Today, Poland observes the National Day of Remembrance for the Victims of the Genocide committed against citizens of the Second Polish Republic by Ukrainian nationalists during World War II. Across the country, commemorative ceremonies are taking place in Radruż, Domostawa, Chełm, Warsaw, and numerous other locations to honour the victims of the Volhynian Massacre and related atrocities.
Established by a resolution of the Sejm on July 22, 2016, the remembrance day commemorates the victims of the Volhynian Massacre and other brutal attacks carried out by Ukrainian nationalists. It marks the anniversary of the so-called Bloody Sunday of July 11, 1943, when the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) launched coordinated attacks on approximately 150 Polish-inhabited localities in Volhynia, culminating in one of the darkest episodes of the massacres. On July 11 alone, an estimated 8,000 Poles, primarily women, children, and the elderly, were killed.
Among the atrocities were massacres in churches in Poryck (now Pavlivka) and Kisielin. Approximately 50 Catholic churches in Volhynia were destroyed, often with congregants still inside. Victims were burned alive, thrown into wells, tortured with axes and pitchforks, and subjected to other acts of extreme brutality. Women were raped, and many victims endured prolonged torture before being killed.
The campaign of violence began in early 1943 and continued until the spring of 1945. According to researchers, more than 100,000 Poles were killed in Volhynia and Eastern Galicia. Polish historians identify members of the Organisation of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) led by Stepan Bandera, together with the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), as the principal perpetrators. The term “Volhynian Massacre” encompasses not only the crimes committed in Volhynia, but also those in Eastern Galicia, including the Lviv, Tarnopol, and Stanislaw provinces, as well as parts of the Lublin and Polesie regions.
This year’s commemorations will be attended by President Karol Nawrocki, government officials, opposition politicians, and representatives of veterans’ organisations.
Central ceremonies in Warsaw
The central state commemorations in Warsaw, organised by the Office for War Veterans and Victims of Oppression together with the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN), will begin with a Holy Mass at the Field Cathedral of the Polish Army offered for the victims of the genocide committed by the OUN and UPA in the eastern territories of the Second Polish Republic, as well as for the fallen, deceased and surviving soldiers of the 27th Volhynian Home Army Infantry Division.
At noon, official ceremonies will take place at the Monument to the Victims of the Genocide committed by Ukrainian Nationalists against Citizens of the Second Polish Republic in the South-Eastern Provinces between 1942 and 1947, located at Volhynia Square in Warsaw’s Żoliborz district. The programme includes a joint prayer, a roll call of remembrance and a wreath-laying ceremony. Wreaths will also be laid at the nearby monument dedicated to the 27th Volhynian Home Army Infantry Division.
One of the commemorations will feature an unprecedented grassroots initiative organised by the Polish-Ukrainian Reconciliation Association, led by Karolina Romanowska. For the first time, an official delegation of Ukrainian citizens, including war refugees and Ukrainians living in Poland, will jointly lay a wreath at the Monument to the Victims of the Volhynian Massacre in Warsaw. Organisers say the initiative, held under the slogan “The UPA Is Not Our Hero,” aims to publicly condemn the crimes, reject nationalist ideology, and contribute to genuine reconciliation between Poles and Ukrainians while countering Russian propaganda.