Tusk Announces Wall of Remembrance for Victims of the Volhynian Massacre
On the anniversary of the 1943 Bloody Sunday, Prime Minister Donald Tusk declared the construction of a Wall of Remembrance in Warsaw to honor victims of 20th-century war crimes in Ukraine....
On the anniversary of the 1943 Bloody Sunday, Prime Minister Donald Tusk declared the construction of a Wall of Remembrance in Warsaw to honor victims of 20th-century war crimes in Ukraine.
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Commitment to Historical Truth
In a video statement marking the anniversary of Bloody Sunday, Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced that a Wall of Remembrance will be erected in Warsaw. The monument will feature the names of all identified victims of 20th-century conflicts in Ukraine, specifically including those lost during the Volhynian Massacre.
The Prime Minister emphasized that memory must not serve as a tool for hatred. He argued that the response to nationalism should not be met with further nationalism, but rather with truth, which is essential for building a future free from contempt.
Resuming Exhumations
Tusk confirmed that his government has taken active steps to resume the search for and exhumation of Polish victims of the Volhynian Massacre and other wartime atrocities. He stated that the deceased deserve a dignified burial and that the state has an obligation to ensure they do not remain anonymous.
The Prime Minister noted that a reconciled Europe, built on mutual respect, was made possible only by calling historical events by their proper names. He stressed that any nation wishing to join such a community must be prepared to face these truths.
Historical Context of the Volhynian Massacre
The term “Volhynian Massacre” refers to the systematic murder of Polish civilians in the former Eastern Borderlands by Ukrainian nationalists from the OUN and UPA. The peak of these atrocities occurred on July 11, 1943, known as Bloody Sunday, when approximately 150 villages were attacked.
Historical estimates suggest that around 100,000 Poles were killed during this period, with the majority of victims being women, children, and the elderly. In 2025, the Polish Sejm established July 11 as the National Day of Remembrance for Poles who were victims of the genocide committed by the OUN and UPA.