THE POLISH OPERATION OF THE NKVS IN 1937–1938: “THE CASE OF THE POLISH CLUB” IN KHARKIV

Abstract

Purpose. The organization and causes of the Polish Operation of the NKVD in 1937–1938 is examined in the article. The course of this crime of the Soviet government is studied on the example of the “Polish Club Case” in Kharkiv, which was recognized as a centre of “counterrevolutionary and espionage activities”. Methods. The research was written using general scientific (analysis, synthesis, generalization) and special historical (historical-typological, historical-systemic, historical-comparative, historical-genetic) methods. Results. The works of Ukrainian and foreign scholars are reviewed in the article and the main trends in the study of this issue are outlined. The research analyzes the Operational Order of the People’s Commissar of Internal Affairs of the USSR Nikolai Yezhov No. 00485 of August 11, 1937, which marked the beginning of the Polish Operation of the NKVD. The document established six groups of Poles who were subject to indefinite arrest, the measures of their punishment, and a new special procedure for conducting criminal proceedings. The latter made it possible to speed up the process of sentencing (the vast majority of which were death sentences). It is determined that among all the “national” operations of the NKVS, the “Polish” one was the largest in terms of the number of victims. Joseph Stalin considered representatives of “nationalities of foreign states” to be real or potential enemies. The Second Polish Republic was assigned an exceptional role in the future confrontation, and thus, according to the Soviet leader, there were the most “spies,” “counterrevolutionaries,” and “terrorists” among Poles living in the USSR. The “Polish Club Case” in Kharkiv is an example of a fabricated accusation against an entire group of people (a common practice during the Great Terror of 1937–1938). The main evidence of the “counterrevolutionary and espionage activities” of the arrested was their testimony, which was often obtained through the use of moral and physical pressure. Thus, 28 people were sentenced to death. All were posthumously rehabilitated in 1957. Conclusions. Soviet repression took or crippled the lives of individuals, entire families, and even nations. The victims of the Polish Operation of the NKVS of 1937–1938 were at least 143.810 people, 111.091 of whom were shot. Along with Polish communists, priests, former landowners, and former military personnel, the terror was extended to ordinary peasants, industrial workers, employees, and educators.