We cordially invite you to participate in the campaign to support the Polish High School with  Dormitory of the College of Saint Stanislaus Kostka in Warsaw, which implements the project “REPATRIATION through EDUCATION”.

For twenty years, the school has supported the return to Poland of over a thousand young people of Polish descent and their families from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Moldova, and the Eastern Borderlands.

Today, the facility needs its permanent headquarters to survive and continue supporting the process of repatriation of our compatriots from the East. We plan to build a new school using a modular system on the purchased real estate near Warsaw.

If you could buy a donation for this purpose – because you can! – please support us by paying the equivalent of USD 10 = PLN 40 to the account of the Foundation “For Polonia” (account number at the end of the article). The entire school community will be immensely grateful to you! We are confident that once you get to know us better you will be happy with your decision to support our school and your compatriots from Kazakhstan, Siberia, and the Borderlands.

 History

The Saint Stanislaus Kostka College-High School inherits the history, memorabilia, name, and banner of the pre-war Saint Stanislaus Kostka Junior High School and Male High School in Warsaw, established in 1908, back under the partition times. It was the first school where the language of instruction could be Polish with the consent of the tsar of the Russian Empire. The school was attended by students from aristocratic and landowner families and outstanding students from bourgeois and peasant families, sponsored by wealthy parents of other students.

In 1920, after regaining independence, a boarding school was established at this location for young people from the Eastern Borderlands coming to the capital of Poland.

In the pre-war period and during the war until 1944 through clandestine classes, the school educated many outstanding Poles.

In 1994, the Alumni Association of the pre-war school, as its owner, formally and solemnly handed over the name, history, banner, and memorabilia to our High School.

Achievements

For 30 years, including over 20 years of activity for Poles in the East, the high school has educated many young people who returned to Poland from distant Kazakhstan, Moldova, Siberia, Ukraine, and Belarus. We are implementing the project of “repatriation through education” to make it easier, especially for Poles from Kazakhstan, to return to Poland with their entire families, and support their assimilation.

Our students score on the Polish language exam above the national average, even though they come with a very poor knowledge of their mother tongue. They are admitted to prestigious universities such as SGH, SGGW, UW, and UJ, making their dreams come true. Over 90% of them associate their lives with Poland. Some get scholarships abroad in the USA or Great Britain.

They are eager to look for a job right after graduation and during their studies. They are hardworking and creative. They get doctorates, set up their own businesses, and pay taxes. Many of them have already started their own families, and their children are fully Polish citizens.

Whom do we educate?

My name is Biryukova Antonina. Today, I will tell you my story: it begins with the moment when, at the age of eight, my mother took me to my first lesson at the Polish center “Polonia”, located in my hometown of Pavlodar in Kazakhstan.

I can say that, without a doubt, these were the best years of my childhood! During this time, I learned a lot about the culture and traditions of my ancestors, whose roots still echo in my life. My parents have Polish roots. My father had a great-grandmother, Olga Chabowska, born in 1900, and my mother had a grandfather, Emelyan Nikitowicz Smetanski, who was born in Vinnytsia, which previously belonged to Poland.

Unfortunately, the stories of their deportation are not known to my family, and there is no information about them in the archives. Despite these obstacles, I have always been attracted to my origin, and my historical culture, and thanks to the “Polonia Center”, Polish traditions were revived in my family!

At the beginning of my journey, I participated in the children’s creative group “Jagódki”(“Blueberries), where we gave concerts at various events in memory of the homeland of our ancestors, learned Polish together, and went to the Catholic Church for masses and holidays. I think these are my favorite childhood memories. At the age of fourteen, I joined the youth vocal and choreographic group “Narcyz” (the flower of Narcissus).

There, I began to learn Polish at a higher level and I took part in the creative life of “Polonia” in all possible ways. I performed in many cities of Kazakhstan and neighboring countries. I can proudly say that we are the best team in Kazakhstan! Many interesting things are going on in our community: for example, volunteering and sporting events, general meetings, and trips to different places.

My biggest dream was to visit the homeland of my ancestors and live my life here. Recently this dream came true. I am very happy about it and I am grateful to “Polonia” and all those who helped me in this process. With great difficulty, my sister and I managed to return to our historical homeland! Now we study at St. Stanislaus Kostka High School and live in Warsaw, in the heart of Poland!

A part of my family remained in Kazakhstan. They actively participate in the life of the “Polish diaspora” and strongly support all social movements. My brother and sister have been following in our footsteps from an early age and we hope that soon our large family will be reunited in our historic homeland – Poland.

Antonina Birukova

Polska jednoczy

Strzępy wspomnień

Na dalekim stepie

A wszystko zaczęło się od polskiej kolędy

Development Plans for Our School

For 30 years, the school has been renting premises in various places in Warsaw. For the last 10 years, we have been at the private Medical Academy at 9 Bobrowiecka Street. The cost of rent is increasing every year. If the school is to preserve the pre-war priceless traditions and develop now, it must take a big step forward. This step will be to finally get our own place!

The “For Polonia” Foundation, which is the governing body of the High School, has leased a property in Józefów near Warsaw, which offers development prospects not only for the High School and the creation of a Polish Community Center there but also for the creation of a lively and interesting educational space for local children.

 The Foundation is applying for a loan to purchase the real estate and funds for the construction of a dormitory and school in a modular system. For this purpose, we ask you to please purchase donations for the creation of the Józefów Educational Town and the Polish Diaspora Educational Center, which will serve various groups of Poles from the East and the West.

Financing mechanism

After the expansion of the acquired property and the construction of a dormitory and school in a modular system (cheaper but durable), the Polish Community Center and the school will finance:

1. Tuition fees for boarding and high school for the Polish diaspora
2. From the tuition fee for primary school.
3. Educational activities for children: sensory therapy, preventive health classes, events for children
4. Kids Club on weekends.
5. Cultural events
6. Summer language courses for the Polish diaspora
7. Certified courses and exams for B1 and B2 organized by the Foundation
8. A café for mothers run by the Foundation, promotion of healthy food.
9. Kindergarten fees.

 How can you support the project? 

Please buy a donation for the establishment of the center, and your contribution to the loan payable to the account of the “For Polonia” Foundation.

All Donors will be honored with an entry on the Founders’ Board, which will be placed in the center.

Every week on Fridays, the Holy Mass is celebrated in the school chapel to bless our Donors.

For foreign deposits in Dollars:

Account: “For Polonia” Foundation, 9 Bobrowiecka Street, 00-728 Warsaw, Poland

IBAN PL 89 1240 6175 1787 0010 5894 0269

SWIFT (BIC) PKOPPLPW

For foreign payments in Euros:

Account: “For Polonia” Foundation, 9 Bobrowiecka Street, 00-728 Warsaw, Poland

IBAN PL 97 1240 6175 1978 0010 6849 1768

SWIFT (BIC) PKOPPLPW

The post Polonia School needs Help! appeared first on Polonia Institute.

established in Malmö under the name “Schuman Restituta Society”

On August 2, 2024, after almost a year of preparations, the Swedish branch of the Institute of Schuman’s Thought (IMS) – the Schuman Restituta Society – was opened in Malmö. Chairman of the Program Council and Founder of IMS, prof. Zbigniew Krysiak appointed attorney Orvin Kacprzyk as president. The inaugural lectures were delivered by: prof. Zbigniew Krysiak and Anna Wiejak, editor-in-chief of Schuman Optics Magazine.

“This is an extremely important matter, because this branch was established in an community of people and organizations very active in taking care of Poland’s image, in patriotic circles. On the eve of the opening of the branch, we unveiled a commemorative plaque on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the Warsaw Uprising. There were people there whose “father was an insurgent” – reported prof. Zbigniew Krysiak in an interview for Schuman Optics Magazine. He emphasized that this environment has important contacts with the Swedish media, which are very interested in Schuman’s model of Europe.

