On February 28th, 2006 the Institute of National Remembrance received, forwarded by the Polish Embassy in Moscow, a statement from the Chief Army Prosecutorωs Office of the Russian Federation from January 18th, 2006 regarding the possibility of application of regulations of the Law of the Russian Federation of November 18th, 1991 (changed on 22.12.1992) ω ωOn rehabilitation of victims of political repressionsω ω to the victims of Katynocide. From the mid 90s the Polish Embassy has received a great number of applications from Polish citizens ω members of the families of the Katyctims, to which the Russian side replied, that they could be considered only upon completion of the Chief Army Prosecutorωs Officeωs investigation. The Russian investigation was finished with discontinuance on October 21st, 2004. Its contents have not been rendered to the Polish side despite many requests. The Russians justify their attitude with the secrecy clause which pertains to most of 180 volumes of files. In a letter of November 23rd , 2005 sent to the Polish Embassy, the Russian side refused to render the decision on finishing the investigation to a widow of a Polish officer killed in Katyd in a letter of January 18th, 2006 defined the reasons, for which that officer ωand others cannot be rehabilitated on the mentioned basisω. This unprecedented attitude is based on the statement, that the Law ωon rehabilitation provides rehabilitation of persons, who have been repressed for political reasonsω. Then it is stated, that ωin the course of preliminary investigation in a criminal case, unfortunately, it has not been ascertained, upon which regulation of the Penal Code of the RF (edited in 1926) certain persons were penalized, because the documentation has been destroyedω.
The statement of the Chief Army Prosecutorωs Office of the RF is not consistent with the order of March 3rd, 1940, signed by Stalin and members of the Political Bureau, on the basis of which the Katyssacre was committed. In that order it was said that Poles, held ωin NKWD camps for POWs and in prisons of the western districts of Ukraine and Belarus (ω), are relentless enemies of the Soviet rule, full of hatred to the Soviet regime.ω Therefore it was ordered that cases of ωthe fierce and cherishing no hopes of improvement enemies of the Soviet rule (ω),14700 persons held in camps for POWs (ω), as well as cases of 11000 persons taken into a custody in prisons of western districts of Ukraine and Belarus (ω) should be considered upon a special procedure with applying to them the capital punishment ω execution by a firing squadω. Within this decision it was also ordered, that ωcases should be considered without calling the arrested and without presenting them charges, decision on closure of the investigation or the indictment.ω
The decision of March 5th, 1940 indicates without a doubt, that Katyssacre was a deed of the heaviest political repression. Thus, the explanation given by the Chief Army Prosecutorωs Office of the RF, that in order to assume the character of the crime it would be necessary to ascertain, on the basis of which article of the Russian Penal Code of 1926 the Polish victims ωhad been penalizedω is not consistent with the way of committing the crime indicated in the order.
The decision of the Russian Chief Army Prosecutorωs Office takes away the chance from the IPN prosecutors of reaching a common with the Russian side statement and opinion on the Katyssacre. The refusal of applying regulations of the rehabilitation law to the victims of Katyime and the justification of this decision may be acknowledged as humiliation of the memory of Polish victims and violation of feelings of the members of their families. It is staggering, that the documentation of the Russian investigation on the Katyime of 1940 remains secret in the year 2006. Therefore the Institute of National Remembrance appeals to the Chief Army Prosecutorωs Office of the RF for disclosure of all files of the investigation and the final statement. In such circumstances the main goal of the Polish investigation ω apart from ascertaining all living members of the victimsω families, who are regarded as harmed by the Katyassacre ω is to formulate and justify in a detailed way, and in historical and legal terms, valuation of that crime. The attitude to the Katyssacre will always be a criterion of truth and good will in Polish-Russian relations.
Ph. D. Janusz Kurtyka
President of IPN
March 24, 2006
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