Ceremony in Poland Recalls Massacre of Ukrainians
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INSIDE:• Ambassador-designate to Ukraine speaks — page 3. • Ukrainian War of Liberation re-enacted in Texas — page 10. • New book marks 50 years of Kolomayets’ art — page 12. Published by the Ukrainian National Association Inc., a fraternal non-profit association Vol. LXXIV HE KRAINIANNo. 21 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, MAY 21, 2006 EEKLY$1/$2 in Ukraine YekhanurovT decidesUCeremony in Poland recalls massacreW of Ukrainians by Zenon Zawada he will step down Kyiv Press Bureau PAWLOKOMA, Poland – In the days leading up to the Pawlokoma massacre, from PM’sby Zenon positionZawada Father Volodymyr Lemtsio was advised Kyiv Press Bureau to take his wife and children and flee. He declined. KYIV – With little chance of gaining Andrii Lemtsio, 67, recalled his enough support in the new Verkhovna father’s words: “Where my people are, Rada to support his candidacy for the that’s where I’ll be.” prime ministership, Yurii Yekhanurov For his courageous leadership, the announced on May 12 that he would take Greek-Catholic priest joined the ranks of his seat as a national deputy. 366 Ukrainians systematically murdered Mr. Yekhanurov is currently Ukraine’s by Polish soldiers between March 1 and acting prime minister. He will remain in 3, 1945, in the village of Pawlokoma, sit- his position until a parliamentary coali- uated 25 miles west of Peremyshl in the tion government is able to select a new Nadsiannia region that is now the prime minister, which doesn’t appear to Podkarpackie province of Poland. be likely anytime soon. On the very same soil where blood Coalition-building talks continued to stall was spilled more than six decades ago, as Our Ukraine leaders maintained their the presidents of the two nations opened AP/Efrem Lukatsky refusal to dole out positions before agreeing a memorial on May 13 honoring those on a plan of action, particularly the prime who perished, urging reconciliation and Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko pays tribute to the victims of the ministership coveted by Yulia Tymoshenko. declaring a new era in Polish-Ukrainian Pawlokoma massacre in front of the monument erected in their memory during Our Ukraine doesn’t have much relations embodied by the Orange ceremonies on May 13. choice, she responded. Revolution. “Our Ukraine needs to learn to make “I can only imagine what a difficult I am convinced that the memory of one’s ished. compromises, because it’s only those road has been traveled by tens of thou- own history, historical memory, is an “The time has now come to not hide political forces that earned 51 percent of sands of people to this act of reconcilia- imperative for contemporary times.” the truth and to speak of the wrongs that the vote who don’t compromise,” Ms. tion which we are witnessing today,” Polish President Lech Kaczynski have not been righted,” Mr. Kaczynski Tymoshenko said May 15. “Everyone said Ukrainian President Viktor acknowledged that the massacre was said. else has to compromise.” Yushchenko. covered up for decades by past Polish Attending the day’s prayers and cere- “But I am convinced of one thing: that and Soviet governments, which forbid monies were more than 1,000 Ukrainians (Continued on page 3) only the strong are capable of forgiving. crosses and prayers for those who per- who arrived from the Lviv Oblast of Ukraine and the Nadsiannia region of Poland that includes Peremyshl and Ukraine’s ambassador meets with UNA execs, press Jaroslaw, cities once heavily populated by Ukrainians. A handful of them were survivors of the Pawlokoma massacre, who remain as living eyewitnesses to the brutality humans are capable of in an atmosphere of war. “With my mother, they took us to the church,” said Omelian Fedak, 69, recall- ing what had happened leading up to the massacre. “We had spent the night in the church because we thought nobody would go there.” On Saturday, March 3, 1945, Polish soldiers of the Armia Krajowa seized the church, sending the women and small children to one side, and the rest to the other. “And, one by one, we were taken out,” he said. “No one knew why or where.” Mr. Fedak and his older brother were also led out, along with other children who were 8 or 9 years old. “With my eyes, I saw how they held someone, undressed them to their under- wear and shot them,” Mr. Fedak said. “He fell in one pit.” Polish soldiers had dug three graves, placed undressed Ukrainians in front of each one and shot them so they’d fall in, PARSIPPANY, N.J. – Ukraine’s ambassador to the United States, Dr. Oleh Shamshur, paid a visit to the Ukrainian National survivors said. Some of those shot were Association’s Corporate Headquarters here on May 16 to meet with the fraternal organization’s executive officers, as well as still alive and would