On 5 November, the scientific publication “Poles in the OUN: Biographies and Documents” was presented at the Ukrainian Crisis Media Centre, the author and editor of which was Doctor of Historical Sciences Yaroslav Antonyuk.
The publication was made possible thanks to the joint efforts of the Ukrainian Institute of National Remembrance and the Branch Archive of the Security Service of Ukraine. The book presents 600 biographies, as well as archival materials about people of Polish origin who participated in the activities of the Organisation of Ukrainian Nationalists and the Ukrainian Insurgent Army.
Opening the presentation, the Head of the Ukrainian Institute of National Remembrance, Oleksandr Alferov, noted that work on the publication had been going on for quite a long time, as the topic of the participation of representatives of different nationalities (Russians, Belarusians, Jews, Azerbaijanis, etc.) in the Ukrainian national resistance movement has long been studied by Ukrainian historians.
“When we talk about 600 biographies of Poles, it is an understanding that we are faced with a large topic that needs to be researched for a long time and thoroughly. Today, more than ever, we need to create a general concept of diversity within the framework of certain topics. Today, when researching any topic, we see how broad its historical palette is. The perspective that Mr. Yaroslav offers was relevant in the past and will be relevant in the future,” the head of the Institute noted.
Director of the SBU Branch Archive Andriy Kohut noted that if you delve into the source database of research on the topic of the Ukrainian National Resistance Movement, you can see that the narrative of the exceptional intransigence of Ukrainians and Poles during World War II does not stand up to criticism.
“For me, this publication is not only an invitation to the topic, but also a way to reflect on what we know about the Polish and Ukrainian national liberation movements during World War II,” Andriy Kohut emphasized.
The author and compiler of the book “Poles in the OUN: Biographies and Documents”, Doctor of Historical Sciences Yaroslav Antonyuk, said that he came up with the idea of creating this publication after his student scientific research. The historian noted that the source base of the publication consists mainly of documents from various Ukrainian state and private archives, which were sometimes supported by oral recollections. Among these sources, materials from archival and criminal cases played an important role, which made it possible to prepare 63% of the biographies in the book. At the same time, out of 141 published documents, 138 were published for the first time.
Read more about the book presentation on the official website of the UINP.
