The Spasti Smolensk (“Save Smolensk”) community has called on citizens to petition Vladimir Putin to ban the construction of residential buildings on the grounds of the former German concentration camp Dulag No. 126, where Soviet prisoners of war are buried.
Authorities plan to build seven apartment buildings on a site that once held barracks, punishment cells, and other camp facilities during the German occupation of Smolensk in 1941–1943. Soviet-era estimates indicate that at least 60,000 people, including 45,000 prisoners of war, perished there.
In December 2024, the Smolensk City Hall published the results of public hearings on amendments to building regulations that enabled the construction of the residential complex. Officials dismissed all objections from residents, claiming the project complies with the City Planning Code.
Activists argue that the construction violates federal legislation and could result in the irreversible loss of undiscovered military burial sites and unburied remains of camp victims. They urged Vladimir Putin to investigate Ministry of Culture officials who approved the project, along with the Smolensk Oblast Government and Smolensk City Hall, for potential rehabilitation of Nazism. They also demanded a review of the project’s legal compliance.
