Artek (camp)

Artek (Cyrillic: Арте́к) is an international children center (a former Young Pioneer camp) on the Black Sea in the town of Hurzuf located on the Crimean Peninsula, near Ayu-Dag. It was established on 16 June 1925.

Artek's logo since 2015

The camp first hosted only 80 children but then grew rapidly. In 1969 it had an area of 3.2 km². The camp consisted of 150 buildings, including three medical facilities, a school, the film studio Artekfilm, three swimming pools, a stadium with a seating capacity of 7,000 and playgrounds for various other activities. Unlike most of the young pioneer camps, Artek was an all-year camp, due to the warm climate.

Artek was considered to be a privilege for Soviet children during its existence, as well as for children from other communist countries. During its heyday, 27,000 children a year vacationed at Artek. Between 1925 and 1969 the camp hosted 300,000 children including more than 13,000 children from 70 foreign countries.[1] After the breaking up of the Young Pioneers in 1991 its prestige declined, though it remained a popular vacation destination.[2]

History

Soviet era

1985 USSR stamp to the 60th anniversary of Artek

Artek consisted of a total of ten smaller camps. Each of them had its own name: Morskoi, Lazurny, Kiparisny, etc. Four of these camps (Rechnoi, Ozyorny, Lesnoi and Polevoi) made up the notable Pribrezhny complex of Artek built between 1960 and 1964. The group of architects, led by Anatoly Polyansky, that designed Pribrezhny was awarded the USSR State Prize in architecture in 1967.

Similar distinguished pioneer camps were maintained by several Soviet republics, e.g., Orlyonok in Russian SFSR and Zubryonok on Byelorussian SSR. In East Germany the Ernst Thälmann Pioneer Organisation built a pioneer camp similar to Artek in 1952 at Werbellinsee north-east of Berlin.

Sign by the road to Artek. Photo taken through window of inter-city Crimean Trolleybus (the 52 route).

2000s

The center was part of the Ukraine's State Management of Affairs.[3] 60% of visitors arrive on a state subsidized or free basis. The beneficiaries are children from low income and large families, as well as orphans, handicapped and gifted children. In 2005 full prices were in the range of 3,000-5,000 UAH, depending on the season and location. 2007 prices were from US$770 to about $2000.

In 2004 it was officially recognized by UNESCO as a site for the implementation of international projects and in particular during the UN Decade of Education (2005–2014).

2005 was the year of Artek's 80th anniversary and the camp hosted about 13,000 children in educational camps under the supervision of about 2,000 of volunteer squad leaders managed by permanent pedagogical staff of over 200 under the command of general director Olga Guzar (Ольга Владимировна Гузар).

Traditionally Artek provided a base (known as a School of Pedagogues-Organizers) for hands-on training of students of pedagogical schools. This tradition has been continued today and the camp is known as the "Humanitarian Institute 'Artek'". In 2005 students from Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Moldova and Kazakhstan were trained there.

As of late 2008 Artek was in financial trouble,[4][5][6] which was solved when the Ukrainian Parliament passed laws early February 2009 writing off more than $2 million in debt (and more in unpaid taxes), barred privatization of the camp's land and obliged government agencies to pay the expenses of 15,000 children each year.[7][8]

Artek since the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea

The 2016 New Wave Junior international contest for young pop music performers that was held in Artek.

Early in 2014 season, following the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea, the staff of the camp officially moved from Crimea to Bukovel in the Carpathian Mountains. The new center there was named International Children Center "Artek-Carpathians" and consisted of three camps "Lake", "Forest" and "Mountain."[9]

Meanwhile, the original site in Crimea remained open. In October 2014, the Russian government allocated 21 billion rubles (US$568 million) for reconstruction and development.[10] There are three ways to get to Artek: for special achievements in science, culture, sports; winning a competition of a partner organization or for an amount exceeding 80,000 rubles.

