back...The Sejm has established 10 September as the National Day of Polish Children of War
On 13 July 2023, during the 79th session of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland, the National Day of the Polish Children of War was established. The date of 10 September was chosen to celebrate the new holiday, referring to the tragic events in Mosina of 1943. The idea for the date came from the Museum of Polish Children – Victims of Totalitarianism.
On Thursday, 13 July 2023, the Sejm of the Republic of Poland established September 10th as the National Day of Polish Children of War.
"The National Day of Polish Children of War was established as a tribute to the Polish Children of War who, despite the trauma they experienced due to the hecatomb of World War II, the criminal actions of the German and Soviet invaders, were able to lift our Homeland from ruins and as a token of respect and gratitude for their efforts" reads the resolution's statement of reasons.
The historians of the Museum of Polish Children – Victims of Totalitarianism were involved in the drafting of the bill.
"In the opinion of the historians of the Museum of Polish Children – Victims of Totalitarianism, the need for a National Day for Children of War is not to be doubted. This opinion stems from the fact that there is relatively low awareness of the scale of martyrdom of Polish children during World War II both among the domestic public and in the international context. This conviction constituted grounds for the establishment of the Museum of Polish Children – Victims of Totalitarianism in 2021, and one of the fundamental goals of the newly established institution was to improve the existing state of historical awareness" – we wrote in the justification for the establishment of a day commemorating the wartime gehenna of Polish children.
The Museum also contributed to the choice of date, identifying September 10th as the most appropriate date for the National Day of Polish Children of War. The choice of this day is related to the tragic events of 10 September 1943, when the culmination of the arrests of children as part of the "Moschin Affair" took place.
- 10 September 1943 saw the climax of the arrests of children from Mosina. The Germans did not stop at arresting adults. The invaders decided to punish the Polish patriots by kidnapping children and imprisoning them in German camps. Many of them ended up in the “hell on earth” that was the German concentration camp on Przemyslowa Street in Lodz (...). This date may enter a series of September commemorations recalling tragic events related to World War II. As the Museum, we suggested this date and it was accepted by the Polish Children of War community”, said Ireneusz Piotr Maj PhD, Director of the Museum, during a meeting of the Parliamentary Culture and Media Committee on June 15th.
Thursday's vote on the bill was attended by 451 MPs, of whom 448 were in favour, three abstained and none were against.
The Act will enter into force 14 days after its promulgation.
In connection with the establishment of the new holiday on September 10th the opening of the Museum's exhibition 'We were just children. The Gehenna of Polish Children during and after the World War II”will take place in the Sejm.
