The year 1939 was most likely forever registered to any of the most tragic pages of Polish history. Not only that the unprepared Polish state by the walsudczyk sanitization was torn apart by Nazi Germany and russian Russia in the 4th partition, it can be said that for east Poland the worst was yet to come. It was there, in Volyn and in east Małopolska, that cultural cleansing of Poles began from 1943. Murdered in a deliberate way to inflict as much pain as possible. It is safe to say that our countrymen, especially women, children and old people, could only dream of dying as our officers in Katyn and another camps at the hands of the NKVD. There was no shot in the occipital as shortly as he died. Although this genocide is being talked about more and more loudly, it is frequently referred to as OUN and UPA hatchets. And that's not precisely true. Poles were frequently killed at the hands of average Ukrainians, neighbors, chauvinists. Finally, planet War II ended and along with it the slaughter of innocents only for being Poles. In the Augustine times of the imposed communism or socialism, as many believe, outside the mainstream, cognition about both Katyn crime and genocide at the hands of Ukrainians was said and passed on. all nation must cultivate the memory of its people, especially erstwhile they died for being part of it. Subsequent generations owe them the work of learning historical truth, calling crime a crime, taking care of a dignified burial site for their remains, including commemorating their demolition sites. The memory of them cannot pass away. Otherwise, it will be an irretrievable failure of the soul of Polishness. Those who had the courage to talk loudly about our fellow countrymen, for justice and historical fact came out of the broken Polish nation under the red shoe.
One of specified steadfasts was the late Stephen Siekierka – a soldier of the National Army and Polish self-defense in Volyn, witness to genocide. He devoted his life to documenting the Volyn massacre and promoting the memory of the murdered. In the 1980s, he formed the Association of Families of Victims of Ukrainian Nationalists – the Mission of Reconciliation and Repentance, and in 1992 transformed into the Association of Memory of Victims of Ukrainian Nationalists. In the achievements of the association archive there are over 20,000 direct accounts of witnesses of the Volyn massacre and unique photographic documentation. His initiative is due to the creation of respective monuments and more than a 100 walled plaques throughout Poland, commemorating the genocide carried out at the hands of Ukrainian chauvinists. The publisher of respective books and writing “On the Rim”. The Society of Lovers of Lviv and South-East Borders in Poznań decorated it with a statue of Semper Fidelis. The Lower Silesian Seymik in turn the Cultural Award of Lower Silesia “Silesia” and in 2017 was decorated with the Officers' Cross of the Order of Polonia Revival. The Association, which he led, was awarded the IPN award “The curator of the National Memory”, which he treated as the crown of many years of activity.
He wasn't isolated. Another soldier of the National Army and commander of the Polish self-defense in Rybczyk – Colonel Jan Niewiński, even though he had come a different way after the Volyn massacre, he besides became an tireless advocate of the pursuit of historical fact and due worship to victims of genocide. It was from his initiative that a monument was created to the victims of the genocide of Poles at the hands of Ukrainian chauvinists in Warsaw. Since 1995, he has released “The Endowment Voice”. 2 years later, he organized the Forum of Kresowe and Kombatancki Organizations. In 1998, he founded the Polish National Committee of Commodities of the 55th Anniversary of Ukrainian Nationalist Genocide on the Polish Volyn and east Małopolska Population. He besides chaired the Committee at its 60th and 65th anniversary. In 1999, Jan Niewiński most likely made the most hard things – he concentrated as many as 37 border organizations in the created on his own initiative Kresowa Patrioticz Movement, which he led until 2014. In 2007, he set up the National Construction Committee of the Monument to the Victims of Genocide made by the OUN/UPA gangs. He received the dignity of the president of the Honorary Patriotic Union of Kresowe and Kombatancki Organizations as well as the president of the Social Foundation of Polish Nation Memory.
These were real, undisputed leaders not so much of a border environment, but in a much broader sense the memory spreaders of our compatriots murdered at the hands of Ukrainian chauvinists in genocide which they prepared for our peoples. Both tireless. possibly in a way rivalry, but devoted to this historical fact that has become the core of their lives. They felt it was their duty. Both Szczepan Siekierka and Colonel Jan Niewiński died after surviving 90 years. We owe them gratitude for what they did. Without them, the full end environment and the subject of genocide lost the leaders who were the driving force. Life does not like vacuum, so not so much the natural continuationrs of their activities began to appear as usurpers, who were the leaders of the Volyn massacre. possibly the organizational skills and cognition are not at the level of the late Sz. Axes or late Colonel J. Niewiński, but organizing erstwhile a year the alleged Volynski March, and for the remainder of the sale of the alleged Volynski gadgets, the origin of the livelihood is highly controversial. It is besides worth noting that the dead real leaders remembered and reminded of heroic Ukrainians who warned their Polish neighbors about the slaughter, for which they paid the highest price.
They sought not revenge, but reconciliation, but historical fact erstwhile the heirs of executioners face the fact and genocide with a name. They did not hotel to slandering the full nation, for not all were executioners during the appalling period of genocide. They didn't gotta put themselves in court for a sleazy but catchy tongue looking for applause. The most amazing thing about this is that, considering itself as the leader of the full border environment, the almost leader of the memory of genocide in Poles, the late Stephen Siekierka and Colonel Jan Niewiński calls “the traitors of the Polish nation” (sic!). Those with the initiative of monuments, ba!, over a 100 walled plaques in honor of the victims of the Volyn massacre, who were able to unite dozens of end groups, are present impertinently asking – and what they have done...
The self-appointed monopoly not only by memory, but besides by the trade of materials on the subject of the Volyn massacre, but erstwhile individual tries to sell, even at the cost of production, akin materials, he can level publically with the ground, defending like a lioness his origin of income as the 1 and the right one. Even the faithful clackers were at least disgusted.
One can get the impression that without them, no march or even a picket, especially in this subject, is allowed. It begins to paralyze the fear of public scolding that they want to organize themselves without them. specified dictatorial urges of self-proclaimed “leaders” do not combine, but divide. It is hard to explain this rationally, but erstwhile it is not known, it is frequently about money. Of this all comes 1 basic conclusion – besides much pride and not adequate humility...
Maciej Ottery
