Vandals again Defile Marble Bench in Kurapaty Memorial

According to the press service of Charter’97

Recently unknown persons have torn off the metallic wreath out of the memorial bench that was installed by the president of the US Bill Clinton.

In summer 2001 unknown vandals broke the bench. Then it was restored by the Belarusian sculptor Ales Shaternik and re-installed by the US Ambassador Michael Cossack on 15 January 2002. The sculptor installed the metallic crown that symbolizes the repentance of Belarusians who failed to protect the monument from desecration. Later Clinton’s bench was defiled many times, the last cases were registered in November-December 2005, when the vandals removed the upper plate from the marble foots and covered it with red paint.

On 6 December 2005 on demand of the public circles Minsk District Board of Internal Affairs brought criminal cases on the facts of vandalism in the memorial that in 1993 was introduced into the State register of historic and cultural values of the Republic of Belarus as a historical monument of international importance, ‘Place of the murder of victims of political repressions in the 1930-1940-ies. The criminal case was brought upon article 341 of the Criminal Code (defacement of buildings and property). However, in the end of February the case was suspended, because the vandals weren’t found. }