКВД, раскрывают ее цели и обозначают границы. Речь идет о «письмах во власть» жертв Большого террора и их родственников, чекистских рапортах, приказах НКВД СССР за 1938–1939 гг., материалах проверки сотрудников госбезопасности, осуществлявшейся организациями ВКП(б), газетных репортажах об открытых судебных процессах над чекистами и т. п. Ряд документов, таких как разнообразные материалы личных дел сотрудников госбезопасности, дает возможность проследить жизненные траектории чекистов и охарактеризовать генезис формирования этой специфической группы советского общества.
Open access to the KGB archives in Eastern Partnership, 2017
Open access to the KGB archives in Eastern Partnership. Analytical report, edited by Anna Oliiny... more Open access to the KGB archives in Eastern Partnership. Analytical report, edited by Anna Oliinyk, foreword by Andriy Kohut, Kiev, 2017.
ЧЕКИСТЫ НА СКАМЬЕ ПОДСУДИМЫХ. СБОРНИК СТАТЕЙ/ Составители Марк Юнге, Линн Виола, Джеффри Россман, Москва: Пробел-2000, 2017, 680 с., 2017
Исследуется специфика «чистки» сотрудников НКВД МАССР на завершающем
этапе «Большого террора» и... more Исследуется специфика «чистки» сотрудников НКВД МАССР на завершающем
этапе «Большого террора» и после официального прекращения массовых
репрессий (сентябрь–декабрь 1938 г.) на примере деятельности И. Т. Широкого-Майского и его коллег. Ключевые слова: политические репрессии, МАССР, НКВД,
«Большой террор».
Опубликовано в Чекисты на скамье подсудимых. Сборник статей. Составители Сборник статьей. Составители Марк Юнге, Линн Виола, Джеффри Россман, Москва: Пробел-2000, 2017, 680 с. (595-630).
The books contains 11 case-studies by Western and post-Soviet historians and an introduction by L... more The books contains 11 case-studies by Western and post-Soviet historians and an introduction by Lynne Viola. It is focused on the purge of the purgers in Soviet Union following the Great Terror of 1937-38.
Sample chapter: Игорь Кашу. «Чистка» сотрудников НКВД
Молдавской АССР после Большого террора.
Дело Ивана Тарасовича Широкого-Майского, 595-630.
This is the first article dealing specifically with Brezhnev in Soviet Moldavia. The article draw... more This is the first article dealing specifically with Brezhnev in Soviet Moldavia. The article draws mainly on recently disclosed files from the Archive of the Social-Political Organizations of the Republic of Moldova, the former archive of the Central Committee of Communist Party of Moldavia. The authors are trying to understand the importance of the period when Brezhnev served as First Secretary of Central Committee of Moldavia from 1950 to 1952 for his subsequent career. In order to understand better the results of Brezhnev’s rule in Moldavian SSR and the impact on his leadership style, the authors discuss the previous career of Brezhnev as well as the activity of the previous First Secretaries in Soviet Moldavia. One of the main results of Brezhnev period in Moldavia was the consolidation of kolkhozes. In a broader sense, since this period at least, Brezhnev favoured quantity over quality.
Remembrance, History, and Justice: Coming to Terms with Traumatic Pasts in Democratic Societies, 2015
The Soviet Union as Empire: Theoretical considerations; Moldova under the Soviet Regime: What was... more The Soviet Union as Empire: Theoretical considerations; Moldova under the Soviet Regime: What was Specific? The Rehabilitation of the Victoms of Communist Terror; Politics of Memory and the Victims after 1989; The Creation of the Commission for the Study and Evaluation of Totalitarian Regime in the Republic of Moldova; Conclusions.
Famines have multiple causes, among them being environment disasters. In the twentieth century, m... more Famines have multiple causes, among them being environment disasters. In the twentieth century, more than previously, the famines were rather man-made, i.e. connected to politics. Sometimes, the governments were not directly responsible for the food crises, but they tried to use them in order to promote their interests, which was reflected in the way the relief was distributed, when and to whom. In other instances, famines were due to ambitious modernization projects that did not pay too much attention to the life of large swaths of rural, but also urban population. These issues are valid for a wide range of regimes, including the Soviet one. As a matter of fact, the food crises in particular and the famines as a whole in the Soviet Union are one of the most controversial topics in the post-Soviet historiography. Out of the three famines during peacetime, the one of the early 1930s is the most researched, while the postwar famine of 1946-1947 received less attention. 1 Among the books dealing with the early 1930s famine in the Soviet Union, the work written by Robert W. Davies and Stephen Wheatcroft 2 stands out as the most important study on the subject, which is cited both by those who support the genocide approach and by those who reject it. 3 Hungry Years mapped the main issues relating to the Soviet famines as a whole. The debates that followed Davies and Wheatcroft's book raised, in my view, two main questions that historians should be focused on. First, assuming that Stalin did not intend to starve to death millions of peasants, the key issue is what he did when he acknowledged the human catastrophe he allegedly did not anticipate. Second, did Stalin view saving human life as a high priority or did he think there were higher priorities than that. 4 Among the works dedicated to the Ukrainian Holodomor however there is no book yet to match the Years of Hunger. The recent book by Anne Applebaum 5 is an important contribution to the Holodomor studies, but it failed to
This paper addresses an under-researched topic in Soviet post-war history. It is about institutio... more This paper addresses an under-researched topic in Soviet post-war history. It is about institutional hierarchies in a newly annexed Western borderland based on recently disclosed archival materials from Chișinău (including ex-KGB and MVD) and Moscow depositories. In contrast to all-Union institutional practices, the Moldavian SSR's case study shows that the party was hardly a hegemonic institution in late Stalinism. Using kompromat and inside information, the political police (NKGB-MGB) controlled the party institution. In contrast to the Baltic republics, Soviet Moldavia was headed by weak first secretaries appointed with the connivance of local police. Agency is an essential variable in explaining the dynamics of institutional design and hierarchies in Soviet peripheries in late Stalinism. Political police's predominance in this period is explainable as Bessarabia – mostly part of Soviet Moldavia – was a contested territory between Romania and the Soviet Union and hence th...
The article highlights the impact of Khrushchev's Thaw on the question of national identity i... more The article highlights the impact of Khrushchev's Thaw on the question of national identity in Soviet Moldavia in the framework of the internal Soviet debates unleashed by the 'Secret Speech' and the subsequent Hungarian Revolution. The question of national identity was expressed by two groups, one representing the former GULAG returnees and the other the intellectuals or students socialized in the Soviet milieu. The position of the former was more radical and anti-Soviet, while the latter was milder and respected the status-quo, i.e. the Soviet regime, and only questioned some previously established traditions on what it meant to be Moldavian. Incidentally or not, the former position proved to be more long-lasting and in some way prepared and anticipated the national agenda during Perestroika, in the late 1980s. The question of national identity emerged once again with a comparable fervour in 1968 subsequent to the Prague Spring and Ceaușescu's refusal to support th...
New perspectives in Transnational History of Communism in East Central Europe, 2019
The chapter covers the main state terror campaigns initiated by the Soviet regime in the Moldavia... more The chapter covers the main state terror campaigns initiated by the Soviet regime in the Moldavian SSR starting from the fist year of Soviet occupation of Bessarabia (1940-41) up to 1989. The author uses a wide range of archival unpublished sources as well as published ones both in East and West and tries to put the Moldavian case in a wider Soviet context.
