While still adhering to this metaphorical letter "P", I'll add one more "P" - Polish memory is Witold Pilecki. We can see how this memory is restored and propagated. How do you build such an important symbol of memory so as not to lose connection with knowledge about the figure?
K.K.: I am very glad that Witold Pilecki was excavated from the oblivion he was condemned to by the communists. It was also a chronicle of the history of his children - both my grandmother and her brother - to carry this memory through the worst years of the Communist Poland. At the beginning of 2006/2007, more and more people became interested in this figure. A play was created by the television theatre entitled "Śmierć Rotmistrza Pileckiego" ("The Death of Cavalry Captain Pilecki") directed by Ryszard Bugajski. Independent, grassroots initiatives began to emerge, reminiscent of Witold's biography and achievements. I think it's a good thing that he is a symbol of our somewhat forgotten struggle during and shortly after the Second World War. However, it is inappropriate for it to be used as a political symbol for contemporary disputes because - as outdated as it may sound - he united rather than divided people. When I look at the monument to Witold Pilecki in Warsaw; I like the fact that the side wall of this cube is made up of standing figures of people. The message I make out it is that Witold was an organiser, a co-founder of several underground organisations, but he never acted alone. He motivated people to work together because people are important. I'm glad that we remember Witold, but let's also try to have it at the back of our heads that all that surrounds us were created by people who willing to cooperate with one another. In any case, Witold points this out very nicely in his report. He mentions successive numbers of sworn conspirators in the Organisation: right-wing, left-wing, right-wing, left-wing, etc. He notes that these people had previously fought each other, but in these specific camp conditions, they started to cooperate for a common purpose. Nowadays, I am very concerned about such extreme polarisation on the grounds of political views. I think it is a road to nowhere. I believe that it is in our interest to prevent such divisions.
What universal reflection for today and the future may still be derived from the report?
K.K.: The report must have been written rather hastily. It was not fully polished, and yet it is an excellent read. I recommend that most adults read this not very thick book. What is amazing for me is that this report above all
Krzysztof Kosior (third from the left) during an educational session "Family Memory" at the Auschwitz Memorial