Uciekli do Mandżurii: An Outdoor Exhibition Recalling the Katyn Massacre's 80th Anniversary

This outdoor exhibition commemorates the 80th anniversary of the Katyn Massacre's revelation, exploring its historical context and the enduring struggle for truth. It delves into the Soviet crime, the formation of its memory over decades, and the individual stories of victims.

The outdoor exhibition "They Fled to Manchuria" was created on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the revelation of the Katyn Crime and is part of the "Memory for the Future" program. Within the exhibition, the Katyn massacre is recalled, as well as how the memory of it has been shaped over the subsequent decades. The exhibition highlights that on March 5, 1940, the Politburo of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) adopted the proposal regarding the liquidation of Polish prisoners of war, leading to the murder of approximately 22,000 Polish citizens in the spring of 1940 by NKVD officers. The world learned about Katyn on April 13, 1943, when Germany revealed the discovery of death pits near Smolensk. Despite the event being revealed 80 years ago, the Katyn 'lie' persisted for decades, with the USSR only admitting guilt in 1990. The exhibition addresses the ongoing lack of knowledge about all victims' names and burial sites, emphasizing the complex and often contentious process of establishing historical truth. It features quotes from key figures and delves into the diverse backgrounds of the victims, beyond just military officers, including police, border guards, prison guards, as well as civilians like teachers, doctors, lawyers, journalists, and merchants. The exhibition also traces the legal battles for truth about Katyn, from attempts to include it in the Nuremberg trials to contemporary proceedings before the European Court of Human Rights. It questions how the Katyn lie was maintained for so long and whether current manipulations by Russia will affect the understanding of this crime. The curators emphasize that difficult pasts cannot be erased but can be illuminated and processed, and that even in the face of current conflicts, the memory of Katyn remains a vital part of Polish identity and remembrance.

The exhibition is an outdoor display and is accessible without specific ticketing information provided on the page. QR codes on the display panels lead to English and Ukrainian versions of the exhibition content.