New perspectives in Transnational History of Communism in East Central Europe, 2019
The chapter covers the main state terror campaigns initiated by the Soviet regime in the Moldavia... more The chapter covers the main state terror campaigns initiated by the Soviet regime in the Moldavian SSR starting from the fist year of Soviet occupation of Bessarabia (1940-41) up to 1989. The author uses a wide range of archival unpublished sources as well as published ones both in East and West and tries to put the Moldavian case in a wider Soviet context.
The International Journal of Intelligence, Security, and Public Affairs
The Tatarbunar rebellion was a Soviet-inspired operation in South Bessarabia, Romania. I argue, a... more The Tatarbunar rebellion was a Soviet-inspired operation in South Bessarabia, Romania. I argue, against the grain of both Romanian and Soviet narratives, that the Tatarbunar uprising was an operation that, to succeed, it had to fail. For every involvement of Soviet secret services, as well as local social and ethnic grievances, the pattern of Soviet-inspired violent events in Romanian Tatarbunar in mid-September 1924 contrasts both to Soviet operations in Poland and Estonia that same year. The mass capture of their agents in Galicia in 1924 was also an immense embarrassment that, in conjunction with previous ones, determined the Soviets rescinding their active intelligence tactic in February 1925, in place since 1922. Romania, in turn, decided to create a robust military intelligence and counterintelligence institution to prevent such events in the future. Weeks after the Tatarbunar uprising, Moscow creates a Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic on Ukrainian territory to internationalize the Bessarabia question.
New Europe College Yearbook Magna Pontica Program 2019-2020, Bucharest., 2021
The postwar famine in the USSR has received scarce attention in both post‑Soviet and Western hist... more The postwar famine in the USSR has received scarce attention in both post‑Soviet and Western historiography. Based on newly disclosed archival materials from the former civil police and party in Chişinău and Moscow, this article focuses on the food riots from Soviet Moldavia on the eve of the 1946‑1947 famine. Out of 30 food riots in the Spring 1946 registered in the Moldavian SSR, 18 were dominated by women (called bab’y bunty by Lynne Viola, 1996). The author tries to understand the agency and contingency in the outbreak of the food riots as well as the public and hidden transcript related to the way the Soviet regime tried to deal with earlier signals of the famine. The larger question to be raised is why people resist to food policies at certain moments of food crises and not at all in some others. P.S: This is the pre-print version.
The Secret Police and the Religious Underground in Communist and Post-Communist Eastern Europe, eds. James Kapalo and Kinga Povedak., 2022
The chapter is based on newly disclosed KGB files in Chisinau and represents the first attempt to... more The chapter is based on newly disclosed KGB files in Chisinau and represents the first attempt to deal with agent infiltration into a non-Orthodox religious group in the Soviet-Romanian borderlands during the early Cold War.
Summary The book deals with Soviet mass terror campaigns in the territories of the present day Re... more Summary The book deals with Soviet mass terror campaigns in the territories of the present day Republic of Moldova. As the breakaway separatist region of Transnistria of today was a part of Ukraine and Soviet Russia-Soviet Union since 1917, the story begins right after the October Revolution. Among the topics included are: Red Terror in Transnistria, latter on territories in which in 1924 was created the Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic; the famine of 1921-1922; 1924-1926 (local one) and 1932-33, various aspects, including details about the privileges of nomenklatura; collectivization campaign on 1929-1933 and mass deportations as well other political repressions; resistance of the local populations, scale and forms of manifestations, including the bab'i bunty; Great terror in Moldavian ASSR, 1937-1938; extension of Communist Terror in Bessarabia, 1940-1941, following the application of secret protocol of Soviet Nazi Pact of August 23 1939, including a paragraph on...
he study is based on first hand accounts from the archive of the former KGB of the Moldavian Sovi... more he study is based on first hand accounts from the archive of the former KGB of the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic. his data has been disclosed recently in the framework of the Presidential Commission for the Study of Totalitarian Communist Regimes in the Republic of Moldova, created in mid January 2010 (the author was the vice-chairman). According to the new disclosed data, one can see that political repressions did not stop in 1953 when Stalin died, but continued until the mid 1980s during Gorbachev's Perestroika. he aim of the article is to present separate cases from each post Stalinist decade and try to sketch a typology based on various motivations for repression on the part of the regime, and resistance from the unconscious and conscious critics of the Soviet Communist regime. he basic typology the author formulates implied the existence of two distinct groups of 'enemies' of the regime: the first one, called dissenters, being the persons that criticized the regime not straightforwardly as an illegal or unjust political system, but rather protesting against certain elements of it, be they nationality policy, ethnic discrimination or living conditions; the second category of critics of the regimes were called dissidents, defined as persons formulating a more or less coherent protest against the regime and implying a rather conscious stance, more than a spontaneous one compared to the first category.
RO Sursa: Arhiva Serviciului de Informaţii şi Securitate al Republicii Moldova, fostul KGB (ASISR... more RO Sursa: Arhiva Serviciului de Informaţii şi Securitate al Republicii Moldova, fostul KGB (ASISRM-KGB), dosar despre operaţiunea JUG (SUD). Partea a VIII-a.
EN Source: The Archive of the Service of Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former archive of KGB of Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), separate file on the Operation IUG (South), part VIII.
RU Источник: Архив Службы Информации и Безопасности Республики Молдова, бывший КГБ Молдавской ССР (ASISRM-KGB), Дело по операции ЮГ, 1949 г. Часть VIII.
These are documents from the former Archive of the Institute of [Communist] Party History of the ... more These are documents from the former Archive of the Institute of [Communist] Party History of the Central Committee of Communist Party of Moldavia. They witness the early Soviet preparations to deal with a nuclear war with America in the Soviet-Romanian borderland in 1945-1946 which was Soviet Moldavia at that time, now Republic of Moldova.
These are excerpts from a KGB file on a Romanian Bessarabian priest condemned to death penalty by... more These are excerpts from a KGB file on a Romanian Bessarabian priest condemned to death penalty by the Soviets in 1940 after Bessarabia has been occupied by the Red Army (June 28, 1940). Officially he was codemned on the charge of antisemitism: he was allegedly close to Pavel Krushevan, one of the leading antisemits in Tsarist Bessarabia, the one who published for the first time the The Protocols of the Elders of Zion in Sankt Petersburg based newspaper Znamya in 1903. The KGB file of Ciocanu contains also an article about cannibalism during the Soviet famine of 1932-33 that he wrote in May 1933.
KGB repoort by Iurii Andropov to CC of CPSU about Natalia E. Gorbanevskaya, one of leading protes... more KGB repoort by Iurii Andropov to CC of CPSU about Natalia E. Gorbanevskaya, one of leading protesters in Red Square against the Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia in August 20-21 1968. According to the report, she continued her anti-social activities and sending abroad anti-Soviet materials. Thus it was decided to sent her to a psychiatric hospital supposedly to be treated from schizophrenia.
This is the full archival file on the largest mass deportation from Moldavian SSR (early July 194... more This is the full archival file on the largest mass deportation from Moldavian SSR (early July 1949). Format: PDF searchable file.
Source: Archive of the Service for Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former KGB archive of the Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), Delo po operatsii IUG.
