Guest from Warsaw: Polish authorities’ attempts to rewrite history should never yield result

Yaroslaw Augustina, from the Polish Society of WWII Veterans, has come to Belarus from Warsaw to attend an event dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Lenino

The man follows Poland's attempts to forget military history with pain in his heart. “I feel very bad about it. It is impossible to divide the blood that was shed for a common victory in the east and in the west. From here, from Belarus, soldiers went to liberate Poland. The fraternity with Belarusians, Russians and Poles began from that battle, in which Polish soldiers of the 1st Polish Infantry Division named after Tadeusz Kosciuszko took part. We fought together against Hitler. We must not allow young people to forget this. Actually, the policy of our authorities is aimed at this now. Schoolchildren receive false information, and this all is being done to make people forget the historical facts, the war. The latter is talked about very little [in Poland]. Belarus is indicative in this regard: memory is cherished here,” he said.

Yaroslaw noted that many people gathered in Lenino, though this is a small town, “Guests have come here with certain emotions and thoughts. Many feel pain in their hearts. In Poland, monuments are being demolished, and it’s terrible to observe this. What can we do? We can only establish a dialogue, because we are friendly peoples.”

The foreigner added that Poles know little of Belarus, “Our propaganda works in such a way that a false vision of your country is formed: it is represented as a poor state. However, on coming here, I have understood that it’s not true. Belarus is clean, cozy and beautiful. What we have seen contradicts what the authorities are trying to impose on us.”