Celebrations related to the official opening of the Siberian Memorial Museum – a nationwide cultural institution presenting, among others, the issue of deporting Poles to the East. The first visitors can see the exhibition from Saturday.
The opening ceremonies took place on the 82nd anniversary of the Soviet attack on Poland and the National Sybirak Day. They were attended, among others, by President of the Republic of Poland Andrzej Duda, head of the Ministry of Culture Piotr Gliński, Białystok authorities, Sybiraks.
The Siberian Memorial Museum was established four years ago. Its final headquarters was established at the end of 2019, based on old military warehouses.
The museum is a three-storey complex with an area of 5.5 thousand sq m, which – apart from the former warehouses – also includes a new facility. The main part of the museum is a permanent exhibition that presents the history of the Polish presence in Siberia – from the tsarist deportations into Russia, to Soviet repressions and crimes, including deportations to the East. A separate place in the museum is the “Katyn Memorial”. There is also a bookstore, restaurant, and a place for temporary exhibitions.
Sybirak refers to Pole imprisoned or exiled to Siberia.