Source: The Archive of the Service for Security and Information of the Republic of Moldova, forme... more Source: The Archive of the Service for Security and Information of the Republic of Moldova, former KGB - Arhiva Serviciului de Informatii si securitate al Republicii Moldova, fostul KGB (ASISRM-KGB)
RO Sursa: Arhiva Serviciului de Informaţii şi Securitate al Republicii Moldova, fostul KGB (ASISR... more RO Sursa: Arhiva Serviciului de Informaţii şi Securitate al Republicii Moldova, fostul KGB (ASISRM-KGB), dosar despre operaţiunea JUG (SUD). Partea VII.
EN Source: The Archive of the Service of Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former archive of KGB of Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), separate file on the Operation IUG (South), part VII.
RU Источник: Архив Службы Информации и Безопасности Республики Молдова, бывший КГБ Молдавской ССР (ASISRM-KGB), Дело по операции ЮГ, 1949 г. Часть VII.
RO Sursa: Arhiva Serviciului de Informaţii şi Securitate al Republicii Moldova, fostul KGB (ASISR... more RO Sursa: Arhiva Serviciului de Informaţii şi Securitate al Republicii Moldova, fostul KGB (ASISRM-KGB), dosar despre operaţiunea JUG (SUD). Partea VI.
EN Source: The Archive of the Service of Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former archive of KGB of Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), separate file on the Operation IUG (South), part VI.
RU Источник: Архив Службы Информации и Безопасности Республики Молдова, бывший КГБ Молдавской ССР (ASISRM-KGB), Дело по операции ЮГ, 1949 г. Часть VI.
RO Sursa: Arhiva Serviciului de Informaţii şi Securitate al Republicii Moldova, fostul KGB (ASISR... more RO Sursa: Arhiva Serviciului de Informaţii şi Securitate al Republicii Moldova, fostul KGB (ASISRM-KGB), dosar despre operaţiunea JUG (SUD). Partea V.
EN Source: The Archive of the Service of Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former archive of KGB of Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), separate file on the Operation IUG (South), part V.
RU Источник: Архив Службы Информации и Безопасности Республики Молдова, бывший КГБ Молдавской ССР (ASISRM-KGB), Дело по операции ЮГ, 1949 г. Часть V.
RO Sursa: Arhiva Serviciului de Informaţii şi Securitate al Republicii Moldova, fostul KGB (ASISR... more RO Sursa: Arhiva Serviciului de Informaţii şi Securitate al Republicii Moldova, fostul KGB (ASISRM-KGB), dosar despre operaţiunea JUG (SUD). Partea IV.
EN Source: The Archive of the Service of Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former archive of KGB of Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), separate file on the Operation IUG (South), part IV.
RU Источник: Архив Службы Информации и Безопасности Республики Молдова, бывший КГБ Молдавской ССР (ASISRM-KGB), Дело по операции ЮГ, 1949 г. Часть IV.
RO Sursa: Arhiva Serviciului de Informaţii şi Securitate al Republicii Moldova, fostul KGB (ASISR... more RO Sursa: Arhiva Serviciului de Informaţii şi Securitate al Republicii Moldova, fostul KGB (ASISRM-KGB), dosar despre operaţiunea JUG (SUD). Partea III.
EN Source: The Archive of the Service of Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former archive of KGB of Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), separate file on the Operation IUG (South), part III.
RU Источник: Архив Службы Информации и Безопасности Республики Молдова, бывший КГБ Молдавской ССР (ASISRM-KGB), Дело по операции ЮГ, 1949 г. Часть III.
RO Sursa: Arhiva Serviciului de Informaţii şi Securitate al Republicii Moldova, fostul KGB (ASISR... more RO Sursa: Arhiva Serviciului de Informaţii şi Securitate al Republicii Moldova, fostul KGB (ASISRM-KGB), dosar despre operaţiunea JUG (SUD). Partea II.
EN Source: The Archive of the Service of Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former archive of KGB of Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), separate file on the Operation IUG (South), part II.
RU Источник: Архив Службы Информации и Безопасности Республики Молдова, бывший КГБ Молдавской ССР (ASISRM-KGB), Дело по операции ЮГ, 1949 г. Часть II.
RO Sursa: Arhiva Serviciului de Informaţii şi Securitate al Republicii Moldova, fostul KGB (ASISR... more RO Sursa: Arhiva Serviciului de Informaţii şi Securitate al Republicii Moldova, fostul KGB (ASISRM-KGB), dosar despre operaţiunea JUG (SUD). Partea I.
EN Source: The Archive of the Service of Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former archive of KGB of Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), separate file on the Operation IUG (South), part I.
RU Источник: Архив Службы Информации и Безопасности Республики Молдова, бывший КГБ Молдавской ССР (ASISRM-KGB), Дело по операции ЮГ, 1949 г. Часть I.
A plan adopted in January-February 1962, long before the Cuban misiile crisis, but for sure in th... more A plan adopted in January-February 1962, long before the Cuban misiile crisis, but for sure in the wake of this crisis in Soviet-American relations, at the height of the Cold War.
These documents have been recently disclosed in Chisinau. They bring new details about the postwa... more These documents have been recently disclosed in Chisinau. They bring new details about the postwar famine in the MSSR. The editors of the best volume of documents on the famine - Голод в Молдове (1946-1947). Сборник документов, Chişinău, Ştiinţa 1993, 752 p. - did not have access to Ocoбая папка.
Source: Archive of the Socio-Political Organizations of the Republic of Moldova (AOPSRM), Fond 51, inventar 68, dosar 11.
EN several cases of abuses of power in Soviet Moldavia, as reflected in letters sent to Pravda, t... more EN several cases of abuses of power in Soviet Moldavia, as reflected in letters sent to Pravda, the maine newspaper of Communist Party of the Soviet Union. The CC of Communist Party of Moldova verified these complains and as a result some of them have been confirmed, others - not...
Source: AOSPRM, former archive of the CC of CPM
RO Câteva jalbe despre abuzurile unor demnitari din RSS Moldovenească care au parvenit ziarului Pravda de la Moscova.
CC al PCM a făcut o anchetă pe marginea acestor jalbe, unele confirmându-se, altele – nu.
Source: Archives of the Social-Political Organizations of the Republic of Moldova, former archive... more Source: Archives of the Social-Political Organizations of the Republic of Moldova, former archive of the Institute of Party History of the Central Committee of Communist Party of Moldavia
One of these movies - Последний месяц осени (1965) - is accessible on youtube:
The essay is one of the first comprehensive analysis about the impact of the Soviet nationalities... more The essay is one of the first comprehensive analysis about the impact of the Soviet nationalities policies in Soviet Moldavia/Bessarabia in the wider context of creating a new Soviet Man, Homo Sovieticus. The authors draw some comparisons with the impact of Communism in Romania as a result of a decades-long phenomenon called National-Communism and how it widened the difference between the way Bessarabians/Eastern Moldavians understand national identity at the one hand, and the Romanians in Romania, at the other hand.
