1. Personal data:
Corporal Stanisław Głowiak, born on 10 February 1903 in Podzwierzyniec, Lwów voivodeship, unmarried, Polish nationality, Roman Catholic; before the War, I served in the Border Guards.
2. Circumstances of capture:
On 18 September 1939 I was stationed in Złoczów, in the Lwów Voivodeship, along with some 15 soldiers; we were tasked with securing the army barracks against looting by mobs of civilians (mainly Ukrainians). On 19 September 1939 at around 6.00 a.m. I was taken prisoner by the Russians along with a few hundred soldiers. At the same time, the Soviets arrested Major Ruciński, Captain Socha and Lieutenant Zaprzalski (a former Deputy Commissioner of the Border Guards).
3. Locations of detainment (prisoner of war camps):
Shepetivka (Russia), Podliski, Żydatycze, Stary Jaryczów, Kurowice and Olszanica in the Lwów voivodeship.
4. Instances of people being murdered in the course of forced marches and transports:
On 23 June 1941 in the township of Olszanica in the Lwów voivodeship, following the outbreak of the German-Russian war, the Soviets organized a marching column comprising some 2,000 Polish soldiers. The column was commanded by a Russian Major by the surname of Szerszyl. It was said that he was of Ukrainian ethnicity. The route of the march was from Olszanica to Volochysk (in Russia). During the march we received from 150 to 200 grams of bread per day, and a single portion of very thin soup. Many soldiers collapsed along the way from fatigue. The political indoctrinators, who rode on horseback, would lift such soldiers by their ears, kicking them and beating them with leather whips, forcing them to walk on; I saw a number of such instances with my own eyes. While if this did not help, then after the column had passed by, all those lying in the road would be shot dead. For the Soviets had an order not to leave anyone living behind.
The second murder took place in the morning hours of 24 June 1941 in the township of Złoczów, Lwów voivodeship, while we were resting during the march. German aircraft appeared and started dropping bombs, whereupon a few dozen soldiers tried to move some five meters to the side, towards the edge of a rye field, in order to shelter themselves from the attack. The Soviet escorts immediately opened fire with their machine guns. Worse still, although the soldiers weren’t trying to escape, and indeed started returning to the column, the guards walked up to them and, at a distance of two meters or so, shot at them and impaled them with their bayonets.
I myself saw a few Polish soldiers shouting for help, their chests pierced by bayonets and with serious bullet wounds to their legs. Three or so minutes after this incident, we were marched off in the direction of Tarnopol.
The next dozen or so murders were committed by our escorts in the township of Zdołbunów (Lwów voivodeship), also during a pause. The events unfolded as follows: at night a dozen or so soldiers hid in the attic and the cellar of the building in which we were resting, this with the objective of leaving the column and escaping. Whereupon the Soviets brought in a number of dogs, and used them to find all of the would-be escapees. Next, they were led along the face of the column – which was standing in the road ready to leave – muddied and bleeding from the wounds inflicted by the dogs. Finally, they were walked back to the building and, a few minutes later, shot. Amongst the victims was a pilot from Warsaw, one Stachowicz, whom I knew personally. During the next stop my colleagues from another column, who were also passing through Zdołbunów, told me that they had seen a dozen or so murdered Polish soldiers lying in the cellar of the aforementioned building, which by then was full of water. Their faces had been cut up and their tongues torn. When later on in the march some of the prisoners entreated Major Szerszyl to increase the bread ration, he replied: – This is your payback for 1920.
5. Life in the camp:
Prisoners would be used to widen roadways and build airfields, working from 10 to 12 hours a day. Whenever we had some free time, the political indoctrinators would try to imbue us with the Communist spirit. They called this “educational activity”.
The daily food ration would depend on our fulfillment of the quota:
25 percent 400 grams of bread and hot food of the 1st (worst) category
50 percent 600 grams of bread and hot food of the 2nd (medium) category
75 percent 700 grams of bread and hot food of the 2nd (medium) category
100 percent 800 grams of bread and hot food of the 2nd (medium) category
150 percent 1,200 grams of bread and hot food of the 3rd (best) category
1st (worst category) hot food – a very thin soup with an extremely low content of fat (without any meat), given three times a day.
2nd (medium category) hot food – one half liter of a somewhat thicker soup, containing a small quantity of meat, given three times a day.
3rd (best category) hot food – also one half liter of thick soup, given three times a day, however with somewhat more meat.
The hygienic conditions were bad, and all of us soldiers had vermin in our underwear. The physicians were Polish prisoners and worked under the supervision of Soviet doctors.
6. Organization of the camps, work quotas:
Camps would have 800, a thousand, more than a thousand, or up to 1,500 prisoners.
Each camp would be staffed by a Soviet commandant (a junior officer), a political indoctrinator (an NCO), and a dozen or so riflemen, who acted as the convoy.
Amongst the prisoners, each camp would have one kombat (Russian for “battalion commander”), overseers, and a few writers. Kombats and overseers were nominated by the Soviet authorities from amongst the Ukrainians and Byelorussians.
The work quotas were high, and difficult to fulfill. Whether or not we did would depend on the “commandants” – leaders of ten-man groups.