“Sweden as such is, on the one hand, in serious ideological destruction, but on the other hand there are many circles there, not only Poles or Polish diaspora, but also Swedish circles, who are afraid to raise their voices, but do not agree to these ideological and super-states actions. In this context, it should also be emphasized that there is a significant discrepancy between public opinion, which may be afraid to express its position loudly, and Swedish MEPs, who are, to a large extent – just like the MEPs of the Civic Platform in Poland – loyal to the interests of Germans and the interests of neocommunism” – the chairman of the IMS Program Council analyzed.

In his opinion, in this environment, the creation of a branch of the Institute of Schuman’s Thought will be an impulse to act, to build a front against Spinelli. It will create an important counterweight. “It should be emphasized here that Sweden as such has a very large potential for communicating in the world. It is very listened to in the world, and therefore also in Scandinavia – in Finland, in Norway – but also in Anglo-Saxon circles and in the United States. We hope that some ferment, which the Institute’s branch will be able to create, will have a strong echo in the world” – Prof. Krysiak said.

The name of this branch includes an accent: “Schuman Restituta Society”, which can be translated as the Institute Working for the Resurrection of Society in the Spirit of Schuman. “It is a very important emphasis on this word of ‘renewal’, ‘resurrection’, ‘awakening’, ‘extracting’ from people the sensitivities that are quite common, but they are not raised when it comes to Sweden due to a certain fear of a kind of repression.

It should also be emphasized that the Polish community in Sweden, the one that gathers around this IMS branch, has important relationships in the world, on various continents – in the United States, Australia, Europe, South America. In this context, we also see the possibility of wider publicity or influence, especially in Europe, to ‘resurrect’ this spirit of Schuman or to build and develop a social movement that will want to return Europe to the Schuman model, in various dimensions: social, economic, cultural, religious. It is about building a political community in the spirit of Schuman while maintaining the sovereignty of individual nations” – he explained.

As part of the opening ceremony of the branch of the Institute of Schuman Thought, the Institute’s authorities, in the person of prof. Zbigniew Krysiak presented nominations for the Management Board of the Malmö cell. This act was preceded by two lectures in which the emphasis was placed on the person and model of Robert Schuman, as well as on important aspects of the socio-political situation of the European Union and aspects of the Institute’s activities. They were delivered by prof. Zbigniew Krysiak and editor Anna Wiejak.

During the meeting, the gathered people engaged in a very lively discussion. “It showed that the ideological issues that Robert Schuman raises in his model are very vividly perceived from the perspective of the existing dissatisfaction with Spinelli’s ideology, neo-Marxist, gender and ecological ideology, which is implemented by various organizations, also in Sweden. This discussion showed that consolidating around Schuman can create a great counterbalance to reducing, if not eliminating, these very destructive trends” – Prof. Krysiak noted.

“We would like to thank the Swedish Polonia, especially the Polka International organization, for the invitation and willingness to cooperate. It is extremely important for us that we can build the structures of the Institute also outside the borders of our country. There is a lot of work, which was emphasized by the president Orvin Kacprzyk in a conversation with me. We hope for the soon fruits of this beautiful undertaking” – said Anna Wiejak, editor-in-chief of Schuman Optics Magazine.

She herself is fascinated by the name “Schuman Restituta Society”. “All of us at the Institute of Schuman’s Thought hope for the revival of Catholicism and the return of Europe to its Christian roots. This is the best  guarantee of peace and democracy. Without Christianity and its values, Europe is doomed to collapse” – she added. She emphasized that the person of Robert Schuman can be a bond connecting all nations of Europe, because for each nation his person has positive connotations. “I hope this will happen and that Europe will abandon the sick vision of the Trotskyist Spinelli” – she concluded.

Orvin Kacprzyk, President of the Swedish branch of the Institute of Schuman’s Thought:

Together with Elizabeth Blania-Kacprzyk and Marek Małachowski, we plan to revitalize the dormant practice of fact-based critical thinking – especially concerning matters of culture and civilization.

Owing to IMS’ prolific works and precepts, based on the conscientious and faithful preservation of Schuman’s thought, SRS is equipped to offer a powerful lens enabling unclouded vision. From our perspective, one that includes the virtues and beliefs upon which society is founded.

The challenge is to engage in a manner cognizant of the prevailing ethos, yet personally relevant to those who desire to be active stakeholders in shaping the future of the nation and union to which they belong.

∼

The opening of the IMS Swedish branch coincided with the unveiling of the commemorative plaque on the 80th anniversary of the 1944 Warsaw Uprising. Congratulations Swedish Polonia!

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Rest in Peace

With a heavy heart, Polonia Institute pays tribute to our dearest friend Gordon Black who passed away on March 21, 2024, in Fort Bragg,  California.

Gordon personified the Renaissance Man of today. A poet, teacher, and gentleman, Gordon was truly a great man. A friend of all arts, he was an actor, musician, broadcaster, promoter, and esteemed theater star.

Additionally, for well over a decade, Gordon had been hosting a classical music radio program titled “The Wondrous World of Music” at KZYX Public Radio in Mendocino County. In this program, Gordon frequently played the music of his beloved composer Frederic Chopin.  As one of his listeners put it, Gordon’s program was making “Friday mornings a delight with his dulcet tones and excellent selections of classical music.”

Above all, Gordon Black was a great Polish patriot, very dedicated to the Polish cause, and an inspirational leader to many of us.  His contribution to our community is enormous and will have a lasting impact on future generations.  The Polish American community is very proud of having Gordon Black among us.  He will live in our hearts forever.

With a heavy heart, we present one of the last poems written by Gordon Black for the New Year.

NEW YEAR

quiet in the canyon enough

to hear the whistle in the head

afar a kerthunk and there distant surf

.

that said its value is what’s not said

escape to football Rose Bowl interpret

both defenses are getting the best of it early

.

let as if life itself hangs on disambiguation

or ride the perimeters of sense in nature at repose

light withdrawing from some but not all last things

— Gordon Black

* * *

Polonia Institute

Gordon Black welcomes Polish American pianist and composer Konrad Binienda at the Opus Chamber Music Series in Mendocino in November 2023.

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We ask Americans for help in obtaining WWII reparations from Germany.

Poland – the greatest victim of Nazi Germany – is the only country not compensated for enormous losses!

This is a moral imperative to compensate Polish victims for German atrocities in WWII!

You can find this document in pdf here:  Germany owes Poland WWII Reparations!

Also see: https://poloniainstitute.net/recommended/germany-paid-reparations-to-all-ocuppied-countries-except-poland/

The post American Polonia demands WWII reparations from Germany appeared first on Polonia Institute.

not so much from “historians”

by Zbigniew Wojcik

Introduction

I know about German crimes against Poles from my parents. We still can pass on what we know about the German atrocities committed on innocent Poles from the stories told by our relatives, like our parents, who survived WWII. So far, Germany did not pay retributions for the murders and destructions they committed in Poland. Time is passing by, and only very few Poles who directly experienced WWII still live among us.

After WWII ended, during the very long occupation of Poland by the Soviets, Polish communists were interested in keeping their power in the center of Europe for what they emphasized “friendship” with Eastern Germany and avoided any publications on sensitive topics. The Soviet  Union expanded its tight hold on all Central Europe’s so-called “independent countries”, including communist East Germany.

Today, German war crimes against Jews during WWII are well known, but horrible war crimes against Poles are almost unknown to the world,  because after WWII Poland had no voice, was not independent, and Polish communists working for the Soviets had to follow the orders from Moscow. This attitude dominated Polish “historians” as most of them are the descendants of the Polish communist elite from the Soviet past.  In the last few centuries, Germans and Russians (or Soviets) conspired and worked together against Poland to control the center of Europe.