Journal of the History and Geography Department, ”Ion Creangă” Pedagogical State University Chiși... more Journal of the History and Geography Department, ”Ion Creangă” Pedagogical State University Chișinău, vol. 3, no. 1, 2015
Marea Foamete din Basarabia, 1946-47. Ideologie, context și economie morală
Foametea, ca și epid... more Marea Foamete din Basarabia, 1946-47. Ideologie, context și economie morală
Foametea, ca și epidemiile aferente, reprezintă un fenomen ubicuu și aproape omniprezent în istoria premodernă și modernă a Europei, dar și lumii întregi. De regulă, în antichitate și Evul Mediu, foametea își găsește originea în factori obiectivi, precum seceta sau alte intemperii naturale, atunci când nu sunt urmări firești ale războaielor. Cauzele foametei în modernitate sunt oarecum diferite, factorul climateric continuînd a fi unul important, dar nu determinant, în apariția ei și a consecințelor letale la nivel de masă. După 1800, odată cu înbunătățirea sitemului de transport și a altor binefaceri ale progresului tehnologic, factorul politic și ideologic este în linii mari responsabil de perpetuarea mortalității excesive cauzate de lipsa hranei. Acest lucru este valabil și pentru apariția fenomenului foametei în regimurile comuniste. În cazul sovietic, legătura dintre ideologie și foamete este foarte strânsă, mai ales în cea de la începutul anilor 1930, dar și a celei postbelice. Cu alte cuvinte, așa cum apreciază nuanțat specialiști renumiți, precum Michael Ellman, pe urmele lui Robert Conquest, mortalitatea excesivă putea fi evitată cel puțin parțial atât în anii 1932-33 cât și 1946-47 în condițiile în care statul sovietic ar fi stabilit ca prioritate salvarea vieților omenești. Ceea ce nu a fost cazul, dat fiind că regimul urmărea obiective de ordin ideologic și geopolitic, consimțind sacrificarea țăranilor mai ales, pe altarul unor interese considerate net superioare salvgardării vieții unor categorii sociale. Epicentrul foametei postbelice sovietice sunt teritorii care au cunocut fenomenul în anii 1932-33, plus Basarabia și regiuni din Siberia apuseană. Cele mai cumplite consecințe la scara URSS – după indicatori precum mortalitatea excesivă și cazurile de antropofagie – este Basarabia, toată provincia, nu numai părțile incluse în RSS Moldovenească. Ce factori explică această realitate, dincolo de cel climateric și urmările războiului? Poate fi vorba de o răzbunare față de populația unei provincii parte a României, stat satelit al Axei în Al Doilea Război Mondial? De ce atunci județe cu o populație preponderent românească, Orhei, Soroca și Bălți, sunt mai puțin afectate de foamete? De ce Bucovina de Nord, un alt teritoriu pierdut de România după 1944, nu cunoaște o mortalitate excesivă comparabilă cu cea a Basarabiei? De ce în noi teritorii recent reocupate de Armata Roșie, precum Ucraina de Vest și Țările Baltice, nu cunosc fenomenul foametei decât într-o mică măsură? Ce rol are în această ecuație nivelul de rezistență armată a populației, dar și structura economiei locale? O altă întrebare este de ce în raioanele din stânga Nistrului, colectivizate în interbelic, canibalismul și alți indicatori ai foametei sunt incomparabil mai mici decât în partea basarabeană a RSSM? Ideologia și contextul postbelic sovietic, european și mondial sunt factori îndeobște considerați determinanți care explică catastrofa umanitară sovietică, mai ales cea în teritoriul dintre Prut și Nistru. Dar cum explicăm diferențele regionale, între sud, centru și nord, și, mai ales, cele din cadrul unuia și aceluiaș raion? Ce rol are economia morală și cultura politică în perspectivă longue durée în profilarea acestor diferențe? Acestea și alte interogații conexe vor constitui registrul acestei prezentări.
An interview I gave recently to the newsletter of the Society for Romanian Studies on my current ... more An interview I gave recently to the newsletter of the Society for Romanian Studies on my current research at the New Europe College on food riots and bab'y bunty in Soviet Moldavia in the wake of the famine of 1946-7, access to the archives, relations between Western historians and post-Soviet ones, doing historical research in Moldova and what are the challenges related to that, and many more.
The paper outlines one of the most important contributions to the study of various aspects of Sov... more The paper outlines one of the most important contributions to the study of various aspects of Soviet Communism after the opening of the archives in the early 1990s up to 2017, from state terror to everyday life. This is a paper presented at the conference “100 Years of Communism. History and Memory” held in Paris at the Collège des Bernardins and the Fondation Napoléon on Nov. 8-9 2017. The conference was organized by the European Platform of Memory and Conscience and Stéphane Courtois, author and editor of the “Black Book of Communism”.
Albania was the last country in Europe to witness the fall of Communism, which happened in early ... more Albania was the last country in Europe to witness the fall of Communism, which happened in early 1990s. Since 1944, it was known as the most isolated state in Eastern Europe. But this is true only for the last twelve years of Communism. During the initial three postwar decades, being small and poor, it was determined to overcome backwardness by insistently asking its fellow Communist states for more technologies, grants, and specialists. Elidor Mëhilli has dedicated his first book, From Stalin to Mao: Albania and the Socialist World, to these issues, focusing on the dynamics of the Cold War and on exchanges and confrontations within the Eastern bloc.
W książce – z transnarodowej perspektywy – przedstawione są badania nad rozmaitymi wymiarami hist... more W książce – z transnarodowej perspektywy – przedstawione są badania nad rozmaitymi wymiarami historii komunizmu w poszczególnych krajach (Białoruś, Bułgaria, Czechy, była Jugosławia, Litwa, wschodnie Niemcy, Mołdawia, Polska, Rumunia, Węgry, Ukraina) Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej. W pierwszych trzech rozdziałach przedstawiono polityczne, ekonomiczne i kulturowe aspekty komunistycznej przeszłości tej części Europy. W czwartej części zamieszczono między innymi analizy współpracy między zachodnimi ruchami pokojowymi a wschodnimi dysydentami i rozmaite formy kontestacji społecznej, a w ostatniej - artykuły dotyczące studiów nad zbiorową pamięcią historyczną na Białorusi, Ukrainie i w Polsce .
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Books by Igor Casu
Published by [KSA:K] - Center for Contemporary Art, Chisinau.
The publication is an invitation to a virtual tour through a number of historical periods and political regimes that have shaped the city and the society and includes the contributions of theorists and the artists’ projects. While the theoretical contributions present the results of historical research and case studies concerning the various stages in the evolution of the city of Chisinau, the artists’ projects have followed to a great extent the logic of subverting and challenging the order established in the urban space by the state institutions in cooperation with the private sector. Finally, the project aim was not only to identify the decisive factors that have shaped the public and urban space in Chisinau throughout history, but also to see these spaces in confrontation with the political and cultural processes and factors identified today.
