Political Repression Victims Honored at Bykivnia Graves Memorial

KYIV – On May 15, 2010, on the eve of the Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Political Repressions, in the Bykivnia Graves National Historical-Memorial Preserve, in the Kyiv region, government officials and citizens honored those killed.

Flowers and wreaths from the president of Ukraine, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, the parliament of Ukraine, the Kyiv city and regional state administrations were laid at the memorial stone and near the memorial cross, reports the presidential website.

Those present honored the memory of the repressed victims by observing a minute of silence, followed by a public prayer for those killed by the NKVD.

The memorial service was served by Metropolitan Dymytrii of Pereiaslav-Khmelnytskyi of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Kyiv Patriarchate (UOC-KP), Bishop Bohdan , the secretary of the Synod of Bishops of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC), and Bishop Mykhail of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church, reports the website of UOC-KP.

The participants of the meeting were addressed by Ihor Yukhnovskyi, the director of the Institute of the National Memory, and Roman Kutsyk head of the Kyiv City Organization Memorial.