Speaking to One Another - The International Raoul Wallenberg ...

gotten what you knew”. So, out of this fear, my father said that he absolutely doesn’t speak any foreignlanguages. And he went to work at the print house... As an educated person, he worked as a proof-reader.First, he was a proof-reader. There was the “Kayts” [Arm. spark] newspaper, he was the proof-readerof the “Kayts” newspaper, and there were some columns in Armenian and in Azeri language there.He was proof-reading the preprints of both, and then it was being published at the print house. His wageswere low, so he also had to work as a typesetter ... So his vision became worse after this. Later, afterKhrushchev, there was some freedom; only then he was able to use his knowledge - foreign languages.But he was old already... They called him to the medical [institute], as a person who knew Latin, so thathe would teach there, but his eyes weren’t well already, so he didn’t go.So, when they were fleeing to Iran, they received [Iranian] citizenship beforehand. Well, my father wasin Italy, and his brother was in Kharkov. When they were planning to move to Iran, they prepared a passportin my uncle’s name. At that time he was studying at the Polytechnic Institute of Kharkov, at the Departmentof Architecture... He was the architect of quite many constructions in the Soviet Union. So, hesaid “I am not coming”. He said, “I am not coming, I am a member of the Komsomol party, and I am stillstudying, I don’t want to leave [my education] incomplete, what will I do when I come to Iran?” His parentsleft, but he stayed. One of the neighbors knew that there was a passport prepared on his name, hewent and sold him out to KGB. They arrested my uncle, expelled him from the institute and from theKomsomol party, then they put him in the jail. So he was put in custody ... who was with him there? ...Someone from our relatives was there too; I am not able to remember who it was. So, he was in prisonwith him. Later... after quite some time, they set him free. Set him free... He came, completed his education,graduated [from the institute]. When he graduated and started to work, the war started in 1941.Germans, when they came, they reached Kharkov and went over; so when they were going back, I thinkit was in 1944, or it was 1945 when they went back. Perhaps it was in 1945. When they went back, theysaid “Whoever wants to, they may come with us... to Europe”. So, my uncle... he was married – he himself,along with his wife and the child... They thought, they suffered from Stalin’s atrocity and being honestdid not save them, so they thought it would be better to leave, because they could not see any futurethere. So they went, reached Poland. My grandmother’s sister was with them; from there they went toAmerica. But [before], they were telling that it was good here, and they wanted to stay here. His wife’smother and brother too went with them. Yes, he was with his father-in-law; he got away with his father-in-law,I just remembered this. When he was in that prison, he was there with his father-in-law.So from there – when Soviet Union reached Poland, Poland became a Communist [country]. All refugeeswho were in Poland were expulsed as enemies of the state. To Siberia. So, first, he was put in prisonwhile he was a Komsomol member, and for the second time [they put him in prison] for anti-Sovietviews. They sent him to Kazakhstan, to the city of Kustanay. He... because he was educated, they providedhim with a job. At a later time, when these Stalin things lessened to some extent... the pressure...he became Chief Architect of the city. My grandma’s mother... she came with them to Kharkov, and thenthey went with my uncle everywhere, up to his expulsion. She died there, in Kustanay city, she is buriedthere. Well, in fact... yes, during the expulsion. In fact, she went with my uncle to Poland and fromPoland... to Kustanay. So, they expulsed my uncle on his own. It was possible to register his wife some-149