Baltic States Deportation
The Soviet Union conducted one of the largest mass deportations ever carried out by a communist regime. The deportations started June 14th, 1941. They were told they could bring 1 suitcase with them for the journey. Many deportees were murdered. Reasons included taking too long, talking too much, or looking at a guard the wrong way.
By June 1940, the Soviet Union had invaded all of the Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. By August, they were illegally annexed into the Soviet Union. Any resistance to Soviet rule was immediately extinguished. By absorbing the Baltic States, they thought they could prevent it.
Once the Soviet Union had control of the States, they were able to deport them. It lasted four days, and captured between 50,000 and 65,000 people. They were removed from their homes, and thrown in train cars. People who didn't cooperate were sometimes shot. Sometimes they were shot for no reason.
Many people who were deported died in transit. The conditions on the train were horrible. With around 40 people to a car, there was no room to sit, or lay down. Disease was also a problem. The cars were usually infested with rats, and disease spread quickly from car to car. Those who died on the trains were left in their place until the next train stop. The bodies were then thrown out of the train and left behind. Those who did survive the train ride had much worse coming to them.
Life in the camps was brutal. Food rations were barely enough to keep anyone alive. If you didn't meet the work quota, you'd get even less food. People who consistently didn't meet the quota slowly starved to death. People who were emaciated and on the brink of death, were labeled, "goners". They set an example for the other prisoners. If they didn't fulfill their work quotas, they'd end up like them.
Since this did take place in the Soviet Union, it was very cold. The prisoners were supplied with jackets, but most of the time it was not enough to keep them warm. If they could survive the cold, starvation, prison violence, and the heavy labor, they could still be the subject of violence from the guards.