Contributions:
Rael Artel(EST), Pavel Braila(MD), Valeria Barbas (MD), Igor Casu(MD), Vasile Ernu(RO), [STEALTH.unlimited] – Ana Dzokic & Marc Neelen (NL), Octavian Esanu (US/MD), Tatiana Fiodorova(MD), Societe Realiste – (Ferenc Grof & Jean-Baptiste Naudy (FR/HU)), Catalin Gheorghe(RO), Angela Harutunean(EG/AM), Augustin Ioan(RO), Indre Klimaite(NL), Flo Kasearu(EST), Max Kusmenko(MD), Sava Lucia(MD), Ana Marian(MD), Davor Miscovici(HR), Tamara Nesterova(MD), Dumitru Oboroc(RO), Kaja Pawelek(PL), The Bureau of Melodramatic Research (Alina Popa & Irina Gheorghe (RO)), Virgil Paslariuc(MD), Danilo Prnjat(SP), Ghenadie Popescu(RM), Joanna Rajkowska(PO), Rena Raedle & Vladan Jeremic(SP), Angela Serino(NL), Klaus Schafler(AU), Stefan Rusu(MD), Tilmann Meyer(NL), Ovidiu Tichindeleanu(RO/MD), Stefan Tiron(RO), Vadim Tiganas(MD), Octavian Tacu(MD), Nomeda&Gediminas Urbonas(LT), Vladimir Us(MD), Raluca Voinea(RO), Mark Verlan(MD)
Stefan Rusu (ed), Centrul pentru Artă Contemporană-[KSA:K]; trad.: Sorana Lupu, Jele Dominis, Marchin Wawryzncyak [et al.]. – [Ch. : S. n., 2011] (Tipogr. “Bons Offices” SRL). – 484, [2] p. : il., fot., fot. color. 1000 ex. ISBN 978-9975-80-534-6
A project organised by Center for Conbtemporary Art-[KSA:K]
highest local party authority in the former Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (MASSR) created in 1924 on the left bank of Dniester River, a part of Ukraine till 1940 when Romanian Bessarabia was occupied by the Red Army and a Union/federal republic of Moldavia was formed (MSSR). It documents the Sovietization of the Left bank since 1917, the creation of MASSR, NEP, collectivization, Great Terror, Cultural Revolution of the 1930s, resistance to Stalin’s Great Turn (including so called “bab’y bunty” (women’s rebellions)), Latinization and
Romanianization policy in 1932-1938 etc. The second important fond is 51 and it represents the documents issued by the Central Committee of Communist Party of Moldavia since 1940 to 1991. Among the topics covered by this fond are the repressive policy in the first year of Soviet occupation of Bessarabia (1940-41) and late Stalinism (1944-1953), collectivization of the late 1940s, mass deportations of 1941, 1949 and 1951, mass famine of 1946-47, destalinization of mid 1950s and its limits, campaigns against nationalism in late 1960s-early 1970s and Moldavian/Romanian national revival of late 1980s. As the Central Committee was conceived to
guide, supervise and control the government, it issued numerous documents pertaining to education, agriculture, industry, transport system, leisure, culture. The main activity of CC of CPM was in turn guided, supervised and controlled by CC of CPSU in Moscow, so this is why AOSPRM includes correspondence between the prime secretary of CC of CPM or other responsible cadres with General Secretary of CC of CPSU or other responsible cadres in the central apparatus of the party. AOSPRM contains as well numerous correspondence with its district party organizations
that were responsible with implementation of republican and federal decisions at the local level. A valuable source of documents on the way the local cadres at the village level and enterprise level tried to implement the decisions of the higher party authorities is contained in the fond dealing with primary party organizations. Even though the destruction of documents is prohibited by the Law of 1992 On the Rehabilitation of the victims of the political repressions, sometimes political
interference allows the destruction of very valuable files, as happened in 1994 (a minute of CC from 1989 involving M. Snegur, the first President of Moldova, 1990-1994). In the recent years, AOSPRM is the among the most opened archives in the former Soviet Union as it gives unrestricted access the personal files of the nomenklatura including of the top dignitaries of Central committee of the Communist Party of Moldavia and to the top secret documents contained in the Osobaia Papka focusing on the most sensible political issues. The later contains also documents related to the Cold War issues, the measures to be taken in case of the
breaking up of a nuclear war between United States and Soviet Union (including the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962). The archive also gives unrestricted access to two important fonds, the one on the revolutionary movement in Moldavia staring 1898 to 1940; and the fond on partisan movement in the Second World War, or the Great Patriotic War (1941-1944) in Bessarabia and Transnistria (more than 1000 files/delo) which in reality deals mainly with the activity of Soviet secret services
in 1941-44 in the Romanian controlled Bessarabia and Transnistria, subversive activities against the Romanian and German Armies etc. The relatively low score of openness (56.61 %) is mainly due to the fact the archive do not have web versions of inventories and do not offer services modern archive should do.
AOSPRM is a place to be visited by every researcher interested in the history of Soviet
Moldavia in particular and Soviet Union in general. The archive works only 3 days a week, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, from 8.30 to 16.30, but one can order 15 files/delo per day, so in one week one can consult and photocopy if need be 45 files no matter how many pages one file/delo contains. The personnel of the archive is very keen to help find needed information and the foreign scholars are served the same day on arrival according the Rules of the Reading Room as well as in practice. The fee for photocopying with ones own camera is 10 MDL, i.e. 50 euro cents per file/delo. Last but not least, another reasons to visit AOSPRM is that from 2013 this archive
opened the access to all personal data related to nomenklatura of all levels for research purposes.
This was the result of my letter (I.C.) to the government in which I explained the need to give access to personal files of nomenklatura and Osobaia Papka.
Переломный момент в сфере доступа к архивам КГБ в Украине произошел 9 апреля 2015 года. В этот день Парламент Украины принял закон «О доступе к архивам репрессивных органов коммунистического тоталитарного режима 1917-1991 годов». Законопроект, который рассматривал Верховный Совет, был подан Кабинетом Министров вместе с тремя другими «декоммунизационными» законами. Специальный закон, который регламентирует вопросы доступа к документам бывших спецслужб репрессивных органов тоталитарных и авторитарных режимов, - это не новая практика. Почти во всех центральнои восточноевропейских странах бывшего социалистического лагеря и некоторых бывших республиках СССР действуют такие акты. До этого доступ ко всем архивным документам в Украине регламентировал общий закон «О Национальном архивном фонде и архивных учреждениях», который был принят в конце 1993 года. Основа закона «О доступе к архивам репрессивных органов» - это понимание, что демократический транзит невозможен без уважения прав и свобод человека. Для того чтобы тоталитарный режим с его политическими репрессиями и другими преследованиями больше не повторялся, его нужно анализировать и изучать. В частности, по архивным документам, которые часто служат единственным источником информации о трагических событиях прошлого. Демократизация спецслужб и полиции не может произойти должным образом, если они будут продолжать стеречь архивы, содержащие информацию о массовых нарушениях прав человека, и продолжать использовать методы из архивов своих предшественников. Построить новые силовые институты можно, в том числе, разорвав цепочку преемственности, которая де-факто существовала до весны 2014-го. Открытый доступ к архивам коммунистических спецслужб не только дает возможность восстановить нарушенные права, но также показывает, что информация обо всех преступлениях рано или поздно станет известна общественности. Для того чтобы не повторять тоталитарные практики прошлого, важно информировать общество о том, как формируются репрессивные режимы и какие методы они используют. Когда в начале 2014 года украинская власть попыталась возобновить тоталитарные методы управления («диктаторские законы 16 января»), чтобы сохранить свое положение, это привело к человеческим жертвам и оккупации части страны российскими войсками. Это яркий пример того, что иногда право на информацию имеет преимущество над правом на приватность. Право на информацию в конечном итоге способствует обеспечению права на жизнь. До архивного закона 2015-го Архивисты учитывали много документов, решая, предоставлять доступ к архивам КГБ или нет. Кроме рамочного архивного закона «О Национальном архивном фонде и архивных учреждениях» во внимание принимался еще ряд законов и других нормативных актов. Их можно интерпретировать неоднозначно, поэтому их использовали как для того, чтобы предоставить доступ, так и для того, чтобы его ограничить. Все зависело от политической ситуации и желаний руководства того или иного архива, главы Укргосархива и соответствующего органа в случае, если речь шла об отраслевых государствен-ных архивах (например, голоса Службы безопасности или министра внутренних дел).
