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EN
The article discusses hitherto little-known events of a Polish–Ukrainian conflict in the north-western part of the Przemysl district (between Dynow and Przemysl) during the first months of 1945. The conflict was embittered by murders which had been committed on individual Poles in the beginning of 1945. In turn, over thirty assaults on Ukrainian people took place from February till June that year. Attacks on: Skopow village on the 27th of March (61 were killed), Brzuska on 11th of April (187 victims), Bachow (95 victims) and Malkowice (at least 116 were killed) rank among the biggest ones. At the time of other attacks amid those killed were Greek Catholic priests and the members of their households. Partly, those murders were committed to pressurize local Ukrainians into emigrating to the Soviet Ukraine within the framework of the contemporary population displacement. Both the police and the Security Service failed to ascertain and capture the perpetrators. The assaults on the Ukrainian population stopped in June 1945, probably as a result of an agreement between the underground independence movement and representatives of the local OUN–UPA structures. It is impossible to establish who committed the murders of the local Ukrainians. After having analyzed the available documents (Polish and Ukrainian), reports of the suspects who were questioned by SB officers and witness accounts and also the course of events, the author came to a conclusion that at least some of those attacks were carried out by groups of the Polish underground movement under command of Roman “Sęp” Kisiel, who during the occupation was a commandant of BCh in the Przemysl district. In autumn 1944 on the basis of his former subordinates from local posts of BCh, part of whom worked in the police, he created the People Security Service in order to protect the Polish locals. It is hard to asses the exact numbers of this organization but in July 1945 1746 people revealed themselves as its members to the chief of the WUBP in Rzeszow. The SB officers ascribed to Kisiel’s groups twelve raids that caused the deaths of over 500 people. Nevertheless he was not brought to account for that. The responsibility for some of those attacks is probably held by minor Polish robber bands or neighbouring units of the underground movement.
EN
The article is an attempt to present briefly the extent and variety of forms of help that Ukrainians being resettled from southeastern territories of Poland into the USSR (the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic) between 1944–1946 as well as during the Operation Wisła campaign in 1947 were provided with by Polish people. First of all, they were assisted by Poles in obtaining new identity cards confirming Polish nationality and also they were helped in changing the Orthodox or the Greek-Catholic Church membership into the Roman-Catholic which automatically exempted them from the relocation duty and what is more, they were not required to register for resettlement list. Polish people interceded with the authorities on behalf of the particular Ukrainian individuals who were supposed to have gone to the USRR, guaranteeing for their loyal attitude towards Poland and Polish nation during the war. According to the author’s approximate estimates, as a result of those actions, over a dozen thousands of families avoided the repatriation. When the compulsory resettlement in the USRR, starting from September 1945, was being conducted by the army, [not only did Poles offer their houses as a shelter for Ukrainians but they also interceded with commanders of the resettlement troops and committees or even paid bribes to set them free.] there were Poles who offered their homes as a shelter for Ukrainians, what is more, they interceded with commanders of the resettlement troops and committees or even paid bribes to set Ukrainian people free. Thanks to the agreement reached in 1945 (between Ukrainian Insurgent Army [UPA] and a Polish underground anti-communist organization Wolność i Niezawisłość WiN [Freedom and Independence]), in the spring of 1946, WiN members from the county of Hrubieszów provided many Ukrainian families with help hiding them among Poles of the neighbouring county of Chełm. Another important matter to be mentioned is that during the military resettlement campaign carried out in border counties of Lesko, Lubaczów, Nowy Sącz and Sanok, many public appearances of particular starosts as well as of members of local national councils (especially in counties of Sanok and Lubaczów) were being made to prevent Ukrainians and Lemkos – the most – from being relocated. Whenever those interventions failed another forms of help were used like: assistance in obtaining Polish identity cards or attempts of gaining new Ukrainian professionals considered to be indispensable for local economy. Similar efforts were being made a year later during Operation Wisła campaign, but in that case, the effects were weaker because of the fact that the authorities in Warsaw decided to expel all Ukrainians even those considered by the local administration to be loyal towards Poland as well as those of mixed families.
