The Stalin Center opened in Barnaul on December 16, as reported by the local branch of the 'Communists of Russia' party.
Photo by the 'Communists of Russia Altai' group
The initiative for establishing the Stalin Center came from Sergei Matasov, the leader of the ‘Communists of Russia’ in Altai Krai. Matasov referred to the exhibition as a "cultural and historical site" with the goal of "preserving the memory of the past."
The centerpiece of the Stalin Center, according to Matasov, is a 200-kilogram bust of the Soviet General Secretary, unearthed in a forest by a Barnaul resident Andrei Kuznetsov in 2017.
Following the center's opening, the Communists pledged to "handle foreign agents, supporters of Navalny and Yeltsin in a manner befitting Stalin," accusing their opponents of 'defamation.'
Since Vladimir Putin assumed the presidency in Russia, 95 new statues of Stalin have been erected in the country – a significant increase compared to the mere five monuments that emerged in the 90s. In July, the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF) initiated the construction of a Stalin Center in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast.