этапе «Большого террора» и после официального прекращения массовых
репрессий (сентябрь–декабрь 1938 г.) на примере деятельности И. Т. Широкого-Майского и его коллег. Ключевые слова: политические репрессии, МАССР, НКВД,
«Большой террор».
Опубликовано в Чекисты на скамье подсудимых. Сборник статей. Составители Сборник статьей. Составители Марк Юнге, Линн Виола, Джеффри Россман, Москва: Пробел-2000, 2017, 680 с. (595-630).
Sample chapter: Игорь Кашу. «Чистка» сотрудников НКВД
Молдавской АССР после Большого террора.
Дело Ивана Тарасовича Широкого-Майского, 595-630.
Secretaries in Soviet Moldavia. One of the main results of Brezhnev period in Moldavia was the consolidation of kolkhozes. In a broader sense, since this period at least, Brezhnev favoured quantity over quality.
Published by [KSA:K] - Center for Contemporary Art, Chisinau.
The publication is an invitation to a virtual tour through a number of historical periods and political regimes that have shaped the city and the society and includes the contributions of theorists and the artists’ projects. While the theoretical contributions present the results of historical research and case studies concerning the various stages in the evolution of the city of Chisinau, the artists’ projects have followed to a great extent the logic of subverting and challenging the order established in the urban space by the state institutions in cooperation with the private sector. Finally, the project aim was not only to identify the decisive factors that have shaped the public and urban space in Chisinau throughout history, but also to see these spaces in confrontation with the political and cultural processes and factors identified today.
Contributions:
Rael Artel(EST), Pavel Braila(MD), Valeria Barbas (MD), Igor Casu(MD), Vasile Ernu(RO), [STEALTH.unlimited] – Ana Dzokic & Marc Neelen (NL), Octavian Esanu (US/MD), Tatiana Fiodorova(MD), Societe Realiste – (Ferenc Grof & Jean-Baptiste Naudy (FR/HU)), Catalin Gheorghe(RO), Angela Harutunean(EG/AM), Augustin Ioan(RO), Indre Klimaite(NL), Flo Kasearu(EST), Max Kusmenko(MD), Sava Lucia(MD), Ana Marian(MD), Davor Miscovici(HR), Tamara Nesterova(MD), Dumitru Oboroc(RO), Kaja Pawelek(PL), The Bureau of Melodramatic Research (Alina Popa & Irina Gheorghe (RO)), Virgil Paslariuc(MD), Danilo Prnjat(SP), Ghenadie Popescu(RM), Joanna Rajkowska(PO), Rena Raedle & Vladan Jeremic(SP), Angela Serino(NL), Klaus Schafler(AU), Stefan Rusu(MD), Tilmann Meyer(NL), Ovidiu Tichindeleanu(RO/MD), Stefan Tiron(RO), Vadim Tiganas(MD), Octavian Tacu(MD), Nomeda&Gediminas Urbonas(LT), Vladimir Us(MD), Raluca Voinea(RO), Mark Verlan(MD)
Stefan Rusu (ed), Centrul pentru Artă Contemporană-[KSA:K]; trad.: Sorana Lupu, Jele Dominis, Marchin Wawryzncyak [et al.]. – [Ch. : S. n., 2011] (Tipogr. “Bons Offices” SRL). – 484, [2] p. : il., fot., fot. color. 1000 ex. ISBN 978-9975-80-534-6
A project organised by Center for Conbtemporary Art-[KSA:K]
highest local party authority in the former Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (MASSR) created in 1924 on the left bank of Dniester River, a part of Ukraine till 1940 when Romanian Bessarabia was occupied by the Red Army and a Union/federal republic of Moldavia was formed (MSSR). It documents the Sovietization of the Left bank since 1917, the creation of MASSR, NEP, collectivization, Great Terror, Cultural Revolution of the 1930s, resistance to Stalin’s Great Turn (including so called “bab’y bunty” (women’s rebellions)), Latinization and
Romanianization policy in 1932-1938 etc. The second important fond is 51 and it represents the documents issued by the Central Committee of Communist Party of Moldavia since 1940 to 1991. Among the topics covered by this fond are the repressive policy in the first year of Soviet occupation of Bessarabia (1940-41) and late Stalinism (1944-1953), collectivization of the late 1940s, mass deportations of 1941, 1949 and 1951, mass famine of 1946-47, destalinization of mid 1950s and its limits, campaigns against nationalism in late 1960s-early 1970s and Moldavian/Romanian national revival of late 1980s. As the Central Committee was conceived to
guide, supervise and control the government, it issued numerous documents pertaining to education, agriculture, industry, transport system, leisure, culture. The main activity of CC of CPM was in turn guided, supervised and controlled by CC of CPSU in Moscow, so this is why AOSPRM includes correspondence between the prime secretary of CC of CPM or other responsible cadres with General Secretary of CC of CPSU or other responsible cadres in the central apparatus of the party. AOSPRM contains as well numerous correspondence with its district party organizations
that were responsible with implementation of republican and federal decisions at the local level. A valuable source of documents on the way the local cadres at the village level and enterprise level tried to implement the decisions of the higher party authorities is contained in the fond dealing with primary party organizations. Even though the destruction of documents is prohibited by the Law of 1992 On the Rehabilitation of the victims of the political repressions, sometimes political
interference allows the destruction of very valuable files, as happened in 1994 (a minute of CC from 1989 involving M. Snegur, the first President of Moldova, 1990-1994). In the recent years, AOSPRM is the among the most opened archives in the former Soviet Union as it gives unrestricted access the personal files of the nomenklatura including of the top dignitaries of Central committee of the Communist Party of Moldavia and to the top secret documents contained in the Osobaia Papka focusing on the most sensible political issues. The later contains also documents related to the Cold War issues, the measures to be taken in case of the
breaking up of a nuclear war between United States and Soviet Union (including the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962). The archive also gives unrestricted access to two important fonds, the one on the revolutionary movement in Moldavia staring 1898 to 1940; and the fond on partisan movement in the Second World War, or the Great Patriotic War (1941-1944) in Bessarabia and Transnistria (more than 1000 files/delo) which in reality deals mainly with the activity of Soviet secret services
in 1941-44 in the Romanian controlled Bessarabia and Transnistria, subversive activities against the Romanian and German Armies etc. The relatively low score of openness (56.61 %) is mainly due to the fact the archive do not have web versions of inventories and do not offer services modern archive should do.
AOSPRM is a place to be visited by every researcher interested in the history of Soviet
Moldavia in particular and Soviet Union in general. The archive works only 3 days a week, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, from 8.30 to 16.30, but one can order 15 files/delo per day, so in one week one can consult and photocopy if need be 45 files no matter how many pages one file/delo contains. The personnel of the archive is very keen to help find needed information and the foreign scholars are served the same day on arrival according the Rules of the Reading Room as well as in practice. The fee for photocopying with ones own camera is 10 MDL, i.e. 50 euro cents per file/delo. Last but not least, another reasons to visit AOSPRM is that from 2013 this archive
opened the access to all personal data related to nomenklatura of all levels for research purposes.
This was the result of my letter (I.C.) to the government in which I explained the need to give access to personal files of nomenklatura and Osobaia Papka.
