EIOCO partner of Cursed Soldiers celebrations in Dutch Brunssum

On March 1 the National Day of Remembrance of Cursed Soldiers is celebrated in Poland. European Institute on Communist Oppressions supported the school activities at  the Sosabowski Polish School in Dutch Brunssum about the Cursed Soldiers as our target is sharing the knowledge about the crimes of communism.  Pupils, parents and teachers gathered to honour the soldiers. ‘’Lights for the Cursed Soldiers” were lit in the school.

During an open lesson, pupils broadened their knowledge of the history of the Polish independence underground, learned about the profiles of the Cursed Soldiers and found out why they were erased from collective memory.

The Cursed Soldiers defended Poland’s independence against the communists and the Sovietisation of Poland after 1944. It is estimated that up to 300,000 people participated in the anticommunist underground until 1963, when the last of them, Józef Franczak, Lalek, was killed.

Witold Pilecki, a cavalry captain of the Polish Army and a soldier of the Home Army, fought in the anti-communist underground. He is regarded as one of the greatest Polish heroes of 20th century history. He was a prisoner and organiser of the resistance movement in the German concentration camp Auschwitz, and author of reports on the Holocaust. More here: https://eioco.nl/en/witold-pilecki-and-the-first-ever-comprehensive-report-on-nazi-germanys-auschwitz-atrocities/

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