For instance, the massive murder of Poles of any standing near Sochaczew, committed by Germans within a few weeks of the invasion of Poland, was hidden by Russian/Polish communists after the war ended. The total extermination of Polish intelligentsia and patriots took place throughout all Polish territory. What is known about other small cities and villages in Poland? Not much. I know this tragic truth from talks with my parents.

It is worth noting that the National Resemblance Institute (IPN) is making significant progress towards writing the “history” into true history. For instance, IPN’s research proved beyond any doubt that Lech Walesa was a paid communist agent providing information to Soviet communists in Poland who persecuted Polish patriots during the Cold War.

Below are fragments of the interview by Zbigniew Wojcik with the US intelligence officers in 1986/87 in Kansas, about German atrocity committed on Polish people, as published in his book:  Zbigniew Wojcik, “Slaying the Soviet Beast. A True Story about How the Cold War was Won. What Next”, Liberty Hill, 2019.

 Murdering Poles of any standing near Sochaczew

“Immediately after the invasion,” said Zbyszek, “the Germans rounded up all of the Polish intellectuals, including teachers, business people, landowners, and administrators, in the area where my parents lived. They took them to the Kozuszki forest near Sochaczew where they shot and killed them all. In the surrounding areas, the Germans exterminated any Poles who were educated or who held any professional positions within Polish society. I remember seeing the ditches in the Kozuszki forest at the end of the 1950s. My father survived because he had only a seventh-grade level education. The extermination of significant Poles was so complete that nobody ever came to claim the properties they left behind, though they had families in Poland before the War. There is one explanation for this fact: families who owned or could have inherited these properties were exterminated by the Germans throughout Poland. The Germans had precise information about the Poles living around Sochaczew because they knew exactly who could be used for slave labor and who would resist. So, they started their occupation by completely eliminating Poles of any standing. 

My mother was hiding in a cellar all WWII

“What did your family do during the war?”

“My mother was almost an adult, not yet married. Throughout the war, she hid in a camouflaged cellar close to their house near Sochaczew, which is about fifty kilometers west of Warsaw. They had two cellars, a smaller one was beneath the house. The Germans were constantly looking for her. When a German asked where she was, the reply was always: “She is already in Germany.” They would capture girls for sex to produce German soldiers for Hitler. People knew this. She survived the war along with her parents. Her parents also had a goat which helped feed the children. They believed goat milk prevented tuberculosis.

The situation of the Jews, the Polish citizens,  in Sochaczew, Poland, at the beginning of the WWII

“Did your parents tell you about the situation of Jews in Poland during the occupation?”

Yes. My father told me about a Jewish girl who, I believe, was his girlfriend. My father sold food in Warsaw, buying it near Sochaczew where we lived, and transporting it into the city. So he knew about the Warsaw Ghetto. He visited this girl, who lived with her family in a small, temporary Ghetto in Sochaczew. Interestingly, he was able to easily cross the fence surrounding the Sochaczew Ghetto to get in and out. He told me that when he saw only one German guard, he could cross the fence because, when he approached, the guard turned his face in the opposite direction. But when there were two guards, he could not get into the Ghetto. In other words, the Jews were also able to get out of the Sochaczew Ghetto, but they did not want. My father warned them that they would be transported to the Warsaw Ghetto from where no one could escape. But they remained in the local Ghetto.

My father had a contact in the Polish underground military hiding in the Bolimow Forests (Lasy Bolimowskie) near Sochaczew, who told my father that they were recruiting young men to fight against the Germans. My father shared this information with the Jewish family, who also had a son who could have become a soldier in the Polish underground army. But they refused, saying they would only leave the Ghetto as a whole family. My father also told me that, for years, the Jewish communities amassed money in Swiss banks, not in Poland, and they never bought weapons for their own defense, even though they knew about the impending German invasion of Poland. They did not provide financial support to the Polish military either. The money they deposited in Swiss banks was then used by Hitler for killing. The rumor was that Jewish communities were directed by their leaders to remain passive and quiet. One day, my father’s girlfriend and her family were quietly transported to the Warsaw Ghetto. My father also said that, at the beginning of the occupation, the Germans—who were stationed around the Sochaczew area—wanted Poles to join Hitler in attacking the Soviet Union. The orders of the underground Polish army, however, were a definite “no.”

“Where did the Polish military near Sochaczew come from?”

“They were there since the beginning of the war. They were the remaining soldiers from the main 1939 campaign against the German invasion at the Battle of the Bzura River, which was obviously lost. Those troops later converted into the underground Home Army.”

“They recruited fighters, not families,” Chad noted.

“They had a military presence throughout the war.”

“My aunt, who was a small child during the war, witnessed the execution of a rich German farmer, for whom Poles worked very hard, from dawn until nighttime, every day. My aunt, this young child, also worked hard all day. One day two young men appeared with guns in the field. They first shot the dog accompanying the farmer, and then they shot the farmer.”

“How did the Germans investigate the killing?”

“They interrogated all the workers, including my aunt, the child, but everyone said they did not see or hear anything. Luckily nothing happened to them.”

“Did any members of your family fight against the Germans during the war?”

“When I was a boy, I witnessed the visit of a man from a village near Plock, which is west of Warsaw. He was, perhaps, my grandfather’s cousin or brother. He told us that after his father was arrested by the Gestapo, he sent a letter to a high-level German commander, stating he would kill Germans systematically if they do not release his father. And indeed, he shot many of them on the road between Plock and Warsaw during the war. He became a member of a military organization fighting against the Germans and he had a team of soldiers working with him. They controlled the Berlin – Warsaw route. He remained in hiding throughout the war.”

“What did the Germans do with his father?”

“He never saw his father again.”

“Were books about Jews published in Poland during Hitler’s occupation?

“Yes, I read one called ‘David Rubinowicz’s Memoir.’ From the beginning of the German occupation, a young Jewish boy wrote in his journal while he lived at home with his family. One day, his writing stopped. He and his family were transported by the Germans for extermination. His notes survived and were published after the war.” “And you read this?” “Yes, I read it all.”

     The attitude of Polish clubs in the US towards German WWII reparations

THE POLISH HERITAGE CENTER (PHC) IN TEXAS PRESENTS THE GERMAN PROPAGANDA AGAINST POLAND. IT PORTRAYS GERMANS AS THE VICTIMS OF THE POLISH GOVERNMENT AT THE END OF WWII. PHC REGRETS that millions of Germans were expelled by Poland after WWII.

THIS TYPE OF PROPAGANDA IS HOSTILE TO POLES AND POLAND. ALSO, IT STRENGTHENS GERMAN-RUSSIA COLLABORATION AGAINST POLAND.

Explanation: POLAND WAS OCCUPIED BY THE SOVIETS IMMEDIATELY AFTER WWII AND POLES WERE EXCLUDED FROM MAKING ANY DECISIONS ABOUT THEIR FUTURE AFTER THE WAR.

Also, PHC glorifies Walesa as a national hero without mentioning he was a paid communist agent working for Soviet communists, who harmed many members of the Solidarity Movement.

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Maria Szonert Binienda

It’s been 17 years already since I was called to the dying Helena Piasecka. We had never met before, so I didn’t know Helena personally. But she knew of me or rather heard about me. She knew that in 2002 I published a book in the USA under the title “World War II through Polish Eyes” that was very meaningful to her. This publication resonated widely among the Polish community in the area of ​​Cleveland, Ohio, where I have lived and where Mrs. Helena Piasecka resided after coming to the US.

I admit that my legs buckled under me when her guardian explained that Helena went through the German concentration camp in Ravensbruck, where she was subjected to terrible medical experiments. Her friend explained to me that before she dies, Ms. Piasecka wants to give me her documents and materials that describe the ordeal of her life. She wanted to entrust to me the mission of her life – to save from oblivion the terrible suffering and harm inflicted on Polish women at the hands of German torturers in the Ravensbruck Concentration Camp and to work towards an unequivocal condemnation of these barbaric crimes by the international community, in particular the German society, and achieve an authentic apology and compensation from the Germans themselves.