Переломный момент в сфере доступа к архивам КГБ в Украине произошел 9 апреля 2015 года. В этот день Парламент Украины принял закон «О доступе к архивам репрессивных органов коммунистического тоталитарного режима 1917-1991 годов». Законопроект, который рассматривал Верховный Совет, был подан Кабинетом Министров вместе с тремя другими «декоммунизационными» законами. Специальный закон, который регламентирует вопросы доступа к документам бывших спецслужб репрессивных органов тоталитарных и авторитарных режимов, - это не новая практика. Почти во всех центральнои восточноевропейских странах бывшего социалистического лагеря и некоторых бывших республиках СССР действуют такие акты. До этого доступ ко всем архивным документам в Украине регламентировал общий закон «О Национальном архивном фонде и архивных учреждениях», который был принят в конце 1993 года. Основа закона «О доступе к архивам репрессивных органов» - это понимание, что демократический транзит невозможен без уважения прав и свобод человека. Для того чтобы тоталитарный режим с его политическими репрессиями и другими преследованиями больше не повторялся, его нужно анализировать и изучать. В частности, по архивным документам, которые часто служат единственным источником информации о трагических событиях прошлого. Демократизация спецслужб и полиции не может произойти должным образом, если они будут продолжать стеречь архивы, содержащие информацию о массовых нарушениях прав человека, и продолжать использовать методы из архивов своих предшественников. Построить новые силовые институты можно, в том числе, разорвав цепочку преемственности, которая де-факто существовала до весны 2014-го. Открытый доступ к архивам коммунистических спецслужб не только дает возможность восстановить нарушенные права, но также показывает, что информация обо всех преступлениях рано или поздно станет известна общественности. Для того чтобы не повторять тоталитарные практики прошлого, важно информировать общество о том, как формируются репрессивные режимы и какие методы они используют. Когда в начале 2014 года украинская власть попыталась возобновить тоталитарные методы управления («диктаторские законы 16 января»), чтобы сохранить свое положение, это привело к человеческим жертвам и оккупации части страны российскими войсками. Это яркий пример того, что иногда право на информацию имеет преимущество над правом на приватность. Право на информацию в конечном итоге способствует обеспечению права на жизнь. До архивного закона 2015-го Архивисты учитывали много документов, решая, предоставлять доступ к архивам КГБ или нет. Кроме рамочного архивного закона «О Национальном архивном фонде и архивных учреждениях» во внимание принимался еще ряд законов и других нормативных актов. Их можно интерпретировать неоднозначно, поэтому их использовали как для того, чтобы предоставить доступ, так и для того, чтобы его ограничить. Все зависело от политической ситуации и желаний руководства того или иного архива, главы Укргосархива и соответствующего органа в случае, если речь шла об отраслевых государствен-ных архивах (например, голоса Службы безопасности или министра внутренних дел).
этапе «Большого террора» и после официального прекращения массовых
репрессий (сентябрь–декабрь 1938 г.) на примере деятельности И. Т. Широкого-Майского и его коллег. Ключевые слова: политические репрессии, МАССР, НКВД,
«Большой террор».
Опубликовано в Чекисты на скамье подсудимых. Сборник статей. Составители Сборник статьей. Составители Марк Юнге, Линн Виола, Джеффри Россман, Москва: Пробел-2000, 2017, 680 с. (595-630).
Sample chapter: Игорь Кашу. «Чистка» сотрудников НКВД
Молдавской АССР после Большого террора.
Дело Ивана Тарасовича Широкого-Майского, 595-630.
Secretaries in Soviet Moldavia. One of the main results of Brezhnev period in Moldavia was the consolidation of kolkhozes. In a broader sense, since this period at least, Brezhnev favoured quantity over quality.
EN Source: The Archive of the Service of Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former archive of KGB of Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), separate file on the Operation IUG (South), part VIII.
RU Источник: Архив Службы Информации и Безопасности Республики Молдова, бывший КГБ Молдавской ССР (ASISRM-KGB), Дело по операции ЮГ, 1949 г. Часть VIII.
Pentru comentarii în limba română, a se vedea Igor Caşu, DUŞMANUL DE CLASĂ. Represiuni politice, violenţă şi rezistenţă în R(A) SS Moldovenească, Chişinău, CARTIER, 2015, ediţia a II-a, p. 234-296. Cartea poate fi găsită în librăriile bune din R. Moldova şi România, precum şi online la www.librariaeminescu.ro, www.librarie.net, www.elefant.ro, www.libhumanitas.ro, www.kubon-sagner.de, www.amazon.com şi altele.
Source: Archive of the Service for Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former KGB archive of the Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), Delo po operatsii IUG.
EN Source: The Archive of the Service of Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former archive of KGB of Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), separate file on the Operation IUG (South), part VII.
RU Источник: Архив Службы Информации и Безопасности Республики Молдова, бывший КГБ Молдавской ССР (ASISRM-KGB), Дело по операции ЮГ, 1949 г. Часть VII.
Pentru comentarii în limba română, a se vedea Igor Caşu, DUŞMANUL DE CLASĂ. Represiuni politice, violenţă şi rezistenţă în R(A) SS Moldovenească, Chişinău, CARTIER, 2015, ediţia a II-a, p. 234-296. Cartea poate fi găsită în librăriile bune din R. Moldova şi România, precum şi online la www.librariaeminescu.ro, www.librarie.net, www.elefant.ro, www.libhumanitas.ro, www.kubon-sagner.de, www.amazon.com şi altele.
EN Source: The Archive of the Service of Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former archive of KGB of Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), separate file on the Operation IUG (South), part VI.
RU Источник: Архив Службы Информации и Безопасности Республики Молдова, бывший КГБ Молдавской ССР (ASISRM-KGB), Дело по операции ЮГ, 1949 г. Часть VI.
Pentru comentarii în limba română, a se vedea Igor Caşu, DUŞMANUL DE CLASĂ. Represiuni politice, violenţă şi rezistenţă în R(A) SS Moldovenească, Chişinău, CARTIER, 2015, ediţia a II-a, p. 234-296. Cartea poate fi găsită în librăriile bune din R. Moldova şi România, precum şi online la www.librariaeminescu.ro, www.librarie.net, www.elefant.ro, www.libhumanitas.ro, www.kubon-sagner.de, www.amazon.com şi altele.
EN Source: The Archive of the Service of Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former archive of KGB of Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), separate file on the Operation IUG (South), part V.
RU Источник: Архив Службы Информации и Безопасности Республики Молдова, бывший КГБ Молдавской ССР (ASISRM-KGB), Дело по операции ЮГ, 1949 г. Часть V.
Pentru comentarii în limba română, a se vedea Igor Caşu, DUŞMANUL DE CLASĂ. Represiuni politice, violenţă şi rezistenţă în R(A) SS Moldovenească, Chişinău, CARTIER, 2015, ediţia a II-a, p. 234-296. Cartea poate fi găsită în librăriile bune din R. Moldova şi România, precum şi online la www.librariaeminescu.ro, www.librarie.net, www.elefant.ro, www.libhumanitas.ro, www.kubon-sagner.de, www.amazon.com şi altele.
EN Source: The Archive of the Service of Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former archive of KGB of Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), separate file on the Operation IUG (South), part IV.
RU Источник: Архив Службы Информации и Безопасности Республики Молдова, бывший КГБ Молдавской ССР (ASISRM-KGB), Дело по операции ЮГ, 1949 г. Часть IV.
