August 24, 1956
REPATRIATION OF HOSTAGES: At 9 p.m. yesterday, the navy ship Aliakmon arrived in Piraeus from Durres, Albania, with 217 officers and men who had been taken hostage during the war against the outlaws. (…) According to an announcement from the mission that took charge of the hostages, 40 men had died in the nine concentration camps in Albania. The state of health of the survivors clearly indicates the poor treatment they received at the hands of the Albanian authorities. DESTALINIZATION: Moscow, 24 – In view of the new school year beginning next month, Soviet teachers have been told that they must not continue to exhort children to worship Stalin. The official Soviet education system newspaper advises teachers to adapt their lessons in line with the Communist Party’s decision to downplay the role of Stalin in Soviet history. (…) According to the newspaper, teachers used to explain all the achievements of the Soviet people as being the product of the «genius and wisdom of one person.» As a result, children formed a poor idea of the role played by the Communist Party and the masses in history. The article also emphasized that teachers should pay more attention to Lenin’s educational rules.