Our meeting was brief but very intense. Aware that her hours were numbered, Helena was very eager to meet me. Unfortunately, she couldn’t talk much anymore. She communicated with me mostly with her eyes. Her gaze was sharp, determined, and extremely penetrating, her eyes wide-opened. We spoke through her friend, who was well-prepared for my visit.

Helena had pierced me with her sharp eyes in a silent scream throughout our meeting. She would indicate with her hand what documents her friend should give me. She listened attentively to what her friend was saying to me, nodding silently with her eyes in approval. Her companion briefly told me the story of Helena, successively handing over to me clippings from various English-language newspapers with headlines about Helena illustrated with photographs of a beautiful woman.

When she came to the description of the medical torture, tears appeared in Helena’s eyes, and she began throwing herself frantically on the bed. The nurse got up from the chair and uncovered Helena’s legs to show me the scars left by the German tortures. Helena began to tremble and toss, trying to turn around to show the back of her legs. I saw huge scars running down her legs from top to bottom. The moment was dramatic. As she was uttering groans of despair, I didn’t dare to take a picture. The caregiver explained that Helena relives these tortures every day. All her life, she was covering her legs and developed a deep phobia of showing them. Still, she decided to show them to me that day.

After this traumatic experience, the caregiver handed me an additional file of previously prepared copies of articles and documents. Helena instantly fell asleep. Shaken by this experience, I thanked the caregiver and said goodbye.

The year was 2006. At that time, I was working on documenting the crimes committed by the Stalinist regime against the invincible soldiers, preparing for publication a book entitled Null and Void – Case Study on Comparative Imperialism based on the story of Halina Zwinogrodzka Junak. I duly secured all materials received from Ms. Piasecka, sent one copy of the documents to the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, and put Helena’s story aside for further study after the story of Ms. Zwinogrodzka was completed.

As I am writing these words, it is already the year 2023. I just checked whether the Holocaust Memorial Museum took proper care of the evidence of crimes against the Polish lapins from Ravensbruck that I entrusted to them. It turns out that the folder with Helena Piasecka’s documents is listed in the Museum’s collection here: https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn518597, but the materials are available only in the Museum’s library for in-person use. Helena Piasecka’s documents have not been digitized, and the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington has not properly developed the collection about the Polish women subjected to medical torturous experiments in the German Concentration Camp Ravensbruck.

After I meet with Pani Helena, I did not realize that it would be 17 years before I return to these materials… An outstanding American journalist named Norman Couisins, who dealt with the case of Polish women subjected to medical torture in Ravensbruck, wrote:

The human mind is adaptable to learning and innovating but is not adaptable to dealing with painful matters.

Maybe that’s why, after publishing the book about invincible soldiers, I did not immediately return to the story of Helena Piasecka. Then came the 2010 assassination of Polish President Lech Kaczynski in Smolensk, Russia, which turned my entire world upside down and took 13 years of my life.

It was not until the energetic actions of the government of Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki under the leadership of Minister Arkadiusz Mularczyk that brought this terrible subject of the hellish German crimes against Polish women from the resistance movement back to life. Thank you, Prime Minister Morawiecki and Minister Mularczyk, for bringing back from oblivion these horrendous crimes!

Who was Helena Piasecka?

Born in 1914 in Żuromin, about 120 kilometers northeast of Warsaw, Helena Piasecka was a teacher. She graduated from the University of Lublin before the war, majoring in teaching. In 1939, she married Edward Piasecki, an officer of the Polish Army who took part in the defensive war of 1939. He was an adjutant of the 16th Combat Artillery Regiment in Grudziądz and fought as a fire officer of the second battery of the 16th Regiment in defense of Modlin. After the September campaign, he joined the ZWZ. He was murdered in the German Auschwitz concentration camp in 1942.

Helena was arrested by the Gestapo in February 1941 for her activities in the resistance movement. She was pregnant at the time. Deported to Ravensbruck, she gave birth to two twin boys there. Unfortunately, the children died shortly after birth.

Polish women in Ravensbruck were subjected to deliberate torture aimed at their quick destruction. They were sent to hard labor and starved to death with minimal food rations. Most of them weighed only 70-78 pounds. Those who could not work were murdered.

The torture of quasi-medical experiments began in Ravensbruck in the spring of 1942. In the first round, 10 women were subjected to this torture. These experiments continued in 1943. A total of 74 Polish resistance fighters were subjected to this medical torture, at least three of whom were minors.

Helena Piasecka was summoned to this medical torture on August 15, 1943, together with her older sister Władysława Karolewska.

“Behind these doors, you will find out what awaits you!”

This was the answer of the SS man who led her to the torture room.

Seeing that she was inevitably becoming the next guinea pig, Helena resisted but was quickly overpowered and euthanized. When she woke up in the hospital room, she had a very high fever and terrible pain in her legs. It turned out that her left leg was broken in 5 places. Both legs were in plaster. During the so-called recuperation in the hospital, bed bugs got into the wounds. When the cast was removed, and she saw her legs covered in blood and bedbugs, she immediately fainted. In total, Helena was subjected to three such terrible operations.

Despite this horror, she lived to see liberation. When the Germans were fleeing Ravensbruck in 1944, Helena could not walk. Her companions of fate took her from the camp in a baby carriage. In this chaos of historical turmoil, Helena was lucky. One of the French Resistance prisoners, Violette Lecogne, took care of her. Her fiancé Robert DuCroquet was the medical doctor who undertook to treat Helena. In 1946, Helena spent six months in a French hospital under his care.

After leaving the hospital in November 1946, Helena Piasecka, together with her sister Władysława Karolewska (both pictured in 1958), testified as witnesses before the British Nuremberg Tribunal regarding medical torture used by Nazi Germany on Polish women in Ravensbruck.

According to the Nuremberg Tribunal, about 200 German doctors were involved in this criminal practice, and at least 300 knew what was happening. Only 23 doctors were prosecuted for this bestiality, and only 15 of them were convicted. Of these 15, only 7 were sentenced to death by hanging, and 5 received life sentences.

German medical experiments contributed nothing to medical science

The Nuremberg Tribunal concluded that the medical experiments carried out did nothing for the good of medicine. Not a single cure or drug was developed from these experiments. Nothing practical of any medical value was obtained from these tortures. These experiments contributed nothing to medical science.

Doctors around the world saw a mortal threat to the medical profession in the practice of medical torture, and in 1948 the World Medical Association adopted the First Amendment to the Hippocratic Oath, which has not been changed for 2000 years. German degeneracy forced the first amendment to the Hippocratic Oath in 2,000 years. It reads:

I swear that I will treat human life with the greatest respect from natural conception. Even under threat and coercion, I will not use my knowledge contrary to human law.

See also:

https://republikapolonia.pl/2023/05/31/niemy-krzyk-polki-z-ravensbruck/

The post Voiceless Shout of the Polish Lapin from Ravensbruck appeared first on Polonia Institute.

The Polish people wish you Merry Christmas

Among Poles, wherever they are in the world, the most significant, most beloved, and most beautiful holiday is Christmas Eve known as Wigilia.

Wigilia

Wigilia is a solemn celebration of the birth of Christ that begins when the first star, known as the GWIAZDKA, appears in the sky on Christmas Eve.

That is when the family members and friends gather at the Christmas table and the host begins the ceremony by sharing Opłatek with all those gathered around the white-clothed table with special vegetarian dishes. The dress code for Wigilia is strict.

The Wigilia dinner differs from other evening meals.  There is always a thin layer of hay under the white tablecloth in memory of the Godchild in the manger. An extra place is always set at the table for the unexpected guest. This belief stems from the ancient Polish adage, “A guest in the home is God in the home.”

OPŁATEK   (Oplatek)

the Polish Christmas Eve Wafer, a crumb of love, a sign of reconciliation.

