MINSK, 21 February (BelTA) – The Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs regrets new plans to stage a far-right event – a so-called commemorative march – in the Polish city of Hajnowka which has a large community of ethnic Belarusians, Head of the Information and Digital Diplomacy Office of the ministry Anatoly Glaz told journalists, BelTA has learned.
“Poland recently hosted commemorative events timed to the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz-Birkenau. A Belarusian delegation also took part in those events. One of the survivors of the camp said very important and simple words: ‘Do not be indifferent!'. This is sacred for us. We will never remain indifferent about dishonoring the memory of our compatriots, glorifying war criminals, justifying murder of civilians, burning of villages and raids. There can be no other points of view in this matter,” Anatoly Glaz said.
According to him, the stance of the local authorities of Hajnowka is disturbing, as this year they have decided against opposing the far-right march on the pretext that there is no hope to succeed in the context of the current realities in Poland. “Moreover, banners glorifying one of the so-called ‘cursed soldiers' nicknamed Lupaszko have been seen hanging on house walls in [another Polish city of] Bialystok. He is notorious for carrying out punitive operations in villages with ethnic Belarusian and Lithuanian population in 1944-1945. So, glorifying Bury, Lupaszko…What's next – justifying genocide?!” Anatoly Glaz noted.
He stressed that this event cannot go unnoticed by Belarus, same as acts of vandalism against monuments to Soviet liberators in an attempt to distort the historical memory.
“We are disappointed that this is possible in a country, the citizens of which fully experienced the consequences of fascism,” Anatoly Glaz said.
He added that the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs remembers the last-year declaration of the Polish Institute of National Remembrance that said that Poland has no intention to reconsider the outcomes of the investigation of its commission in 2005 that found signs of genocide in activities of head of a bandit group Romuald Rajs, aka Bury.
“We hope that Polish authorities will stick to this position and listen to protests of Hajnowka residents who condemn this far-right march,” Anatoly Glaz said.
In January-February 1946, Romuald Rajs and his gang murdered a lot of civilians in the Bialystok region, including old people, women, and children, primarily ethnic Belarusians of Orthodox Christian faith.
Zygmunt Szendzielarz – Lupaszko – was also responsible for murder of dozens of civilians in the post-war period.
