Logo Polskiego Radia

Poland marks day of 'cursed' anti-communist guerrillas

PR dla Zagranicy
Nick Hodge 01.03.2013 06:30
Poland is marking its Remembrance Day of Cursed Soldiers, recalling anti-communist resistance fighters whose struggle lasted for several years after the close of World War II.

Minister
Minister of Justice Jaroslaw Gowin and President Bronislaw Komorowski paying tribute yesterday at a plaque dedicated to victims of communism on Poland's Ministry of Justice: photo - PAP/Jacek Turczyk

The so-called “cursed soldiers” were a highly taboo subject during Poland's 45-year-spell under communist rule, and if referred to, they were invariably described as “fascists” and “bandits.”

An official day of remembrance for the guerrillas was finally introduced in 2011, some 22 years after the fall of the Iron Curtain.

Among today's tributes, a ceremony involving veterans will be held at 5.30 pm at the Powazki Military Cemetery. Many guerrillas who were executed under Poland's communist regime were buried in unmarked graves in the cemetery, and a recently launched project is seeking to identify the victims.

President Bronislaw Komorowski decorated 18 veterans yesterday duriing a ceremony at the Presidential Palace.

March 1 was selected as a poignant date for the day of remembrance, as on this day in 1951, seven prominent members of post-war resistance force Freedom and Independence (WiN) were executed in Warsaw following a trial at a military court. (nh)

Print
Copyright © Polskie Radio S.A About Us Contact Us