POLSCY SPRAWIEDLIWI
WARSZAWA 1997
from the book "Those Who Helped"
PART III
Published by The Main Commision for the Investigation of Crimes Against the Polish Nation and The Polish Society for the Righteous Among the Nations, Warszawa, 1997.
The Main Commission for the Investigation of Crimes against the Polish Nation - The Institute of National Memory in Warsaw published already its 3rd vol. in the series "Those who helped". It contains 704 names, out of thousands of Poles who have been murdered for aid extended to Jews. Further it contains also close to
5,000 names of Poles who have been recognized by the Israeli Yad Vashem Institute - The Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Authority in Jerusalem, as "Righteous Among Nations"for the same reason, up to the end of 1996, out of a total of close to 15.000 similarly honoured, coming from 34 nationalities, where the automatic death sentence for help did not exist.
Those who were executed are not in principle recognized as "Righteous". They were murdered generally with the Jews they harboured, so there were no Jewish witnesses, the Polish ones not being taken into consideration. Only in the very rare cases, when a Jew managed to escape the massacre and did make the proper deposition in an Israeli consulate abroad or at Yad Vashem in Jerusalem, such helpers have been recognized by the State of Israel. From the the list below you will find that entire families, from grandparents in their 90-ies to infants less than one year old have thus been put to death. Saving Jews was very difficult as about 85% did not speak Polish or spoke it in a way distinct from that of the population and their appearance alone betrayed them. The names of the executed are verified from 3-4 different and independent sources. Many more still await further verification.
The names of the helpers should be known to the entire world as the shining proof of the most selfless sacrifice, example to all, surpassing in its heroism that of the soldiers on the battle field, whom we commemorate each November.
A fact: any soldier must fight; he cannot refuse. He is sustained by the entire military organization; his efforts are often limited to short moments of attack under the euphoria of group enthusiasm, and generally he is paid and given all the necessary means when in service: food, uniform, arms, etc.
The rescuers of Jews in Poland were alone, most often either deprived completely of their pre-war means of subsistance, thrown by the occupying power out of their farms, factories, businesses, offices and even homes or at least severely limited in their possibility of earning their living. They were not under legal or even moral obligation to risk their own life and even less that of their families.
Who of us would do it today, especially in the above mentioned conditions?