Before sitting down at the white-clothed table, people break and exchange morsels of Oplatek with each other together with best wishes. Blessings, greeting, and best wishes for health, wealth, and happiness strengthen the bond of unity between family members gathered at the table.

The Oplatek, a thin wafer similar to the altar bread, is meant to remind families of the Eucharistic bread at Mass and the presence of God among us.  Oplatek symbolizes the link in the unbroken chain of One Body, One Bread, One Christ, and One Church. Oplatek also encourages forgiveness and reconciliation. The sharing of Oplatek arouses feelings of kinship, friendship, and bonding, giving us a deep sense of meaning and belonging, and strengthening our families.  The sharing of Oplatek at Wigilia enables us to connect spiritually with loved ones far away. They symbolically share with us their love and longing by sending us Oplatek for the Wigilia dinner table together with their Christmas card.

The sharing of Oplatek on Christmas Eve originated in Poland in the 10th century and by the 17th century spread widely.   The tradition of sharing “Opłatek” on Christmas Eve was part of the  Polish nobility’ culture that spread throughout the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and neighboring countries.

In the aftermath of the 19^th-century partitions of Poland by Russia, Prussia, and Austria, Oplatek gained profound patriotic meaning, as the common wish during sharing of “Opłatek” became the wish for Poland to regain its independence. 

The sharing of “Opłatek” helped the Polish people survive the German and Soviet extermination machines of the 20th century.  Sharing of Oplatek spreads beyond families and friends, reaching the workplace and public space.

Kolędy

After Wigilia dinner, the time comes to sing Polish Christmas Carols called the KOLĘDY while the children wait impatiently around the Christmas tree or CHOINKA for the Polish Santa Claus called Mikołaj who brings Christmas gifts and distributes them to the enthusiastic crowd. Polish Christmas Carols or KOLĘDY are numerous and beautiful, especially when sung in Polish parishes at PASTERKA. One of the most beloved Polish Christmas Carols is Lulajże Jezuniu. Other popular Kolędy are: Bóg się rodzi, Przybieżeli do Betlejem, Gdy śliczna Panna syna kołysała, etc. 

Pasterka

Once the presents are unpacked and properly admired, everybody goes to the Church for the midnight mass called PASTERKA, which means the Shepherds Watch. People believe that while the congregation is praying, peace descends on the snow-clad, sleeping earth. During that holy night, the humble companions of men – the domestic animals – assume voices. But only the innocent of the heart may hear them.

The post Sharing of Oplatek on Polish Christmas Eve appeared first on Polonia Institute.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2023!

We are pleased to share with you great news. Libra Institute, Inc. has just published a very important documentary entitled: The Katyń Operation 1939-1941; The struggle of American Polonia for Katyń Justice 2010-2020. 

In recognition of the significant contribution to the advancement of justice for the Katyn genocide by the participants and laureates of the Polonia Institute 2020 Competition on the History of Poland, Libra Institute is pleased to publish six award-winning papers from the 2020 Competition on the international significance of the denial of justice to the victims of Katyn. Congratulations to all authors whose essays on Katyn are published in the Katyn Operation 1939-1941!

Libra Institute, Inc.

https://www.librainstitute.org/

The post Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Libra Institute appeared first on Polonia Institute.

Polish Press Agency: Władysław Raczkiewicz was President when it became clear that the Polish government would not return to a liberated Poland, as the country was under Soviet occupation. How did he see his further mission and the continuation of a government deprived of its own state?

Prof. Marek Wierzbicki: The end of the Second World War and the decision of the Big Three to place Poland in the Soviet sphere of influence resulted in the decision by the Polish authorities in exile to remain in exile. It was recognized that there was no possibility of conducting independence activities in the homeland and that a Polish state should be created in exile.

Polish elites recreated many institutions of the Polish state, including the government and parliament. Poland outside its borders was also to be built by around half a million Poles, who decided not to return to a country ruled by the communists and to create a nation in exile. In a sense, this was the Second Republic – rescued and transferred to a different political and geographical reality. Let us remember that, in addition to state institutions, hundreds of social, cultural and political organizations of all kinds were created that had a Polish character. This is an amazing example of the continuation of independent thought and the functioning of our state.

PAP: In the shadow of his predecessor, who had held the post since September 1939, is his immediate successor August Zaleski. During his presidency, many divisions and conflicts emerged within the Polish exile, affecting the position of the President and the government. What were the reasons for this decline in the importance of Poland in exile?

Prof. Marek Wierzbicki: August Zaleski went down in memory of the Polish émigrés as a president during whose rule there was a deep split in the circle of Polish political refugees. Shortly before he died in 1947, President Raczkiewicz changed his decision. Initially, his successor was to be Prime Minister of the Polish Government Tomasz Arciszewski of the PPS, but he eventually chose former Foreign Minister August Zaleski. This was a violation of the agreements between the main political forces. This decision caused a deep division among Polish émigrés who wanted to continue the mission of sustaining the institutions of the Second Republic abroad.

It seemed that in 1954 the two conflicting currents of Polish emigration would reach a consensus on the matter and end the dispute destroying the cohesion and authority of the state in exile. The main negotiator of the agreement between Zaleski and his opponents was General Kazimierz Sosnkowski. The President stated that he would accept the agreement to resign and hand over the function of President to Sosnkowski. Soon after signing such an agreement, however, he announced his withdrawal from the Act of National Unity provisions, which deepened the divisions. A minority of exiles remained around the ‘Castle Camp’ headed by President Zaleski. Greater authority was enjoyed by the Council of Three, chaired by General Władysław Anders, Tomasz Arciszewski and Edward Raczyński. Only after the death of President Zaleski in 1972 was reconciliation possible, but the conflict proved devastating for the Polish exile. Zaleski decided to extend his term of office. He held the office for 25 years. He reasoned that this was the best solution for the Polish raison d’état and that, with a sense of responsibility for the state, he could not resign his office.

PAP: His successor, Stanisław Ostrowski, was sworn in in 1972, when the generation symbolized by, among others, General Anders, who had died two years earlier, was passing away. What was the position of the new President under these circumstances?

Prof. Marek Wierzbicki: The first half of the 1970s was a period of deepening crisis in Polish emigration. After the Millennium celebrations in 1966, divisions among the Polish exile were strengthening. The support of the younger generation, which had grown up in Britain and other countries of the world, assimilating more and more strongly into the societies of the countries of settlement, was diminishing. Stanisław Ostrowski, therefore, did not have as much authority among Polish émigrés as his predecessors. He was, however, credited with reconciling the feuding currents, which in 1973 established cooperation by forming a joint government. As a result, President Ostrowski led the entire independence camp until the end of his term.

The situation of Polish emigration began to change for the better in 1976, with the emergence of organized anti-communist opposition in Poland. The election of Karol Wojtyła to the papal throne in 1978 and the creation of Solidarity in 1980 also provided a huge impetus for the revival of Polish emigration. The Polish political emigration became the spokesperson of the “Solidarity” movement abroad and represented the whole nation fighting against communism. There was also a growing interest in world public opinion in the Polish independence emigration, which had been experiencing a revival since the end of Ostrowski’s term.

 PAP: It is most often mentioned that the task of the presidents of the Polish Republic in exile was to preserve the symbols of the Second Republic. Other tasks they performed are less often remembered. What initiatives did the presidents of the Republic of Poland in exile undertake beyond their symbolic function?

Prof. Marek Wierzbicki: They possessed authority and power, assured by the April Constitution, which – although in the conditions of separation from the country, it had a limited and largely symbolic character – gave the Presidents of the Second Republic enormous powers. The government in charge of various Polish institutions in exile operated under the President’s control. Various institutions and social, political and cultural organizations were also subordinate to him. One of these was the National Treasury, which, through its structures in many countries around the world, collected funds for the activities of the Polish Government. These contributions made it possible for Polish institutions to function modestly, as well as schools and scouting, among others. Still, they ensured that they remained independent and autonomous from foreign political centers. All these institutions also educated in a patriotic spirit and took great care to preserve the Polish language and knowledge of Polish history. These activities maintained Polish national identity and an awareness of the independence mission of political exile.

