On 8th of June 2024, the Museum of Cursed Soldiers and Political Prisoners of the Polish People's Republic in Warsaw hosted ceremonies to mark the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the Federation of Fighting Youth.
photo: IPN
The ceremony began with a mass for the deceased activists of the Federation of Fighting Youth, led by Father Michał Sołomieniuk. Then, flowers were laid at the Death Wall of the Prison at ul. Rakowiecka 37 – a tribute to the Heroes murdered during the fight for a free Poland.
The events were accompanied by the presentation of crosses and statuettes of the FMW by the president of the Federation of Fighting Youth – one of them was received by Dr. Karol Polejowski.
During the ceremonial opening of the exhibition on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the FMW, Dr. Karol Polejowski said:
– On 23rd of December 1981, the President of the United States, Ronald Reagan, devoted a large part of his speech to the American nation to the events in Poland. (...) One of the sentences particularly stuck in my memory – Poland has the most magnificent traditions in the world and resistance to enslavement. And what was the Federation of Fighting Youth, if not precisely a manifestation of this refusal to be enslaved, and thus a love of freedom and a decision to fight against the communist system.
The Deputy President of the IPN pointed out that each generation of young Poles faced a difficult decision regarding the fight for their homeland. Many people, like the members of the Federation of Fighting Youth, decided to fight for a free Poland.
– On behalf of the President of the Institute of National Remembrance, I would like to thank you very much for our fight, for your contribution to the Republic of Poland regaining its independence. The task of the Institute of National Remembrance is to take care of historical truth and memory. We do all this for you, to honor you and celebrate your contribution to the reconstruction of a free Poland.
– If today we are wondering, ladies and gentlemen, what values to pass on to young people, the answer is really very simple. The same values that pushed you to independence activities. Love of freedom, love for Poland, disagreement with lies and violence. These are timeless values, and above all love for God, because God, Honor and Fatherland are the three foundations of our common identity
- appealed Dr. Hab. Karol Polejowski at the end.
source: Institute of National Remembrance
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