{"id":3877,"date":"2019-09-20T19:28:48","date_gmt":"2019-09-20T17:28:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.driel-polen.nl\/?page_id=3877"},"modified":"2021-01-12T14:36:28","modified_gmt":"2021-01-12T13:36:28","slug":"2019-voorzitter-stichting-driel-polen","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.driel-polen.nl\/en\/herdenkingen\/herdenkingen-2015-2024\/2019-voorzitter-stichting-driel-polen\/","title":{"rendered":"2019-Chairman of the Foundation Driel-Polen, Mr. A.J.M. Baltussen"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

Address by the Chairman of the Foundation Driel-Polen
\n<\/strong>Mr. A.J.M. Baltussen
\nat the Commemoration of the contribution of the
\n1st Polish Independent Parachute Brigade
\nto Operation Market Garden, 75 years ago
\nDriel, 21 September 2019<\/h4>\n

Your Royal Highness,
\n<\/strong>Excellencies,
\n<\/strong>Dear Polish and British Veterans,
\n<\/strong>Members of the Sosabowski family,
\n<\/strong>Ladies and Gentlemen<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

On behalf of the Driel-Polen Foundation I would like to welcome you all to this commemoration, where we give special attention to the contribution of the 1st<\/sup> Polish Independent Parachute Brigade to Market Garden – 75 years ago.<\/p>\n

Mr Kubinski, Mr Staszkiewicz and Mr Cisek a special welcome to you. For you Mr Cisek this is a very special occasion since you have returned for the first time since 1944.
\nAlso a special welcome to the British veterans.<\/p>\n

I will continue my introduction in Dutch.
\nA translation of my text in Polish and in English is included in your programme.<\/p>\n

Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls
\n<\/strong>On 23 August 1939 Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union signed a non-aggression treaty. In this agreement both countries arranged the division of Eastern Europe and Poland.
\nThis gave Hitler the certainty of Stalin\u2019s support for the Germans when they invaded Poland on 1st<\/sup> September 1939 which precipitated the beginning of the Second World War.
\nOn 17 September 1939 the Soviet Union attacked from the other side and before the end of September 1939 the Poles were divided.
\nA third part of Poland,\u00a0 the Generale Gouvernment in the middle of the country came under German control.
\nThe three veterans who are here today are the victims of the tragedy of what Poland as a whole experienced in 1939. Nearly one million Poles were departed to the Soviet Union. This included Tad Cisek and Konstanty Staszkiewicz and their families who were then living\u00a0 in Eastern Poland.\u00a0 Minister Bijleveld and Burgomaster Hoytink will in their speeches give an account of their experiences.<\/p>\n

Henryk Kubinski lived in the west of Poland where the occupying force deported Poles to Germany where they would be put to work as forced labourers.<\/p>\n

Both in the east and the west many Poles escaped and joined the allied forces.
\nFrom his fifteenth birthday in May 1940 till November 1943\u00a0 Henryk Kubinski was forced to work on a German farm.\u00a0 At the end of November 1943 he felt forced to join the Wehrmacht and he was stationed near the French Belgian border.\u00a0 In August 1944 the opportunity that Kubinski and five other Poles had hoped for: consciously allowed themselves to be taken as military prisoners by British soldiers. And here their involvement in the German war came to an end.<\/p>\n

After a week in prison camp they offered themselves as volunteers with the Polish troops. They became soldiers of the allies. Henryk Kubinski was too late to start training in Scotland and to be assigned as a parachutist in Driel.\u00a0 As part of the occupation army he came to Driel several times between May 1945 and the end of 1947.
\nThe ultimate objective of the Polish Government in exile and Polish troops was the liberation of Poland. In total between 250,000 and 300,000 Polish soldiers took part in the liberation of Western Europe.
\nBut it was not in 1945 but in 1989 that Poland was able to escape the power of the Soviet Union.<\/p>\n

In Driel we continue to be grateful to the Poles for their contribution to the liberation of our country.<\/p>\n

Boys and Girls
\n<\/strong>Across from you, on this square sit the Polish veterans. In past years I\u2019ve been by your school to tell you something of the history and the commemoration.
\nI told you then over the long journey that many Polish veterans had to make to finally to be dropped here by Driel in September 1944. After the war many could no longer return to their country and families. Just as there are many refugees in the world today. For them there was then no free society.
\nDuring the commemoration try to imagine what this would mean for you and what a free society means for you.
\nFor us all \u2013 and certainly for these veterans \u2013 it is very special that this afternoon you will sing two songs in Polish. What is also special is that you will be guided by Polish boys and girls.<\/p>\n

For now I wish you success!!<\/p>\n

Royal Highness, Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen.
\n<\/strong>For several year a youngster from the Airborne International Youth Conference has helped us with reading the Polish texts.\u00a0 This year Katarzyna Sefarin will read the Polish texts.<\/p>\n

The youth choir lead by the orchestra with young people from Krakau \u2013 Promyki Krakowa \u2013 will now sing for us in Polish \u201cRozkwitaly paki bialych roz\u201d which translates as \u201cthe Buds of the White Roses went open\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Address by the Chairman of the Foundation Driel-Polen Mr. A.J.M. Baltussen at the Commemoration of the contribution of the 1st Polish Independent Parachute Brigade to Operation Market Garden, 75 years ago Driel, 21 September 2019 Your Royal Highness, Excellencies, Dear …<\/span> <\/p>\n

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