Det var inte så länge sedan som maskerada poliser gjorde en räd med Memorials lokaler i Moskva. När de väl hade avlägsnat sig så visade det sig att det fattades elva hårddiskar med forskningsmaterial om Stalins brott mot mänskligheten. Det verkar vara ett uttänkt steg i hans rehabilitering. "Staten försöker rekonstruera historien och rättfärdiga Stalins overgrepp", säger Irina Flinge, chef för Memorial i St Petersburg.
Om detta skriver bland andra Jan Blomgren i SvD den 22 december.
EU 'deeply worried' by Russian raids on Stalinist victims' group
Brussels - The EU is "deeply worried" by police raids on the St Petersburg- based NGO "Memorial" on Thursday, and sees them as a "negative signal" of Russia's attitude towards human rights, a statement from the French government on behalf of the bloc said. France currently holds the EU's rotating presidency. Memorial is dedicated to preserving the memory of the many victims of Stalin's regime, and has been "internationally recognized and praised" for its actions.
The EU "asks the Russian authorities to guarantee the organization's freedom of action" and "expresses its concern at the use of a law on extremism to target the group," the statement said.The EU has regularly criticized Russia for its treatment of pro- democracy groups and media outlets. Russia in recent years has retaliated by accusing the EU of abusing Russian minorities in Latvia and Estonia.
Stalin is widely seen in Russia as a hero who made the country great and defeated Nazism. A recent internet poll named him one of the greatest Russians of all time, despite his being ethnically Georgian.
Källa: DPA den 10 december 2008.