cry out from the with Ukrainian news media of New Jersey, New York, Connecticut and Pennsylvania. He was accompanied by Dr. pits, particularly if they landed in freez- Volodymyr Samofalov, first secretary of the Embassy of Ukraine (whose duties include contacts with the press), and Natalia ing water. Bukvych, recently appointed Washington-based correspondent for the Ukrinform news agency. Seen above are participants of the press meeting with Ambassador Shamshur (center) and UNA President Stefan Kaczaraj (front row, third, from left). (Continued on page 4) 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, MAY 21, 2006 No. 21 ANALYSIS NEWSBRIEFS The recurring fear NEWSBRIEFS Coalition expected by end of May failed to explain how this accord is related to that mentioned by Mr. Vinskyi. of Russian gas dependency KYIV – President Viktor Yushchenko is Moreover, Kommersant-Ukraine on May concerned over the long process of coali- 16 quoted Roman Zvarych of Our Ukraine by Roman Kupchinsky economic actions against the USSR.” tion-forming and the “fuss” surrounding it, as saying that the bloc is working on its RFE/RL Newsline The Urengoi gas field, located in presidential press secretary Iryna own coalition document. “Yes, Vinskyi has northwestern Siberia’s Yamalo-Nenets Heraschenko told a news briefing on May handed me something in a red file, but I U.S. Vice-President Dick Cheney’s Autonomous Okrug, was one of the 17. She said the president is ready to meet don’t know what precisely. We have our recent criticism of Russia for using natural largest Soviet gas fields. The main cus- with “the coalition three,” but only if an own draft agreement prepared,” Mr. gas as a political weapon is by no means tomers for Urengoi gas were West integral draft coalition agreement is ready. Zvarych said. (RFE/RL Newsline) new. Similar charges leveled 24 years ago Germany, France and Italy. “The president knows that every political during the Cold War resulted in an embar- The initial volume of the pipeline was force has its own parcel of documents on President: Orange-Blue coalition is out go on the sale of gas-extracting equipment to be 40 billion cubic meters per year, the future political agreement. The presi- to the Soviet Union and to the U.S. Central which would mean that Soviet gas could dent is confident that each of them has rea- KYIV – President Viktor Yushchenko Intelligence Agency’s (CIA) purported account for 30 percent of German and sonable ideas, but he asks the coalition said in an interview in the May 12 issue of destruction of a Soviet gas pipeline. French gas imports, and 40 percent of participants to take care about creating an the Warsaw-based Gazeta Wyborcza that In 1982, as the Soviet Union was begin- Italy’s. Such figures were approaching a integral document,” she said. According to he does not foresee the creation of an ning construction of a $22 billion, 4,650- dependency level too great for the White Ms. Heraschenko, President Yushchenko is “Orange-Blue” governing coalition kilometer gas pipeline from Urengoi in House to accept. still optimistic about the coalition. “He between the Our Ukraine bloc and the northwestern Siberia to Uzhhorod in Washington apparently dealt with these believes all disputed issues will be settled Party of the Regions. “The best option is Ukraine with the intention of supplying concerns in a direct manner initially. In and the coalition will be formed by the end an Orange coalition [of Our Ukraine, the Western Europe, the CIA issued a National January 1982 U.S. President Ronald of May and Ukraine will have a new gov- Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc and the Socialist Intelligence Estimate (NIE) titled “The Reagan purportedly approved a CIA plan ernment within the first 10 days of June.” Party],” Mr. Yushchenko said. “It is possi- Soviet Gas Pipeline in Perspective.” to sabotage a second, unidentified gas The presidential spokeswoman confirmed ble that the Party of the Regions will sup- The NIE, regarded as the definitive prod- pipeline in Siberia by turning the Soviet that the president had met with Yulia port us in some situations. ... But an uct of the U.S. intelligence community, Union’s desire for Western technology Tymoshenko, Roman Bezsmertnyi and Orange-Blue coalition is excluded today.” reached several conclusions, among them against it. The operation was first disclosed Yurii Yekhanurov in the past two days, but Mr. Yushchenko added that he does not that the Soviet Union “calculates that the in the memoirs of Thomas C. Reed, a for- Socialist Party representatives failed to rule out that Ms. Tymoshenko may once increased future dependence of the West mer Air Force secretary who was serving in participate in the meetings. Party of the again assume the post of prime minister. Europeans on Soviet gas deliveries will the National Security Council at the time.