EN
The article presents stages of policy of Polish authorities concerning 600–700 000 members of Ukrainian minority inhabiting areas in the South-East Poland. In the discussed period that policy was undergoing a large transformation. When communists gained power in Poland they had no elaborated way of behavior. At first it was believed that the problem would solve itself after the agreement with USRR of 9 September 1944 on people exchange. However, vast majority of Ukrainians did not wish to leave their land, thus a compulsory displacement was carried out using the army, often in a brutal way. As not all Ukrainians were deported that time, in spring of 1947 large military force with militia and security service carried out „Vistula action” (Akcja „Wisła”), which officially was to do away with the armed underground of Ukrainian OUN (Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists)-UPA (Ukrainian Insurgent Army) forces. In such a way the rest of Ukrainians (about 150 000) were displaced to farms left by the Germans in northern and western Poland with no right to come back. Thus all the Ukrainian community was made responsible for actions of the underground. Almost 4000 people suspected of collaboration with the underground were placed in the Central Work Camp in Jaworzno, were they were brutally questioned. When „Vistula action” was completed, repressions against the Ukrainian community were softened and most of the people put in Jaworzno were set free. However, Ukrainians still had no chance to cultivate their religious and national traditions. Their further displacement into Soviet Ukraine was considered, but these plans were not realized. Actions of the authorities after 1950 shows gradual acceptance of a constant presence of Ukrainian community of 200 000 people and a growing awareness of their needs. Consequently, the policy considering minorities was evolving, so that material situation of the Ukrainians began to improve. Cultivating traditions within the frames of few cultural organizations and teaching in their own language was allowed, although still on the limited scale in totalitarian system. The culmination of this process were changes of 1956. The previous behavior of the authorities was criticized, issuing an own newspaper and setting up an organization to represent the interests of the minority was allowed. These changes led to equaling the situation of Ukrainian and Polish people. However, the most important postulate of Ukrainian community, that is allowing the majority of Ukrainians displaced within „Vistula action” to come back to their old farms, has not been realized.
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EN
Based on the decision dated 29 March 1947, by the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Polish Workers’ Party, Operational Group „Vistula”, consisting of 4 Polish Army divisions, a Internal Security Corps (Korpus Bezpieczeństwa Wewnętrznego) division and other formations, commenced Operation „Wisła” („Vistula”) on 20 April, which lasted until the end of July 1947. The aim of the action was to liquidate the Ukrainian underground. As part of the operation, people of Ukrainian nationality and mixed families were deported from south-eastern Poland to former German areas in the west and north of Poland. According to the author of the text, this resettlement constituted ethnic cleansing and was a communist crime. The reasoning behind this viewpoint is that there was no justification to protect the population from the threat of the Ukrainian underground because the resettlements did not cover the local Polish population. Moreover, deportations were also carried out in areas where the Ukrainian underground did not operate. For these reasons, the decision of the Institute of National Remembrance prosecutor’s office to discontinue the investigation into this matter is not justified.
DE
Auf der Grundlage des Beschlusses des Politbüros des Zentralkomitees der Polnischen Arbeiterpartei vom 29. März 1947 startete am 20. April die Operative Gruppe „Wisła” („Weichsel”) die aus 4 Divisionen der polnischen Armee, Korpus Bezpieczeństwa Wewnętrznego-Division und anderen Verbänden bestand. Sie dauerte bis Ende Juli desselben Jahres an. Ziel der Operation war es, den ukrainischen Untergrund zu liquidieren. Im Rahmen dieser Operation wurden Menschen ukrainischer Nationalität und gemischte Familien aus Südostpolen in die postdeutschen Gebiete im Westen und Norden Polens deportiert. Nach Ansicht des Verfassers des Textes erfüllte diese Umsiedlung die Kriterien einer ethnischen Säuberung und war ein kommunistisches Verbrechen. Sie lässt sich nicht mit der Notwendigkeit rechtfertigen, diese Bevölkerung vor der Bedrohung durch den ukrainischen Untergrund zu schützen, da die lokale polnische Bevölkerung von der Umsiedlung nicht betroffen war. Außerdem wurde die Deportation auch in Gebieten durchgeführt, in denen der ukrainische Untergrund nicht aktiv war. Aus diesen Gründen ist die Entscheidung der Staatsanwaltschaft des IPN, die Ermittlungen in diesem Fall einzustellen, nicht gerechtfertigt.
PL
Na podstawie decyzji Biura Politycznego Komitetu Centralnego PPR z 29 marca 1947 r. 20 kwietnia Grupa Operacyjna „Wisła”, składająca się z 4 dywizji WP, dywizji Korpusu Bezpieczeństwa Wewnętrznego i innych formacji, rozpoczęła akcję „Wisła”, trwającą do końca lipca tegoż roku. Celem akcji była likwidacja podziemia ukraińskiego. W jej ramach deportowano osoby narodowości ukraińskiej i rodziny mieszane z terenów południowo-wschodniej Polski na tereny poniemieckie na zachodzie i północy Polski. Zdaniem autora tekstu przesiedlenie to spełniało znamiona czystki etnicznej i było zbrodnią komunistyczną. Nie można jej usprawiedliwiać koniecznością ochrony tej ludności przed zagrożeniem ze strony podziemia ukraińskiego, gdyż przesiedleniem nie objęto miejscowej ludności polskiej. Ponadto deportację przeprowadzono również na terenach, gdzie podziemie ukraińskie nie operowało. Z tych powodów postanowienie prokuratury IPN o umorzeniu śledztwa w tej sprawie nie jest zasadne.
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