Ukraine, Poland Jointly Commemorate Victims of Volyn Tragedy
On Sunday, 13 July, a solemn mass for the victims of the Volyn Tragedy was held at the Roman Catholic Cathedral in Lutsk, north-western Ukraine, attended by Polish diplomats.
The Gaze reports on this with reference to PAP.
Recently, the Polish Sejm designated 11 July as a day of remembrance for ‘the victims of the genocide committed by the OUN and UPA in the eastern territories of the Second Polish Republic.’
Therefore, on 13 July, a solemn mass was held in the Roman Catholic Cathedral of Lutsk in Volyn for the victims of the Volyn tragedy.
Among the participants of the mass were representatives of the Polish minority in Ukraine, Polish diplomats and representatives of the Volyn region authorities.
According to Bishop Edward Kava, who conducted the mass, Ukraine and Poland are ready to discuss this difficult historical event.
Kava stressed that all victims must be exhumed in order to establish their names and pay tribute to the dead. The bishop also noted that ‘reviving memory’ is important not only for Poles, but also for Ukrainians.
‘I think this will help not only Poles heal their wounds, but we in Ukraine also need this to face the truth, to confront this truth. I am convinced that this will significantly strengthen relations between Poland and Ukraine, between the peoples. It will also heal all these wounds and finally put an end to this issue,’ Kava said.
It should be noted that when the Polish Sejm designated 11 July as a day of remembrance for ‘the victims of the genocide committed by the OUN and UPA in the eastern territories of the Second Polish Republic,’ the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry responded by stating that Poland's decision was contrary to the spirit of good neighbourly relations between the countries.
In June, Ukraine granted permission to the Polish side to conduct exhumation work on Polish soldiers who died in 1939 and were buried in the former village of Zboiska (now within the boundaries of Lviv).
Poland, in turn, granted Ukraine permission to conduct search and exhumation work in the village of Yurechkova.
On 13 July, it was reported that Poland expects to receive permission in the near future to conduct search operations to locate the remains of Polish victims of crimes in Volyn in another location in the Puzhnyky district of Ternopil region.
As The Gaze reported earlier, ahead of Poland's commemoration of the Volyn Tragedy, Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) called for honest dialogue on shared history and unity against Russian aggression.