Deportations from the Region of Chernivci (Ukraine) and Edinets District (Moldova)

refers to the victims from four neighbouring villages – Boyan, Lehacheny (now Priprutya), Arboreny (now Gáy) and Kotul Khotinuluy (now Boyanivka). After that, we went to the village’s school. The vice-chief for education, Elena Khauka, indicated us where Eleonora Bizovi lives and escorted us till that place. At the question about the deportations, she told us about her grandmother, who was taken to Arhangelsk, but this was during the First World War. From Boyan we went Easterner, to Noua Sulitsa, with a microbus, had a break there and continued our road to East, till Dranitsya (the Negrintsy part). There, we shortly visited the families of Oleg Melentiy and Yurie Melentiy. And from there, we went to the border point, at Mamalyga-Kriva. We spent the night at some relatives, in Beltsy.

On the 19th of April we were in Chisinau. On the 20th of April in the morning, we departed to Bricheny. There we looked for the Ukrainian school. With the help of the locals we found the school, situated farer from the centre of the town. We spoke with persons from the secretariat. They explained us where to find the editorial office of the local newspaper, in which we intended to publish our first press release. They also told us about the Ukrainian villages from the region. We also agreed to come back and to discuss with the director and the teacher of History (who couldn’t come that day to the school) about the post-war realities.

From Bricheny, we took a microbus to Lipkany and from there we went with another one to the border. We passed the border by foot and had a microbus only to Tarasautsy. From Tarasautsy, somebody took us to Boyan.

In the evening, in the hotel we discussed which next steps we had to do, where to publish the press release and how to plan our next trip to be more efficient.

On the 21st of April in the morning we went to Eleonora Bizovi. She told us about the Onega labour camp and moments from the history of the village after the war (see the first interview with her). She gave us the book about the history of Boyan, written by her husband. She recommended us to find Vasile Bota and to speak with him about deportations. He told us that he could organize for us meetings with old persons, one of them being his father-in-law, who lives in Arboreny. He showed us also some books. He 82