In Russia, a monument to Gagarin was thrown into a landfill
11.08.2021On Sakhalin, a monument to cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin was thrown in a ruined state on the banks of the Lovetskaya River in the Nevel district. This was reported by local residents on social networks.
"There is nothing sacred left for people: no Motherland, no flag, no heroes," said a local resident of RIA "Sakhalin-Kurily".
According to the mayor of the Nevel district, Alexey Shabelnyk, the monument was in a state of disrepair and could not be repaired, so it was written off a long time ago.
"Last year, we opened a new park named after Gagarin, with a new composition dedicated to him. The old one was dismantled, why is it lying on the seashore - I will figure it out. This, of course, is not good," Shabelnyk said.
"Interfax" writes that, according to the city administration, they are planning to install a gas station at the monument's place.
After publications in mass media and social networks, the governor of the Sakhalin region, Valery Lymarenko, demanded the restoration of Gagarin's bas-relief. He stated, as reported by RIA Novosti, that "on the part of the head of the district, this is a disrespectful attitude to history", and instructed to restore the monument in the near future and find a worthy place for it in the center of the city by September 1.
Roskosmos also responded to media reports. The state corporation's Twitter account says that the regional authorities need to restore the monument.
The day before, the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, Sergey Shoigu, said that Russia should not allow people who are symbols of the country to be forgotten. He called Yuri Gagarin one of the symbols.
"You all see that they are gradually being asked to be "washed out", <...> already <...> and Tereshkova is not the same, and Gagarin is bad, and many things. We should not be allowed to do this," Shoigu said.