Pentru comentarii în limba română, a se vedea Igor Caşu, DUŞMANUL DE CLASĂ. Represiuni politice, violenţă şi rezistenţă în R(A) SS Moldovenească, Chişinău, CARTIER, 2015, ediţia a II-a, p. 234-296. Cartea poate fi găsită în librăriile bune din R. Moldova şi România, precum şi online la www.librariaeminescu.ro, www.librarie.net, www.elefant.ro, www.libhumanitas.ro, www.kubon-sagner.de, www.amazon.com şi altele.
EN Source: The Archive of the Service of Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former archive of KGB of Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), separate file on the Operation IUG (South), part III.
RU Источник: Архив Службы Информации и Безопасности Республики Молдова, бывший КГБ Молдавской ССР (ASISRM-KGB), Дело по операции ЮГ, 1949 г. Часть III.
Pentru comentarii în limba română, a se vedea Igor Caşu, DUŞMANUL DE CLASĂ. Represiuni politice, violenţă şi rezistenţă în R(A) SS Moldovenească, Chişinău, CARTIER, 2015, ediţia a II-a, p. 234-296. Cartea poate fi găsită în librăriile bune din R. Moldova şi România, precum şi online la www.librariaeminescu.ro, www.librarie.net, www.elefant.ro, www.libhumanitas.ro, www.kubon-sagner.de, www.amazon.com şi altele.
EN Source: The Archive of the Service of Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former archive of KGB of Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), separate file on the Operation IUG (South), part II.
RU Источник: Архив Службы Информации и Безопасности Республики Молдова, бывший КГБ Молдавской ССР (ASISRM-KGB), Дело по операции ЮГ, 1949 г. Часть II.
Pentru comentarii în limba română, a se vedea Igor Caşu, DUŞMANUL DE CLASĂ. Represiuni politice, violenţă şi rezistenţă în R(A) SS Moldovenească, Chişinău, CARTIER, 2015, ediţia a II-a, p. 234-296. Cartea poate fi găsită în librăriile bune din R. Moldova şi România, precum şi online la www.librariaeminescu.ro, www.librarie.net, www.elefant.ro, www.libhumanitas.ro, www.kubon-sagner.de, www.amazon.com şi altele.
EN Source: The Archive of the Service of Information and Security of the Republic of Moldova, former archive of KGB of Moldavian SSR (ASISRM-KGB), separate file on the Operation IUG (South), part I.
RU Источник: Архив Службы Информации и Безопасности Республики Молдова, бывший КГБ Молдавской ССР (ASISRM-KGB), Дело по операции ЮГ, 1949 г. Часть I.
Pentru comentarii în limba română, a se vedea Igor Caşu, DUŞMANUL DE CLASĂ. Represiuni politice, violenţă şi rezistenţă în R(A) SS Moldovenească, Chişinău, CARTIER, 2015, ediţia a II-a, p. 234-296. Cartea poate fi găsită în librăriile bune din R. Moldova şi România, precum şi online la www.librariaeminescu.ro, www.librarie.net, www.elefant.ro, www.libhumanitas.ro, www.kubon-sagner.de, www.amazon.com şi altele.
Source: Archive of the Socio-Political Organizations of the Republic of Moldova (AOPSRM), Fond 51, inventar 68, dosar 11.
Source: AOSPRM, former archive of the CC of CPM
RO Câteva jalbe despre abuzurile unor demnitari din RSS Moldovenească care au parvenit ziarului Pravda de la Moscova.
CC al PCM a făcut o anchetă pe marginea acestor jalbe, unele confirmându-se, altele – nu.
Sursa: AOSPRM.
One of these movies - Последний месяц осени (1965) - is accessible on youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwUzgQRQtrI
Vezi și replica părții române la acest protest: http://voxreport.unimedia.info/2015/02/04/arhiva-protest-al-mae-sovietic-fata-de-oglidirea-chestiunii-basarabene-in-publicatii-din-romania-1974/
Foametea, ca și epidemiile aferente, reprezintă un fenomen ubicuu și aproape omniprezent în istoria premodernă și modernă a Europei, dar și lumii întregi. De regulă, în antichitate și Evul Mediu, foametea își găsește originea în factori obiectivi, precum seceta sau alte intemperii naturale, atunci când nu sunt urmări firești ale războaielor. Cauzele foametei în modernitate sunt oarecum diferite, factorul climateric continuînd a fi unul important, dar nu determinant, în apariția ei și a consecințelor letale la nivel de masă. După 1800, odată cu înbunătățirea sitemului de transport și a altor binefaceri ale progresului tehnologic, factorul politic și ideologic este în linii mari responsabil de perpetuarea mortalității excesive cauzate de lipsa hranei. Acest lucru este valabil și pentru apariția fenomenului foametei în regimurile comuniste. În cazul sovietic, legătura dintre ideologie și foamete este foarte strânsă, mai ales în cea de la începutul anilor 1930, dar și a celei postbelice. Cu alte cuvinte, așa cum apreciază nuanțat specialiști renumiți, precum Michael Ellman, pe urmele lui Robert Conquest, mortalitatea excesivă putea fi evitată cel puțin parțial atât în anii 1932-33 cât și 1946-47 în condițiile în care statul sovietic ar fi stabilit ca prioritate salvarea vieților omenești. Ceea ce nu a fost cazul, dat fiind că regimul urmărea obiective de ordin ideologic și geopolitic, consimțind sacrificarea țăranilor mai ales, pe altarul unor interese considerate net superioare salvgardării vieții unor categorii sociale.
Epicentrul foametei postbelice sovietice sunt teritorii care au cunocut fenomenul în anii 1932-33, plus Basarabia și regiuni din Siberia apuseană. Cele mai cumplite consecințe la scara URSS – după indicatori precum mortalitatea excesivă și cazurile de antropofagie – este Basarabia, toată provincia, nu numai părțile incluse în RSS Moldovenească. Ce factori explică această realitate, dincolo de cel climateric și urmările războiului? Poate fi vorba de o răzbunare față de populația unei provincii parte a României, stat satelit al Axei în Al Doilea Război Mondial? De ce atunci județe cu o populație preponderent românească, Orhei, Soroca și Bălți, sunt mai puțin afectate de foamete? De ce Bucovina de Nord, un alt teritoriu pierdut de România după 1944, nu cunoaște o mortalitate excesivă comparabilă cu cea a Basarabiei? De ce în noi teritorii recent reocupate de Armata Roșie, precum Ucraina de Vest și Țările Baltice, nu cunosc fenomenul foametei decât într-o mică măsură? Ce rol are în această ecuație nivelul de rezistență armată a populației, dar și structura economiei locale? O altă întrebare este de ce în raioanele din stânga Nistrului, colectivizate în interbelic, canibalismul și alți indicatori ai foametei sunt incomparabil mai mici decât în partea basarabeană a RSSM? Ideologia și contextul postbelic sovietic, european și mondial sunt factori îndeobște considerați determinanți care explică catastrofa umanitară sovietică, mai ales cea în teritoriul dintre Prut și Nistru. Dar cum explicăm diferențele regionale, între sud, centru și nord, și, mai ales, cele din cadrul unuia și aceluiaș raion? Ce rol are economia morală și cultura politică în perspectivă longue durée în profilarea acestor diferențe? Acestea și alte interogații conexe vor constitui registrul acestei prezentări.