PAP: A feature uniting the first three presidents of the Second Republic in exile is that they held important political posts already in the inter-war period. What other features did Raczkiewicz, Zaleski and Ostrowski have in common?

Prof. Marek Wierzbicki: They came from a generation that had fought for an independent Poland during their youth and then built an independent country in the inter-war period. They received a very strong patriotic upbringing, and it was patriotism that they shared. They were also united by an awareness of the Polish raison d’état. They understood the critical role of the state, even if it functioned in exile. Its existence and the safekeeping of the insignia of power were of colossal importance for the preservation of the tradition of Polish sovereignty.

I think that focusing on concern for the Polish state and its continuity of functioning and even symbolic activity in exile helped to give direction to their political action and made the emigration realize that the overriding goal was to rebuild an independent Polish state. The independence regained in 1918 determined the fate of successive generations of Poles throughout the 20th century, and emigration was the continuation of the independent Polish state – the Second Republic and Polish political thought, which placed the existence of statehood as a necessary condition for the survival and development of the Polish nation.

Interviewed by Michał Szukała

The ashes of Polish presidents in exile to rest in the Temple of Divine Providence

The presidents of the Polish Republic in exile – Władysław Raczkiewicz, August Zaleski, and Stanisław Ostrowski – will be buried in the Temple of Divine Providence in Warsaw. Their resting place will be the Mausoleum of the Presidents of the Republic of Poland. The reburial will be attended by President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki.

On Saturday at around 1:00 p.m., a government plane carrying the remains of Polish Presidents Władysław Raczkiewicz, August Zaleski, and Stanisław Ostrowski will land at Warsaw’s military airport. On the tarmac, the coffins will be greeted by the Representative Regiment of the Polish Army, representatives of the authorities, and the clergy.

At 2:00 p.m., the funeral procession will set off for the Temple of Divine Providence in Wilanów. An hour later, a funeral Mass will begin, presided over by Archbishop Stanisław Gądecki, President of the Polish Bishops’ Conference. The sermon will be delivered by the Metropolitan Archbishop of Warsaw, Cardinal Kazimierz Nycz. After the Mass, President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki will give speeches.

At 4:45 p.m. in the Mausoleum of the Presidents of Poland, the coffins will be placed in the sarcophagi, preceded by a salute of honor. The bells of churches throughout the Warsaw metropolis will also ring out.

Immediately after the funeral ceremonies, a Memorial Chamber will be opened to the public, presenting the achievements of the continuators of the Second Republic in exile. The Institute of National Remembrance has prepared the exhibition. “The Chamber of Remembrance serves to recall the figures of the presidents of the Polish Republic in exile, the times in which they had to act, and the challenges they tried to meet,” said Elżbieta Duda, deputy director of the Office of National Education at the IPN, told a press conference at the Divine Providence Centre on Tuesday.

The showcases depicting the figures of the presidents in exile will feature original photographs and documents from the period when they served as heads of state and from their earlier activities. Among the artifacts on display will be memorabilia relating to the last President of the Second Republic, Ignacy Mościcki, the passport and ID card of a health officer from 1944 belonging to Stanisław Ostrowski, the seal of President Kazimierz Sabbat and a gorget donated on September 4, 2004, to Ryszard Kaczorowski on the occasion of his 85th birthday. A special place will be given to a copy of the presidential pennant, which flew over the Royal Castle from 1926 to 1939 and was evacuated with the Polish authorities in September 1939. A multimedia screen will show a film dedicated to all presidents in exile.

The office of the Presidents of the Republic in 1939-90 was held successively by Władysław Raczkiewicz, August Zaleski, Stanisław Ostrowski, Edward Raczyński, Kazimierz Sabbat and Ryszard Kaczorowski. The remains of the first three presidents will be brought to Poland, and they have been laid to rest at the Polish Airmen’s Cemetery in Newark, UK. Prime Minister Władysław Sikorski was also laid to rest in the Newark cemetery until 1993. They will rest in the newly created Mausoleum of the Presidents of the Republic of Poland in Exile at the Temple of Divine Providence. Also buried in the Mausoleum of the Presidents of the Republic of Poland in Exile will be Ryszard Kaczorowski and his wife. They now rest in the Pantheon of Great Poles in the Temple of Divine Providence. There will also be two cenotaphs in the Mausoleum, symbolically commemorating Presidents Edward Raczyński, who died in 1993 and is buried on the family estate in Rogalin, and Kazimierz Sabbat, who, per his family’s wishes, is buried in Gunnersbury Cemetery in London.

The ceremonies at the Temple of Divine Providence mark the culmination of the farewell to the presidents resting in Newark, UK, which took place on November 6th. The cemetery, the largest necropolis of Polish aviators in the UK, was where the first three Polish presidents in exile rested. They were exhumed on November 3rd, but their symbolic graves will remain in the Newark cemetery. As Wojciech Labuda, the Prime Minister’s Plenipotentiary for the Protection of Places of Remembrance, stressed on Tuesday, the funeral at the Temple of Divine Providence will also culminate in the celebrations of the centenary of Poland’s regaining of independence. “We crown it with the burial of three Presidents in exile. The centenary of independence is half a century of Poland outside Poland, of Poland in exile, and today the presidents of that Poland are returning to the homeland,” he stressed.

On November 6th, a Mass for the late Presidents of the Second Republic of Poland was held at Newark’s St Mary Magdalene Parish Church. During an official farewell ceremony at Newark City Hall, the Mayor of Newark-on-Trent received the Guardian of Places of National Remembrance honor awarded by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage for the care of places of national remembrance.

As emphasized by the Foundation “Aid to Poles in the East”, which organizes these ceremonies, the bringing back to Poland of the remains of the Presidents of the Republic of Poland in exile crowns the centenary celebrations of Poland’s regaining of independence. The Polish Government-in-exile was the legal continuation of the system of government of the Second Republic. Under the 1935 Constitution, President Ignacy Mościcki, after his internment in Romania, handed over his office first to Bolesław Wieniawa-Długoszowski and, after his resignation – due to opposition from the governments of France, Great Britain, and General Władysław Sikorski – to Władysław Raczkiewicz, who was sworn in on September 30, 1939. He limited his powers under the so-called ‘Paris Agreement’ with Prime Minister Władysław Sikorski. In June 1940, after the defeat of France, the government moved its headquarters from Angers to London. By July 1945, the Polish Government-in-exile had almost full recognition from the United Nations, apart from the Soviet Union, which broke off relations with Poland in 1943.

President Raczkiewicz held his office until he died in 1947. By his decision, August Zaleski, former Foreign Minister, took over, and after seven years, Zaleski’s term of office was extended indefinitely. Some émigré politicians, including General Władysław Anders and General Bór-Komorowski, formally disobeyed him. On the wave of protests, the Council of Three was formed in 1954 (composed of Gen. Anders, Tomasz Arciszewski, and, after his death, General Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski and Edward Raczyński). Contrary to the Constitution, Zaleski sat in the presidential seat for 25 years. The matter was only resolved after his death in 1972, when his designated successor, Stanisław Ostrowski, was duly recognized.

Following his earlier announcement, he handed over the office of President of Poland to his successor, Edward Raczyński, on April 8, 1979, at the end of his seven-year term. At the age of 88, he assumed the office of President of the Republic of Poland. He held this office until 1986, all the time meeting in London with opposition activists arriving from Poland. Edward Raczyński died on July 30, 1993, in London.

