A plan to celebrate Russia's World War II victory anniversary with posters of Josef Stalin has reopened fierce debate over the country's murky Soviet past.
Moscow hopes to put up the posters for the May 9 parade, the 65th anniversary of Germany's defeat, an honour denied since Stalin's crimes were publicly exposed more than half-a-century ago.
The move comes amid rising concern that Stalin is being quietly rehabilitated as memories of his reign of terror fade. Last year, old Soviet national anthem lyrics praising him were restored to a rotunda in a Moscow subway station.
The war victory came at appalling cost to the Soviet Union - at least 27 million of its citizens are estimated to have died. The toll feeds Russia's self-image as a nation of exceptional valour and any criticism of its wartime role sets off resentment.
Stalin's case is especially touchy: should Russians honour him for leading the country's glorious sacrifice or denounce him for his decades of brutal rule included sending tens of millions into labour camps?
Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov believes Stalin should get his due as the Soviet commander-in-chief.
"How did people go into the war? ... They went to war with the cry 'For the homeland! For Stalin!'," Mr Luzhkov said.
A major veterans' organisation agrees.
"The veterans of Moscow condemn repression, but at the same time value the results achieved under the command of Stalin," said Vladimir Dolgikh, head of the Moscow Public Veterans Organisation.
Moscow authorities have said there will only be a few posters of Stalin and that they will be at information booths where veterans gather for the commemorations.
However, opposition ranges from human-rights organisations to the highest levels of national power.
The Kremlin committee organising the national observances says it will not issue any Stalin posters.
President Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin have not commented on the issue but the head of Mr Putin's dominant United Russia faction in Parliament strongly denounced the plans.
"There's nothing to argue about here. Stalin was guilty in the deaths of millions of people," Boris Gryzlov said.