On Thursday in the Sejm, the first reading of the draft amendment of the Act on the Institute of National Memory was held, including the ban on promoting flag symbolism in Poland. Prof. Andrzej Zapalowski, associate of the Confederacy, took the level in the discussion, drawing attention to historical crimes and the request to settle the past.
Crimes to Remember
Prof. Zapalowski recalled that already over 25 years ago, as an MP, he advocated introducing appropriate legislation. He stressed that their introduction earlier could prevent contemporary dilemmas associated with commemoration of historical figures associated with the CNS and UPA. "Ukrainian Nazis murdered over 600 1000 Polish citizens – 10 percent of Polish individual losses in planet War II; over 400 1000 Jews" - he said.
The MP recalled the publication of the Jagiellonian University "OUN, UPA and the Holocaust of Jews", which describes the scale of the crimes committed on Polish judaic citizens. "Between 150 to 200 1000 Poles murdered, more than 50,000 Ukrainians, Rusins and another nationalities", he said.
Justice and exhumations alternatively of glorification
Prof. Zapalowski pointed out that presently any environments are aiming to commemorate figures associated with the CNS and UPA. "Today, monuments are being built, monuments are being tried to renew to Holocaust perpetrators, perpetrators of genocide. In the 1990s, quite a few monuments were created in Poland for bandits and criminals" - he noted.
The MP besides recalled the liquidation of the illegal flag commemoration in Hruszowice and that the exhumations carried out confirmed the deficiency of burial of UPA members here. "If the Tusk government is negotiating with Ukrainians any monuments today, then there must be exhumations! There must be a check of who lies there, not just by serviceable historians," he stressed.
Bircza – forgotten card of Polish resistance
The MP recalled 3 UPA band robberies on Bircza from 1945 to 1946, where the defences were conducted by soldiers of the AK, Peasants Battalions and Polish self-defense. He added that on the side of the Ukrainian commander they were erstwhile SS-mans, members of the German police and erstwhile soldiers of the Wehrmacht. “We request to be clear about this. This is the legacy!” he stressed. He called for the names of the defenders of Bircza to be restored to the plaque at the Grave of the Unknown Soldier.
The request to clarify the law
In the opinion of Prof. Zapalowski, amendments should be made to the content of the document, taking into account the fact that UPA attacks were taking place in Przemysl Góra in 1948. He emphasized that these activities were glorified, among others, in the Ukrainian-language diary “Our Word”.
The MP objected to plans to build a monument in the Monastira before conducting appropriate historical studies. "For the papers attest that they were those who murdered Jews and Poles...and thousands led them to the camp in Bełż and elsewhere," he added.
In conclusion, Prof. Zapalowski on behalf of the Confederate Club supported the draft amendment of the IPN Act, stressing the request to clarify and settle its hard history.
My speech present on punishment for promoting flagism in Polandhttps://t.co/ugZA5aTOj5
— Andrzej Zapalowski (@A_Zapalowski) February 6, 2025
Read more:
The forbidden truth! Ukrainian Nazis murdered 600 1000 Poles. Zapalowski about plans to commemorate banners in Poland