On April 8, 1986, Kazimierz Sabbat was sworn in as President. In his first speech, he stressed that he aimed to preserve the legal continuity of the sovereign Republic based on the 1935 Constitution and the duty to proclaim a full independence program. Given the changes of 1989, it seemed that he would be the last President in exile. He died on July 19, 1989, exactly when Wojciech Jaruzelski was elected President of the People’s Republic of Poland in Warsaw. On the same day, Ryszard Kaczorowski, an exiled scouting activist, was sworn in.

He held the post for only a year and a half. On December 22, 1990, during a ceremony at the Royal Castle in Warsaw, accompanied by the delegate of the government in exile to Germany, Wincenty Broniwój-Orliński, Kaczorowski handed over the insignia of power, including the Order of the White Eagle, to the first freely elected President, Lech Wałęsa.

The decision to hand over the presidential insignia to Wałęsa was highly controversial. The émigré circles approached the Round Table arrangements with distrust. Kaczorowski left London for a shrine in Lourdes, France, and there decided for his to travel to Warsaw. In the years that followed, he was a symbol of the continuity of Polish statehood. He was laid to rest in the Temple of Divine Providence as “the last President of the Second Republic”.

The intention to bring the remains of the three presidents of the Second Republic in exile to Poland was announced on October 30th by Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki. “The ceremonial burial at the Temple of Divine Providence will be a symbolic closure of their forced exile,” Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said in his podcast. He described the Presidents-in-Exile as “depositors of Polish sovereignty who carried hope to Poles scattered around the world, but also to compatriots who resisted communism at home in various ways”. He stressed that they aimed to ensure the continuity of independent Polish statehood.

The initiative to bury the remains of the Presidents of the Second Republic of Poland in the Temple of Divine Providence is being carried out by the Foundation “Aid to Poles in the East” in cooperation with the Chancellery of the Prime Minister, the Institute of National Remembrance, the Divine Providence Centre, the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Office of the “Niepodległa” Programme. (PAP)

Author: Michał Szukała

Jan Dziedziczak: The Polish presidents who cared about the continuity of statehood for decades are returning to free Poland

The Government Plenipotentiary for Polonia and Poles Abroad Jan Dziedziczak, told TVP Info about Saturday’s ceremony for the reburial of the presidents of the Second Republic in exile Władysław Raczkiewicz, August Zaleski, and Stanisław Ostrowski, whose remains were brought to the country on the initiative of Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki. “Returning are the presidents who for decades took care of the continuity of Poland’s legitimate authorities, that the head of state was represented at all times per the rules of a free, independent Poland, the Second Republic. Let us remember the presidency in exile began in 1939. It was provided for by the provisions of the Constitution of the Second Republic. Initially, the first year – was in France, then from 1940 to 1990 out of London. Fifty years of the presence of Polish legal authorities in London”, he recalled.

According to Dziedziczak, “the events surrounding the presidents’ return to the country have several dimensions”.

“First and foremost, free, independent democratic Poland today in the 21st century makes it clear who is right, who was identified with whom. One identified with those legitimate presidents acting based on a Constitution adopted by a parliament elected by the Polish people, not those imposed by Soviet tanks. This is the first thing, but the second is the educational and informational dimension. For example, our conversation today www.misjawolnapolska.pl prepared especially for these celebrations, educational competitions, or the return of this history to school textbooks. Finally, the subject of history and the present, which makes young people familiar with the history of recent decades, which concerns us the most,” he said.

The Government Plenipotentiary for Polonia and Poles Abroad admitted that bringing the remains of the presidents to Poland was a pervasive operation. “We had to communicate diplomatically and with our compatriots there in London because we treat them subjectively as a partner, i.e., with their families, with the British side. And with us at home, the question of talks with the Office of the President, because they are, after all, our present President’s predecessors with us today at the ceremonies. It’s a question of talks with the military, the full ceremonial aspect that belongs to the head of state. Finally, it is a question of talks with the Temple of Divine Providence and the creation of a mausoleum worthy of the head of the Polish state,” he concluded.

Author: Michał Szukała

For the Polish original text, please see:

https://www.pap.pl/aktualnosci/news%2C1477571%2Cprof-wierzbicki-trzej-prezydenci-rp-na-uchodzstwie-byli-z-pokolenia-ktore

The post Three Polish WWII Presidents-in-exile honored by Poland appeared first on Polonia Institute.

1. Untrue statements about Poland in Polish Heritage Center at  Panna Maria, Texas

1.1.  Accusing Poland of expelling millions of Germans at the end of WWII.  In July 2022, I took a trip to the Polish Heritage Center at  Panna Maria, organized and scheduled by the Convention of the American Council for Polish Culture (ACPC), held in San Antonio, Texas.  One of the exhibits in the Center accuses Poland of expelling millions of Germans at the end of WWII. The exhibit entitled ‘REFUGEES, EXPULSION, RELOCATION  (Fig.1) says: “… Poland ultimately expelled four million of five million Germans who had not already fled west. …” Not every visitor would know that it was the Soviet Red Army, who,  at the end of WWII, pushed Germans west and then the Soviet authorities governed its occupied territories. Poland did not have its own independent government at that time. Poland only switched hands after WWII: Poland found itself under Soviet occupation. After WWII, the Polish puppet government was nominated by Moscow, and this way all orders made on the territory of Poland were the Soviet Union’s decisions enforced by their military presence in Poland. The Soviet Union did many atrocities under Stalin’s iron hand. The accusation that Poland expelled Germans after the second world war should not be presented as a part of the Polish Heritage Center. More emphasis should be put on the barbarian treatment of Poles by Germans during WWII though. Instead of antagonizing Germans against Poles by making untrue accusations, a statement about the Katyń massacre of Polish officers, which was ordered by Stalin during WWII would be a better illustration of crimes committed on innocent Poles by both Germans and Russians. By the way, there were Germans who uncovered the massive graves in Katyn and let the world know about the Soviet Union’s crime.

Fig.1  Exhibition in Panna Maria Polish Heritage Center telling that Poland expelled millions of Germans

1.2. A big Polish city, Białystok, is located outside of Polish territory on the map prepared by the Polish Heritage Center, see Fig.2. Białystok is a Polish city.

  Fig.2. Białystok, a big Polish city, located outside of Poland on the exhibit in Panna Maria

1.3. Lech Wałęsa, found to be a communist agent by the National Resemblance Institute (IPN),  is depicted as a Polish hero.  On June 7, 2022, during the meeting in Houston organized by Polonia with top IPN representatives,  the president of IPN, K. Nawrocki admitted in public that it is beyond any doubt that Lech Wałęsa acted as a paid secret communist agent during the Cold War. IPN is the top historical institute in Poland, studying communist crimes. See also literature [4,5,6,7] on the topic. Interestingly, even Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and Pope John Paul II greeted the communist agent Lech Wałęsa who pretended to be a great Polish patriot [4]. Why was Wałęsa’s agential game important to keep it alive and even to reward it by Nobel Price? Read the literature attached for explanations, especially [7], because nothing else can explain well the contradiction between Wałęsa’s version and the historical truth stated by the IPN and its professors.

For instance, the historical truth is, that the most significant event in the Lenin Shipyard in Gdańsk in Aug 1980 was not just the workers’ protest. It was a communist provocation directed by the communist agent, Lech Wałęsa [5,7]. Anti-communist protests were growing in Poland after the first visit of Pope John Paul II in 1979, and the communists had to control them. The total control through their man, Lech Wałęsa, was the solution [5]. The massive killing of workers was avoided, compare this event to the massacre in Gdańsk in December 1970.

