81 Years Ago, Soviet Mass Deportations Of Hundreds Of Thousands Of Polish Citizens

Today, we mark the 81st anniversary
of the beginning of a series of Soviet mass deportations
of hundreds of thousands of Polish citizens to forced-labour camps,
part of the Gulag system, in Siberia and Soviet Kazakhstan.

It was 81 years ago today that around 140,000 people,
including children, were forced from their homes
at gunpoint at night, in temperatures of -40 degrees,
and shipped off in freight cars to begin their violent expulsion.
Thousands would die along the way or would not survive the Gulag.
Many would never return to their homeland.

We honour the memory of the victims of the tragedy
of the mass deportations, a painful example
of Soviet dictator Stalin’s crimes during the Second World War.

We also pay tribute to the resilience of the survivors,
many of whom also experienced arduous journeys
migrating to refugee camps around the world.

Many of those refugees would eventually arrive
and settle in their new home, Canada.

My best wishes for a meaningful commemoration.

Canadian Polish Congress
SPK Canada
Memorial To The Victims of Communism : : Tribute To Liberty
Quo Vadis Conferences Canada
The Canadian Polish Research Institute
Polish Canadian Women's Federation / Federacja Polek w Kanadzie
Konekt Polish Canadian Professionals
YPCPA - Young Polish Canadian Professionals Association
Canada-Poland Chamber of Commerce - CPCC
Polish-Canadian Legal Association
PISK
Polcham Canada Inc.
Kresy-Siberia group

Still image courtesy
Memory is our Homeland,
a film by Jonathan Kolodziej Durand.