On the eve of Victory Day, a guest lecture titled "Heroic Kazakhstanis. The Hardships of War" was held at the Presidential Center of the DPA RK. The lecture emphasized the preservation of historical memory and highlighted the heroism demonstrated by Kazakhstanis during the Great Patriotic War. The event featured Aslan Azerbayev, Associate Professor in the Department of History of Kazakhstan at Toraighyrov University, as the speaker.
Ninety students and sixth-formers from higher and secondary schools in the capital attended the event, where historical facts became vivid through stories of actual search expeditions.
A significant portion of the meeting addressed the activities of the "Maidan Zholy" search and rescue team. Since 2009, volunteers from this movement have searched for and reburied the remains of soldiers left on battlefields. The lecturer highlighted the contributions of Maidan Kusainov, founder of the search movement in Kazakhstan and leader of the "Memorial Zone" detachment. His longstanding efforts established the foundation for the contemporary culture of remembrance in Kazakhstan.
A. Azerbayev shared with the young people his personal experience of participating in the 2010 expedition to the Sinyavinsky Heights (Russia, Leningrad Region). The story of the volunteers' harsh living conditions and the value of every item found - from a soldier's dixy to a personalized medallion - made a deep impression on the audience.
"When you see the remains of soldiers and unexploded ordnance still visible on the ground, you realize that the war is not distant history; it happened very recently," the speaker emphasized.
A separate section of the lecture commemorated the 95th anniversary of Manshuk Mametova, a distinguished figure among the Kazakh people and Hero of the Soviet Union. The lecturer presented the history of the Nevel Offensive Operation and the liberation of Nevel, achieved by the 100th Separate Rifle Brigade. Among the notable figures in these battles, legendary sniper Ibraim Suleimenov and commander Abylkhair Baimuldin were particularly recognized, with their names permanently recorded in the history of the Pskov region's liberation.
In conclusion, Aslan Azerbayev urged participants to remain engaged with their country's past. He encouraged young people to study family archives and preserve the memories of veterans and home front workers. According to Azerbayev, the connection of each young person to their family history forms the national foundation of historical memory, ensuring that the heroic deeds of ancestors are not forgotten.
