Red flag or Orthodox cross – how best to commemorate Soviet soldiers?

Author: Olga Sosnytska / ng
Editor: Nancy Isenson
14.05.2011

A row has broken out over which symbol is more adequate to honor Soviet soldiers killed in World War II, buried in a German cemetery- the Orthodox cross or the red flag.

cemetery in the western German town of Stukenbrock in the Westphalia region is home to an obelisk-shaped memorial to Soviet soldiers killed in World War II. An Orthodox cross has adorned the obelisk for the last 50 years, but a row has now broken out over whether it is an appropriate symbol for Soviet soldiers.

A working group called “Flowers for Stukenbrock” insists the cross is historically incorrect in this case, and has called for the Soviet red flag to replace it, much to the chagrin of the Orthodox Church.

Red flag came first

The first Soviet prisoners of war came to Stukenbrock in July 1941, just a month after the war with the Soviet Union had started. Over the next four years, more than 300,000 Soviet prisoners of war were kept in inhumane conditions in the so-called Stalag 326 camp.

It is unclear exactly how many died, but experts estimate that around 65,000 lost their lives before US forces liberated the camp. On May 2, 1945, just before Germany’s capitulation, survivors of the camp erected a memorial to remember the dead, which they adorned with the Soviet red flag.

In 1956, that flag was replaced with an Orthodox cross during refurbishment work. For the next 50 years, it remained there, until, in 2004, the left-leaning Flowers for Stukenbrock group, which aims to remember the horrors of the Nazi regime, pleaded with the regional government of North Rhine-Westphalia to restore the original red flag on top of the obelisk.

Different interpretations

Unsurprisingly, the Orthodox Church opposed the idea – and continues to do so.

“We don’t understand this demand at all,” the head of the Orthodox Church in Germany, Archbishop Longin, said.

He argues that the red flag symbolizes the oppressive Soviet regime and that the fallen soldiers also suffered “through this flag.”

“Firstly, the red flag doesn’t symbolize victory – the cross does. It symbolizes victory over death,” the bishop said.

“Secondly, most of the soldiers buried there were orthodox, and thirdly, we have to honor the obelisk in terms of conservation of historic landmarks.”

His interpretation couldn’t be more different from that of Flowers for Stukenbrock. The group argues the flag that won over German fascism was red.

“As a Christian, the cross is a symbol of reconciliation between God and the people, and among people,” Jochen Schwabedissen, who is a retired Protestant priest and supports the organization.

“But in this case, it hasn’t been put there out of religious motivation, rather it is a document of the Cold War,” he explains. “And that, for me, is a document of misuse,” he said, arguing that the cross was put on the obelisk in 1956 for political reasons only.

Flowers for Stukenbrock points out that the cross does not represent all the soldiers, some of which were Muslim or atheist. Plus, they argue that people should honor the wish of those who erected the memorial, and therefore keep the original symbol, the red flag.

Weighing up the options

The head of the Stalag memorial center, Oliver Nickel, recognizes the discussion about the Soviet flag is always a difficult one.

“If you are pro-red flag, you’re branded a communist, if you’re against it, you may be perceived as right-wing,” he said. “For years, we didn’t care if the red flag or the Orthodox cross adorned the obelisk. We just want to state the facts and discuss them,” he added.

Historical debates have always been prominent in Germany as part of the country’s efforts to deal with its own history. There are indications that even Chancellor Angela Merkel has been informed of the debate.

For now, any attempts to redesign the memorial have been put on ice, as further discussion is needed.

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