| PWPW S.A. pays homage to the victims of the Volhynian slaughter | |
| (12-07-2017) |
The National Day of Remembrance of Victims of Genocide perpetrated by Ukrainian nationalists on the citizens of the Second Republic of Poland was held on 11 July this year for the first time in history. But it was not the first time that civilian victims of the Volhynia Crime were remembered and honoured.
Yesterday’s events in Warsaw at the Skwer Wołyński were conducted with the participation of representatives of the national government and institutions, veterans’ communities, clergymen and delegates, including Minister of National Defence, Mr Antoni Macierewicz, Head of the Office For War Veterans and Victims of Oppression, Mr Jan Józef Kasprzyk, a senator from the PiS and PR party list, Prof. Jan Żaryn, President of the Institute of National Remembrance, Mr Jarosław Szarek, President of the Law and Justice party, Mr Jarosław Kaczyński, Rev. Tadeusz Isakowicz-Zaleski.
The events were organised by:
- Office For War Veterans and Victims of Oppression,
- Institute of National Remembrance,
- Association for the Remembrance of the Victims of Crimes Perpetrated by Ukrainian Nationalists,
- Board of the Volhynia Division of the World Association of Home Army Soldiers.
A Remembrance Calling was held during the celebrations, with the guard of honour provided by the Polish Army and Bug River Area Division of the Border Guard. After that, a commemorative tablet was unveiled beside the memorial in honour of the Victims of Genocide perpetrated by Ukrainian nationalists against the citizens of the Second Republic of Poland in South-Eastern Regions of Poland in 1942-1947, and wreaths were laid.
As contribution to the commemoration of the Volhynia slaughter, the Management Board of Polish Security Printing Works S.A., represented by its President, Mr Piotr Woyciechowski, paid homage to the victims in assistance of the guard of honour – the PWPW S.A.’s guards, and laid a wreath under the memorial of the Victims of Genocide.
The picture of the harm inflicted on Polish citizens in the Eastern borderlands was detailed by a special exhibition to be seen during the ceremony.
Seventy-four years ago, on 11-12 July 1943, squads of Ukrainian nationalists from OUN-UPA units launched coordinated attacks on 150 places in the Volhynia region. The action concluded with a slaughter of Polish residents. Despite that there had been attacks before, these days are considered to be a culmination of the genocide during which about 100,000 Poles were brutally murdered – including children, women, elderly people. Entire families, entire villages were wiped out... there was no criterion for the selection of victims – all died. Murdered were also the Ukrainians who hid their Polish neighbours.