DISINFO: Polish historical policy disrespects Belarus
SUMMARY
Radical right-wing ceremonies held in the areas densely populated by ethnic Belarusians in Poland is an open and cynical insult to the memory of the victims of the Cursed Soldiers’ gangs and an open consent to the glorification of Nazism.
There are no such memorial dates or “heroes” celebrated in Belarus who took part in the massacres of the Poles in the past. Therefore, the historical policy realised in Poland is a clear manifestation of disrespect to Belarus.
RESPONSE
The first part of this message promotes the Kremlin’s policy of historical revisionism. It accuses Poland of the “falsification and rewriting” of its history. Poland is also often presented as a supporter of Nazi ideology.
The second part of this message promotes the disinformation narrative about the hostile position of Poland on Belarus – Poland is groundlessly accused by pro-Kremlin media of active interference in domestic affairs of Belarus, having territorial claims and planning aggressive actions against this country.
The Cursed Soldiers is a term describing various anti-Communist underground resistance groups, which fought against the Communist regime up until the 1950s. On March 1, Poland commemorates the memory of the Cursed Soldiers – it is estimated that their number was between 120 and 180 thousand. The claim that the celebration of the memory about the Cursed Soldiers is the “glorification of Nazism” is historical revisionism – this resistance movement was aimed at the liberation of Poland from the Communist occupation without any connection to Nazism. There is a historical discussion taking place in Poland about the participation of particular Cursed Soldiers groups (such as the group of “Bury”) in the war crimes against the national minorities, but it does not mean that the entire Cursed Soldiers underground was involved in these crimes.
The claim that “Belarus does not celebrate the people involved in the massacres of the Poles” is not true. For example, up until the present day, the Belarusian authorities celebrate the memory of such people as Bolesław Bierut (leader of Communist Poland directly responsible for the massive post-war Stalinist repressions – there is a street named in his honour in Minsk) and Felix Dzerzhinsky (founder of the Cheka/OGPU, one of the architects of the Red Terror, which caused deaths of tens of thousands of the Poles (not to mention the countless victims across other groups incl. in then Soviet Union) – the “cult” of this person is widely promoted by the Belarusian authorities. This is unfortunately also on the rise in Russia).
See other cases promoting the message that Poland has “sympathy” to Nazis: The Polish authorities systematically rewrite history, absolving the Nazis, the Third Reich and Hitler of their sins; Poland rewrites history erasing the names of Polish soldiers, who fought against Nazism and Poland uses Russia as its external enemy, presenting it worse than the German Nazis.