Notable visitors

Among honorary guests of Artek were:

Ahmed Ben Bella (1964)[11] Frank Borman (1969)[11][12] Leonid Brezhnev (1979)[13] Fidel Castro (1961)[11] Konstantin Chernenko (1979)[13] Yuri Gagarin (visited each year in 1961–1967)[11] Indira Gandhi (12 June 1955)[14] Einar Gerhardsen (16 June 1965)[11] André Gide (Summer 1936) Mikhail Gorbachev (1985)[15] Nazım Hikmet (1952)[14] Modibo Keïta (1965)[11] Urho Kekkonen (11 October 1962)[11] Rockwell Kent (17 October 1961)[11] Nikita Khrushchev (1956, 1958, 1964)[11][14] Sergei Korolyov (18 July 1965)[11] Samuil Marshak (1960, 1961)[11]

Jawaharlal Nehru (12 June 1955)[14] Kwame Nkrumah (1961)[11] Aleksandr Pokryshkin (April 1948, 1955)[14][16] Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1964)[11] Paul Robeson (1958)[14] Gianni Rodari (19–20 December 1963)[11] Otto Schmidt (July 1933)[17] Haile Selassie I (July 1959)[14] Lidia Skoblikova (1977)[13] Samantha Smith (July 1983)[15] Benjamin Spock (1977)[13] Willi Stoph (1958)[14] Mikhail Tal (1977)[13] Valentina Tereshkova (25 August 1965)[11] Yumjaagiin Tsedenbal (30 July 1959; 1962)[11][14] Peter Willcox (Summer 1967)[18] Lev Yashin (1974)[13] Hafez, Karim and Zein (2017), children of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.[19]

Controversy

In 2009, a criminal case was opened after several children stated they were raped in the camp.[20][21] Three deputies of the Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian parliament) and a priest are involved in this case according to BYuT Rada deputy Hryhoriy Omelchenko.[22] On 21 May 2010, a Verkhovna Rada commission investigating these allegations was disbanded after it failed to find enough evidence to proceed.[23]

See also

• Orlyonok
• Samantha Smith, the young American peace activist who visited Artek

References

1. Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd ed., Entry on Artek
2. The International Children Center Artek Archived 7 June 2014 at the Wayback Machine - Ukrainian tours
3. Information about Artek at the State Management of Affairs website Archived March 19, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
4. Yuschenko expresses concern over situation with Artek children's center Archived March 14, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, Interfax-Ukraine (January 28, 2009)
5. Cabinet Of Ministers To Initiate Granting Of Special Status To Artek's Land, Ukrainian News Agency (January 30, 2009)
6. Ukraine's government to provide funds for financing Artek on Saturday Archived March 14, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, Interfax-Ukraine (January 30, 2009)
7. Ukraine's pro-Western leaders fight over Soviet symbol, UNIAN (February 6, 2009)
8. Rada Prohibits Alienation Of Land And Property Belonging To Artek And Moloda Hvardia, Ukrainian News Agency (February 3, 2009)
9. "Artek" moved to the Carpathian Mountains and is ready to accept children May 18, 2014
10. "Ukraine Says Russia 'Robbed' UNESCO-Affiliated Artek Children's Camp". The Moscow Times. 3 April 2015. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
11. ··• МДЦ "Aртек" ·•· Хроника 60-х годов. •·· Archived July 25, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
12. Borman, Frank; Serling, Robert J. (1988). Countdown – An Autobiography. New York: W. Morrow. p. 251. ISBN 0-688-07929-6.
13. ··• МДЦ "Aртек" ·•· Хроника 70-х годов. •··
14. ··• МДЦ "Aртек" ·•· Хроника 50-х годов. •··
15. ··• МДЦ "Aртек" ·•· Хроника 80-х годов. •··
16. ··• МДЦ "Aртек" ·•· Хроника 40-х годов. •··
17. ··• МДЦ "Aртек" ·•· Хроника 30-х годов. •··
18. http://www.novayagazeta.ru/society/61648.html
19. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-family/rare-glimpse-of-assad-family-ties-to-russia-in-kids-stay-at-seaside-camp-idUSKBN1HQ2CP
20. Children are raped in Artek camp, claims Ukrainian parliamentarian, Kyiv Post (October 13, 2009)
21. Sexual assault at famous Ukraine kid camp probed, Kyiv Post (October 13, 2009)
22. There are three surnames of lawmakers in case on corruption of minors in Artek, UNIAN (October 14, 2009)
23. Rada disbands commission investigating Artek child molestation case, Kyiv Post (May 21, 2010)

External links

• The International Children Center Artek, official homepage.
• Four weeks in Artek
• Representative office of the International Children Center Artek in Kiev.