The “Polish operation” conducted in 1937-38 has gone almost forgotten despite that it led to sentencing to death 139,835 Poles, out of which 111,091 people were murdered. Some historians estimate that the total number of victims was 140,000 – 200,000. 

“The idea behind the Rodacy ‘37 Foundation ... is to protest against such huge tragedy of the Poles, people who were murdered by the Bolsheviks only because they were Poles, protest against their remaining completely unknown, pushed to the margins of the Polish historical memory” – Mr Piotr Zychowicz said.

Prof. Nikolai Ivanov, the author of the picture album Zginęli, bo byli Polakami. Koszmar operacji polskiej NKWD 1937-1938 (They Died, Because They Were Poles. The Horror of the NKVD’s Polish Operation 1937-1938), said that the piece was key to remembering the Polish tragedy. In his view, it is a perfect publication that provides answers to all questions on the origins, course and consequences of that murderous operation.

The album also includes an original operational order, signed on 11 August 1937 in Moscow, of the then 42-years-old Nikolai Ivanovich Yezhov. The People's Commissar for Internal Affairs of the USSR and head of the NKVD in 1936–38 wrote at that time:

“The primary task of the authorities seems to be to rout anti-Soviet activity of the Polish intelligence service and completely liquidate extensive low ranks of the Polish Military Organisation focused on sabotage and insurgence, as well as the basic human resources of the Polish intelligence. ... I order to begin, as from 20 August 1937, a comprehensive operation leading to complete liquidation of field units of the Polish military organisation and its sabotage/espionage/insurgent cadres in manufacturing industry, transport, sovkhozes, kolkhozes. ... All those arrested shall be divided into two categories. The first category, to be shot, includes espionage, sabotage, verminous and uprising cadres of the Polish intelligence service. The other category includes, among others, those of them who are less active, and they shall be confined to labour camps with sentences from five to ten years”.

Mr Piotr Zychowicz reminded that order no. 00485 “launched genocide, horrendous slaughter whose victims could have included as many as 200,000 Poles”.

The Stalinist terror was called the “Yezhovshchina” after the name of Yezhov, and he himself was nicknamed “The Bloody Dwarf” due to his cruelty and only 153 cm of height.

Mr Robert Malicki – Member of the Management Board of PWPW S.A. noted that the Printing Works has been an exceptional institution that operates in order to manufacture what is the expression of the sovereignty and independence of the Polish state.

“PWPW Management Board came to the conclusion that since the rationale behind the operation of the Works is so closely related to independence, the Company has certain commitments towards those who made an immense contribution to the re-establishment of Poland’s independence. In particular towards those fading away from our memories” – Mr Robert Malicki said.

At the same time, he admitted that he himself did not know about the NKVD’s “Polish operation” in 1937-38 despite that he was interested in the history of Poland. He became aware of the extermination of the Poles in the East only last year when PWPW President – Mr Piotr Woyciechowski proposed to the Company’s Management Board to sponsor the publication of a picture album about the ordeal of the Poles. 

Mr Robert Malicki emphasised that the Works had been satisfied that it took this effort and established cooperation with other institutions and people to issue and present the “They Died, Because They Were Poles” album. “We think that those people died because they were Poles, but they died so that we could be Poles now” – Mr Robert Malicki added.

In his interview with the PAP Press Centre, he added that PWPW goes for sponspring important topics only, when you actually don’t know who else – beside the Works – could have supported such projects.

“Shortly speaking: ‘if we don’t do it, stones will cry out’” – Mr Robert Malicki emphasised. 

Publishing House with historical message

Mr Tomasz Szponder, the President of the “Rebis” Publishing House, said that he had little time to prepare the album, because it was key to make it before the 80 ^th anniversary of order 00485. “Rebis” took this challenge, because – as he explained – “this book is a very good summary of what happened in the history of the Soviet Union, in the history of Russia, as well as in the history of Poland”. President Szponder said that this challenge met “with enthusiasm” in the publishing house, because – as he judged it – “this part of the history of the Poles was one of the least known and neglected pieces of our historiography”. He also admitted that the decision was affected by personal considerations, because this topic was very close to him due to family reasons. 

The President of “Rebis” thanked Polish Security Printing Works for trust and sponsorship of the publication and to all those who contributed to its being issued.

Prof. Ivanov: “Something moves in Poland”

Prof. Nikolai Ivanov pointed out to many patriotic initiatives in Poland, including in Białystok, where he participated in the opening of the exhibition titled NKVD’s “Polish Operation” 1937-1938, organised by the Sybir Memorial Museum. On this occasion, a postage stamp “OPERACJA POLSKA – PAMIĘTAMY!” and a brochure on that topic were issued. 

He also noted that an exhibition called “NKVD’s (Anti-)Polish Operation” was opened at the Headquarters of the Post Office in Warsaw, as well as a letter addressed to Warsaw’s President by IPN President Mr Jarosław Szarek with a request to reserve in the capital city of Poland a place for a memorial dedicated to the victims of the “Polish Operation”.

It would be first such memorial in Poland, because – as Prof. Ivanov noted – “as of today, the only memorial to these victims is a birch cross in Marchlev in Ukraine, today’s Dovbysh”. The Russian historian reminded that the cross bears an inscription: “To all 200,000 of Poles don’t have their graves”.

