History

September 1 is a significant date in Polish and, indeed, world history. Although the occasion of the official launch of the re-born Kuryer Polski in 2020 will hopefully prove significant eventually, it is the memory of 1939 that is intrinsically coupled with this day in the mind of every Pole. It is the day the Second World War started with numerous German attacks on Polish-held territory.

On November 24, 1904, a pre-trial detention center and a penal prison at Rakowiecka Street in Mokotów went into service. The origins of the prison in Mokotów date back to the times of the Russian partition. After the war, it was here that, by order of the highest communist authorities, the leaders of the Polish Underground State and independence activists were imprisoned, tortured and murdered.

The village of Polonnoje has been spreading broadly on the steppes on the bank of the Chomora River for several centuries. Currently, it is perceived as a "paradise center" in the Chmielnik region. The population of this town is approximately 22,000. Certainly among them (though not many) are those who remember those tragic events that took place over 80 years ago. Back then, thousands of the region's inhabitants were shipped in freight wagons into the unknown, to the "promised land" by the Soviets. One of the thousands of exiles was my grandfather - Emanuel Oczkowski.

Historical documents confirm that the Polish people have always been associated with America. The list of great Poles who made an impact throughout the history of the United States is long. It begins with the semi-legendary “John of Kolno” who supposedly came to this continent 16 years before Columbus.

In this episode, unfortunately, another answer to the slander; this time related to the sad juxtaposition of Kotwica with the signs of neo-Nazi circles. If we do not react to this type of phenomena, and if we do not fight slanderous phrases like "Polish death camps", Poland will find itself in the perpetrator camp. The last witnesses of those days, the last heroes of the Home Army, are passing away; we owe them to defend the truth.

On August 25, 1939, the school battleship "Schleswig-Holstein" came to Gdańsk on a courtesy visit. In fact, it was a well-armed ship, prepared for a previously-planned attack on Westerplatte.

I was involved in anti-communist activities before August 1980. It was at the Science and Production Center for Energy Automation (Centrum Naukowo-Produkcyjne Automatyki Energetycznej, CNPAE) in Wrocław, where I worked as an assistant designer right after graduation.