Meetings with witnesses of history

From 11 to 18 June this year, a delegation of the Museum of the Second World War in Gdansk traveled to Volyn in Ukraine for the fifth time.The main purpose of the visit was to make film recordings with witnesses of history. 16 recordings were made taking the total number completed in Volyn to 55. They include accounts from Poles, Ukrainians, Russians, and Jews.

Saving the accounts of these witnesses is treated as a priority task by the Museum of the Second World War. The group of those who remember the war is decreasing year by year due to natural causes. The film recordings include recollections from the Soviet and German occupation, the resistance movement, the crimes of Ukrainian nationalists and the extermination of Jews. Following the pattern of previous trips, a number of documentaries were also made in places important from the war.

During the visit, contacts were also established with museums in Volyn, including in Dubno, Krements, and Mlyny. The participation of delegates in the opening ceremonies of two temporary exhibitions in the museum in Dubno, where during the official part the Polish flag was raised alongside the Ukrainian flag, was particularly pleasing.

Along with the museums mentioned above, the Polish diaspora organisations in Lutsk, Berestechko, Kremenets, and Zbarazh provided help in making contact with the witnesses. The cooperation with the General Consulate in Lutsk was invaluable, where delegates could also meet with the staff there, including Wiesław Mazurek - the Polish Consul General in Lutsk.

Volyn is of great interest to the museum as an important point on the historical map of the Second World War. During the visit, we managed to acquire interesting archival and photographic materials, and we initiated cooperation which in the future may result in the organisation of conferences, exhibitions, and publications.