The researcher also noted that the executioners who shot the Poles in the rear of the head were murdered themselves, among them five NKVD generals who were of Polish origin. According to him, none of those who, alongside Felix Dzerzhinsky, unleashed the Bolshevik terror survived until 1938.

He also noted the Polish Military Organisation (POW) and its head, Tadeusz Dobrzański, mentioned in Yezhov’s order, who, according to the Russian historian, switched to the Bolshevik side, changed his name to Sosnkowski, and the “Polish operation” was – as Ivanov said – “probably his idea”. In his opinion, the POW was for the NKVD a pretext for murdering the Poles also before 1937.

“The Polish Operation was the height of Polish suffering in the Soviet Union, but Polish (anti-Polish – PAP Press Office) repression extends through the entire inter-war period” – Professor Ivanov noted. Only few Polish priests survived there only because they were – as he said – “a bargaining chip in their exchange for the communists arrested in Poland”. He added that out of 3,000 communists exchanged for Polish priests “probably one hundred” survived, but – as he noted – “they survived obviously in prisons”.

According to him, in 1937 in the Soviet Union, no male aged 30-35 who had it written it his passport that he was of Polish origin, had any chances for survival, and the only solution could be probably to escape to the forest and an attempt to cross the border.

“It didn’t matter whether or not he had something in common with the Polish Military Organisation ... it was sufficient that he was a Pole” – Mr Nikolai Ivanov noted, because – he continued – “for Yezhov or for Stalin every Pole was a potential enemy”.

According to Profession Ivanov, Poland was an “ideal bogey used for unleashing terror” and make “purges”, especially after the war lost by the Bolsheviks in 1920. Mr Nikolai Ivanov also reminded large-scale military maneouvers in 1935 in the USSR with the participation of thousands of Soviet paratroopers, where the Polish army was the potential enemy. In his opinion, all this proves that Stalin was preparing for war with Poland already in the early 1930s or even before that.

The Russian historian devoted his almost entire professional career to researching and disclosing the truth about the tragedy of Polish people in the Soviet Union, and he presented the results of his work in a book titled, Zapomniane ludobójstwo. Polacy w państwie Stalina. Operacja Polska 1937-1938 (Forgotten Genocide. The Poles in Stalin’s State. The Polish Operation 1937-1938). However, according to him, representatives of 64 nationalities which lived in the USSR territory fell victim of repression in those “inhumane times”.

IPN President about coalition for remembrance

The President of the Institute of National Remembrance, Mr Jarosław Szarek said that the world “knew and didn’t know” about millions of victims of Stalin repressions. He reminded that it was time when “Western intellectuals are brought to Moscow, shown the ‘Potemkin’ image of the Soviet Union, Bolshevism; it’s fascination with the system”. He added that fascination with communism was also present in some parts for the Polish leftist intelligentsia, and Poland’s communist period was – as he put it – “several dozens of years of lying”.

At the same time, Mr Jarosław Szarek extended words of gratitude to Professor Ivanov, because – as he noted – “today (11.08.2017 – PAP Press Bureau note), due to the initiative of the Institute of National Remembrance, the Office For War Veterans and Victims of Oppression, first ever State-level ceremonies were held, with the calling of a roll of honour, with a guard of honour, with a letter and wreaths from Mr President and Ms Prime Minister, under the Monument to the Fallen and Murdered in the East in Warsaw. The IPN President noted that he called on the Warsaw residents to establish a “coalition for remembrance” about the “Polish Operation” (NKVD). In his view, such coalition was already taking shape, for example the declaration of Poczta Polska that a postage stamp “Tribute to the Victims of the Polish Operation” will be issued in 30 million pieces.

According to him, a “sea change” has occurred, but he noted that it is not targeted against Russia. “We are not anti-Russian, we are uncompromisingly anti-communist, anti-Bolshevik” – Mr Jarosław Szarek said. 

He also reminded the upcoming centenary of the victorious battle of 1920. “It was on the outskirts of Warsaw that Bolshevism was stopped; they stopped what maybe would have happened to us and to other nations of Europe conquered by Bolshevism” – he emphasised. At the same time, he noted that “several thousands of Russian soldiers fought along the Polish army in 1920, and a committee was established that addressed a beautiful appeal to the Russians”. That appeal and proclamation to the soldiers of the Red Army who marched on Warsaw noted that “a shot fired against a Pole is a shot fired to the heart of Russian freedom.”

Mr Jarosław Szarek announced that IPN would build cooperation with the Russians who “cherish freedom”. He mentioned Professor Nikolai Ivanov, Vladimir Bukowski, Natalia Gorbanieska and the group of Russians from the Memorial society, because – as he said – “they were the first to show to us, the Poles, documents on the “Polish operatian”.

Professor Ivanov about the necessary generational change in Russia

Asked by the PAP Press Centre whether “something has moved not only in Poland” in connection with the commemoration of the victims of the Bolshievik totalitarism, Professor Nikolai Ivanov judged that “in Russia, we have to wait for next generations who will be willing to revisit Stalinism”. He added that, “as long as Stalinists are living in Russia, and that generation has not left today’s Russia yet, as long as Lenin is still not buried, as long as new memorials to Stalin are build, we have to wait some time”.

Material developed in cooperation with PAP Press Centre