The exhibit in Fig.3 tells that Walesa was detained. Historical study show [5], that on Dec. 13, 1981, Wałęsa was transported from his apartment to a government palace in Chylice near Warsaw [5]. Top communists in Poland told him he was on an invitation by the government [5]. Then, he was moved to the government palace in Otwock, and then to a luxury hotel in Arłamów, the southeast part of Poland. There were no limits on visits. During about 11 months of stay in Arłamów he consumed, sometimes alone, hundreds of bottles of alcohol and over 1000 bottles of beer. He was surrounded by government service people, not by prisoner service or police. Compare this Walesa’s detention to six days of continuous torture and finally murder of the true hero, Father Jerzy Popieluszko, who truly opposed the communist rules in Poland [7]. Walesa declared his support for the communists multiple times. The Arłamów style detention was the process of fabricating the “legend” about Lech Walesa [5], accepted currently by the Panna Maria Center as evidence that Walesa was the national Polish hero (Fig.3). Communism is a very sophisticated system.

2. Deliberate ignorance of the historical study completed by the National Resemblance Institute (IPN)

Many people in America and in Poland like the confusing legend about Lech Wałęsa, not the historical truth. There are also strategic political reasons for ignoring the historical truth about the uncomfortable Wałęsa’s past. Below are the circumstances of collecting material for this article and explanations of the political reasons for ignoring historical findings of the IPN.

A Polonia club in a big city in Texas delegated me for the ACPC Convention. I attended the Convention and then I wrote a report. The club rejected my report in which I described the findings about the exhibit with Lech Wałęsa, despite the main bylaw specifying the objective and purpose of the club: “to encourage and further knowledge of Polish history, … current affairs, and local events… through any and all appropriate means.” The club’s bylaw also specifies the duties of the club Directors (I play this role): “Perform any and all duties imposed on them collectively or individually by law, by the articles of incorporation, or by these bylaws”.

 Fig.3. Exhibit in Panna Maria promoting Lech Wałęsa’s story, not Polish National Resemblance Institute (IPN) version of  the historical truth on the communist agent known as Bolek

During a Texas club meeting in Aug. 2022, I was stopped when I was talking about Lech Wałęsa. My audio was disconnected so that other Directors of the club meeting could not further hear my speech.  The club’s  President admitted that she pushed the button and then reprimanded me for telling the historical truth about this well-known Polish politician. This action discouraged and disturbed the distribution of knowledge about current affairs, specifically about the historical exhibition at the Polish Heritage Center in Panna Maria.

In my report from the Convention, I attempted to further my knowledge about historical exhibits in Panna Maria that differed from the official historical knowledge which resulted from the study by the National Resemblance Institute (IPN), a top Polish historical institution, and no mention was available in the Polish Heritage Center that the IPN’s historical version is very different. Disconnecting my speech from the audience is a violation of the underlying club’s bylaw. The president also violated the US Constitution protecting the freedom of speech.

 What is the true political reason for this Polonia club’s attitude?  Why telling truth in a Polish club about Lech Wałęsa’s past is forbidden? Why a Polish club violates its own basic objectives listed in its bylaw?

Before the club’s meeting, I wrote to the vice-president a message with my clarifications of the problem I saw in Panna Maria, and she replied. The vice-president’s explanations only deepen the conspiracy.  My message was:

 “A very strong political campaign is underway to build the German Empire under the name of the European Union. A lot of people living in Poland want to be the inhabitants of Europe (read the German Empire). The whole political opposition in Poland under the direction of Donald Tusk is an enemy of Poland because of working for the construction of the German Empire.

Current tensions about funds that Poland should receive from the Union are aimed at forcing Poland to accept Germany’s supremacy. For that purpose, there are pressures on the activities of Polonia organizations abroad to gradually eliminate the sense of people of Polish origin to the cultural heritage from their country of origin, because as far as I know, Poland’s foreign affairs are conducted, among others by the Senate, which is controlled by the opposition.

People reading information about Lech Wałęsa, who know the truth given by the Institute of National Remembrance, can be disgusted not only with Wałęsa but also with Poles recognizing the communist agent as a great national hero. There is evidence that Wałęsa gave up patriots to persecute by communist torturers and took money for it.

Hence the financial contribution of Poland to the Center of Panna Maria is, I think, focused on making the exhibition with a dubious historical value, for the construction of the future German Empire. Has this political background influenced the content of the exhibitions? Is this a political speculation? The facts are and they should be explained.  Should we be afraid of the truth?”

The Polonia club activist replied. Here is the excerpt of the activist’s answer: “Zbyszek, I know all this, and I agree with the merits. I disagree with the methods. If I preached my views to the right and left, I would never have been running a magazine dedicated to Polish culture outside the country for so many years, and I am the editor-in-chief of Polish writings abroad for 19 years. I would lose energy on a political fight, not work. I would never create such a great archive of Polish culture abroad, which is served to scientists and to researchers. I would have enemies at every step I make. And, as Młynarski sang, ‘I just do my own’.  Truth is one thing and diplomacy is another. One will reach out further by working diplomatically without burning out all bridges behind. …”

As I understand, the Polonia activist knows everything about the mechanisms of struggles to include Poland in the future German Empire and does everything to be a significant part of the new European power. Panna Maria organization also needs funds from Poland and gets support, not for free.

Interestingly, also the organization ACPC promotes the untrue Lech Wałęsa’s legend by assisting him during his visit to America (compare Fig. 4).

Fig.4.  ACPC President assisting Lech Wałęsa during his visit to America. No information about historical study findings  by the National Resemblance Institute that Wałęsa was the paid communist agent working against the Polish people.

3. Missing Polish History Library in the Polish Heritage Center

I live in Texas and have heard about the library and archives in Panna Maria. A few friends of Polish origin donated to the Center a lot of books on Polish history and culture. The Polish Heritage Center’s Library & Archives was not presented during the ACPC trip. This library would promote Polish traditions and Polish history, there is no obvious reason to hide it.

 During the ACPC Convention, I heard a great speech delivered by the Consul General from Houston. The Consul proposed a network of cooperation of the Polish Heritage Center in Texas with Chicago, Milwaukee, and other similar places to keep Polish culture thriving in America. The library would be a good starting point for the Consul’s proposed network of cooperation of Polish Heritage Center Texas with other similar places. Archives could be shared through the Internet. As no information about the library was passed to ACPC during the trip, the participants were not given an opportunity to provide ideas about possible future usage and popularization of the library.

Instead, the trip involved the show of longhorns, the bulls existing in Spanish/Mexican agriculture, not a Polish one.

Panna Maria Heritage Center can be a strong point in the future if it is directed and operated wisely without exhibiting anti-Polish accents, despite the fact that too many Polish organizations operating in America are far from promoting the true history of Poland as researched by qualified Polish professors and institutions, as evidenced by promoting Lech Wałęsa as a Polish hero without even mentioning any controversies (see Fig.3).

                                                             References

[1]. T. Lindsay Baker, “The Polish Texans”, The University of Texas, Institute of Texans Cultures, San Antonio, 1982.

[2].  T. Lindsay Baker, “The First Polish Americans. Silesian Settlement in Texas, Texas A&M University Press, 1996.

[3]. https://pactx.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/San-Jacinto-Monument.pdf

[4]. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4175204/Writing-experts-say-Lech-Walesa-Russian-secret-agent.html

[5] Sławomir Cenckiewicz “Wałęsa, Człowiek z teczki” (“Wałęsa, the man from the folder”), Zysk i S-ka Wydawnictwo, 2012.

[6] “Wałęsa, also known as “Bolek”. Communist Terror in Poland under the Shield of Solidarity”,  by Zbigniew Wojcik http://poloniainstitute.net/recommended/walesa-also-known-as-bolek/

[7] Zbigniew Wojcik, “Slaying the Soviet Beast. A True Story about How the Cold War was Won. What Next”, Liberty Hill, 2019

[8] “The Polish Heritage Center in Panna Maria, Texas, is of World Significance for All Polish Immigrants”, by Zbigniew Wojcik, 2020, http://poloniainstitute.net/polish-diaspora/the-polish-heritage-center-in-panna-maria-texas-is-of-world-significance-for-all-polish-immigrants/

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