Mindia Salukvadze

* 1933

  • It was 1937, My father was shot in Russia without trial, the same year in October, mother was also shot in Tbilisi my father’s wife, though she had no relations with the party. I was 4 and brother was 8. We lived in a little room in Atarbegovi Street, three men in leather jackets came midnight to arrest mother, they wanted to take me and brother to the orphanage, my mother declared that she would scream and not follow them if they would not leave us. “Children have aunt and she will take care of them” There was Stalin’s order signed by Ezhov to arrest all wives of political prisoners, children had to be taken to the orphanages, if some relative would appear, they could take them. In case of babies, they could stay with mom until 18 months when finished breast feeding, then babies were also taken from mothers.

  • We did not understand much in the third form, all were wearing red scarf except me, and I felt easy. I want to share something about my teachers. A Director of my school was Kolia Sichinava, he was war soldier and sometimes was wearing uniform at school, he was teaching math, I was quite good in this subject and he loved me a lot. All the pupils were already members of the Young Communist League except me, Kolia went to the regional commissariat and in secret brought me mandate to join the League, he did not want me to face problems at the university, such was teacher’s attitude towards me. I can tell even more, after school I graduated the University and went to Moscow for post –graduate studies, I throw out the mandate in Moscow and never registered it. I still became non – YCL in Moscow.

  • Celé nahrávky
  • 1

    Tbilisi, 04.07.2013

    (audio)
    délka: 34:15
Celé nahrávky jsou k dispozici pouze pro přihlášené uživatele.

How can I say anything positive about Stalin, he ordered to arrest every child together with mother under 18 months

Mindia  Salukvadze
Mindia Salukvadze
zdroj: Pamět Národa - Archiv

Born in Tbilisi, March 06, 1933, Father was philologist, worked as a school director, mother was a teacher. Father was member of socialist –Democratic Party for that he was arrested in 1933; he was detained at work and sentenced 8 years of exile in Siberia. Wife managed to visit him once. After father’s arrest they were turned out from house and resettled in a small room without windows. In 1937, they took mother; Mindia was 4 and brother 8. Children were brought up by widowed aunt who had 2 own daughters. Childhood was really hard, many years later he found out that father was shot in 1937 in a camp; mother was also shot immediately after arrest as a wife of enemy.   In 1956 Mindia graduated Tbilisi State University, the faculty of physics. As he was a member of repressed family, it was hard to find job for a long time. The he started to work at school as a teacher, then at the Academy of Science, institute of system management, He became the director of the institute at the age of 40. He made his Phd and maintained thesis in Moscow. He got married with her ex student Tamar Jashi. They have two daughters and grandchildren. At the age of 50, he was elected as a member of Georgia’s Academy of Science. At the age of 60 he was given a title of Academician