Beata Bruggeman-Sękowska On September 17 about 1 million troops of the Red Army crossed the eastern borders of Poland starting the red invasion of Poland. It was sixteen days after Nazi Germany invaded Poland from the west. The invasion ended on 6 October 1939 with the two-way division and annexation of the entire Second […]
Ambassadors of Lithuania, H.E. Mr. Neilas Tankevičius, Latvia H.E. Ms. Aiga Liepiņa and Estonia H.E. Mr. Lauri Kuusing invite to the 3rd edition of online Baltic Film Weekend in the Netherlands which will take place from 27 till 29 January. ”The 2023 edition is devoted to the courage and resolve of Estonians, Latvians and Lithuanians whose combined […]
Beata Bruggeman-Sekowska In the heart of Warsaw, a unique institution is dedicated to saving a forgotten piece of history: neon signs. The Neon Museum is more than just an exhibition space—it’s a tribute to Cold War-era electro-graphic design and an effort to preserve the remnants of the state-driven ‘neonisation’ campaign that once illuminated the […]
Beata Bruggeman-Sękowska In June 2026, I had the opportunity to visit a fascinating museum in Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan, dedicated to the victims of Tsarist and Soviet rule. The State Museum of Memory of Victims of Repression offers a compelling insight into one of the most difficult chapters of the country’s modern history, preserving […]
Czech priests Jan Bula and Václav Drbola were honoured on May 20 during the Blessed Martyrs Under Communism conference in Rome, which highlighted the persecution of Christians under Communist regimes. The event took place ahead of their beatification on June 6 at the Brno Exhibition Centre and marked the final stage of a process lasting […]
Beata Bruggeman-Sekowska Every year, International Women’s Day is celebrated worldwide, often seen as a positive day for women’s rights and equality. For me and many others born under communism, however, March 8 carries a very different, somber meaning: a day shaped by propaganda rather than genuine emancipation. The origin of this day lies in the […]
On Friday evening, 6 March 2026, our vice-chairman, Patrick van Schie, delivered a lecture on women’s suffrage at the museum of the Maczek Memorial in Breda. This was part of the “Strijdbare vrouwen, weerbare democratie” (“Combative Women, Resilient Democracy”) activities that the Maczek Memorial is organizing in 2026 around International Women’s Day. Patrick van Schie […]
Patrick van Schie The story of a Soviet “dissident” during the Brezhnev and Andropov eras Book summary of Alexander Podrabinek, Between Prison and Freedom. Memoir of a Soviet Dissident (Indiana, 2025), 435 pp. On February 25, 1956, party leader Nikita Khrushchev denounced the widespread terror of his predecessor Joseph Stalin in a secret – but […]
Photo taken at Patarei Memorial Museum for Victims of Communism ©Beata Bruggeman-Sekowska By Beata Bruggeman-Sekowska The Estonian people fought for their independence from the Russian Empire between 1917 and 1920. Following the turmoil of World War I and the collapse of the Russian Empire, Estonia declared its independence on February 23, 1918, in Pärnu, with the manifesto […]
Maczek Memorial, Breda | March 6 | 19:30 – 21:00 (free admission) Lecture by Patrick van Schie, Vice President of the European Institute on Communist Oppression (EIOCO) and co-author of the book ‘The Liberal Struggle for Women’s Suffrage’. The foreword and introduction of the lecture will be given by Beata Bruggeman-Sekowska, Chair of the European […]
Beata Bruggeman-Sekowska Stanisława Falkus and Leopolda Ludwig belonged to the Congregation of the Sisters of the Divine Savior (Salvatorians). On 27 January 1945, they were murdered in a chapel by soldiers of the Red Army after having been sexually assaulted. Their beatification process is currently ongoing. Sister Leopolda Gertruda Ludwig SDS Leopolda Gertruda Ludwig was […]
As of 1 January 2026, Czechia has amended its Criminal Code to place the promotion of communist ideology on the same legal footing as Nazism. The change reflects the country’s historical experience with totalitarian regimes and their impact on human rights and freedoms. In a recent interview with Czech Radio, historian Kamil Nedvědický, First Deputy […]
On December 10th, the board of the European Institute on Communist Oppression and the Central and Eastern Europe Center (www.communications-unlimited.nl) held a very fruitful meeting with the board of the Maczek Memorial (https://www.maczekmemorialbreda.nl/over-ons) to discuss possibilities for further cooperation. The Maczek Memorial Breda aims, on one hand, to honor the Polish liberators for the sacrifices […]
Catholic News Agency journalist Alexey Gotovskiy published an article about Gertrude Detzel, the first laywoman from Central Asia to reach the stage of beatification. Gertrude Detzel (1903–1971) was a lay Catholic who endured decades of persecution under Soviet rule and played a vital role in keeping the faith alive in Kazakh labor camps. Deported to […]
by Patrick van Schie This year saw the publication of the second book by Lea Ypi, the Albanian author who previously wrote Free, a work about life in Albania as seen through her childhood eyes. Her new book, Indignity: A Life Reimagined, is a novelized account of her search into the life of her paternal […]
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