Uno storico spiega lo spargimento di sangue tra ucraini e polacchi negli anni ’40 e la strada verso la riconciliazione
https://united24media.com/interview/a-historian-explains-the-1940s-bloodshed-between-ukrainians-and-poles-and-the-road-to-reconciliation-20304
di wook-borm
9 commenti
Finally a based mature take on this drama
Great read, thanks. I also highly encourage people to read Tim Snyder’s Reconstruction of Nations chapters 6-9. Gives tons of context to the whole conflict
TL;DR of it is:
Both sides were killing each other as far as middle-ages so if we start counting who is “more to blame” the arguments will never end. And Poland seem to pour much more time and resources into researching this topic than Ukraine(my personal suspicion, as author mentions early 2000s, is that it was not allowed during times of USSR and after the dissolution, Ukraine had different priorities)
It’s worth noting that the historian is of Ukrainian nationality, which will mean he has probably a different take on such divisive topics. I do not disagree with what he said, but it seems to be much “softer” stance than most prevalent among Polish historians and Poles in general.
Actually a decent article. I expected something much more biased seeing as it’s united24 but it’s not bad at all.
It is a good text, but ommits one fact: UPA started their activities by collaborating with Nazi. And they were killing Poles, Jews or even Ukrainians who didn’t agree with them and helped other nations.
Only after UPA declared Ukraine’s independence, their good relationship has ended.
This is why glorification of UPA or trying to put equal sign between UPA and AK disgust and angry polish people.
I agree with the author that this needs to be put behind us however to do so we need to face the facts. And the facts are that numerous, unmarked mass graves still exist in large numbers in Ukraine. Numerous Poles still live who escaped those genocides and even more live whose relatives are still waiting for a proper burial( (my wife’s family included) This is NOT history to those people and this simply needs to be respected and there is no way around it. You can’t just say it’s history, now let it go to people who actually experienced those events first hand. You might as well tell the Jewish people to get it over with with the holocaust while you’re at it.
From the article:
*”****Polish historian of Ukrainian descent*** *Igor Hałagida, a professor at the University of Gdańsk”*
I wonder how many Jewish historians of German descent tried to explain the Holocaust to Jewish people and how well was that perceived.
/s
The dispute isn’t just about Polish-Ukrainian reconciliation. Of course, something like that must happen, but it’s not the whole story, and it’s not even the main issue.
The UPA was a totalitarian armed organization that collaborated with the Nazi Germany, embraced Nazi ideology, tainted by the genocide of approximately 100,000 Poles, and, at the very least, ethnic cleansing of other nationalities: Jews, Czechs, Armenians, Lełmowskis, Boykos, and other Ruthenians.
For this reason, whether any Polish-Ukrainian reconciliation occurs or not, the UPA will never be acceptable. The UPA is a criminal nazi formation comparable to the SS. Nothing can be done about it, and the UPA must disappear, which will be required for reconciliation.
EDIT
Let me ask you this: Did Nazi Germany properly justify its wrongs committed by Jews, and was the resulting genocide of Jews justified?