Rifleman Romuald Hryniewicz, born in 1924 in the town of Głębokie, Wilno voivodeship.
During the night of 19 to 20 June 1941, I was arrested together with my family. On that night, six NKVD men had been thoroughly searching our house for three hours. They then read out the order issued by the NKVD authorities regarding our arrest and forced removal deep into Russia. We were given two hours to pack essential belongings and ordered to leave the apartment.
50–60 people were loaded into boxcars along with their entire belongings. The loaded wagons were locked and only a single small window on one side was left open. The NKVD men simply behaved like brutes. During the journey, which lasted 18 days, we were given a hot meal – that is, soup – only twice. It was very difficult to get drinking water. People had to struggle to get permission to be released every other day from the wagon in order to relieve themselves.
We were transported to Barnaul in Altai Krai. Living and housing conditions in Barnaul were poor. The barracks were very crowded. We were assigned work at a brickyard. A ten-hour workday spent in the heat with a shovel in hand was very exhausting. At my workplace, the quota for three people was gathering enough clay for 25,000 bricks. The same workload was previously carried out by five Soviet workers. Even a short period of time spent at this kind of work took its toll. We were getting weaker and many of us often fainted from exhaustion. Our wages were also very low: 30 – 40 rubles.
Medical care was inadequate. There was a significant shortage of medicine and competent personnel. People were dismissed from work only if they really could barely move on their feet. In some cases, very primitive methods of treatment lead to death. All medicine found in people’s possession was confiscated by the Bolsheviks, allegedly under the suspicion of containing undesirable materials (such as explosives and so on).
Seeing the close relationships among the Poles (who comprised 80 percent of the camp population), the Bolsheviks wanted to humiliate us and recast us in their own mold. They organized various meetings and lectures on political subjects. They made great efforts in this regard, but it was all in vain. They did not succeed.
We worked there until the signing of the treaty between the Soviet Union and Poland. After we were released, we scattered all over the globe to find a better future. I joined the army the first chance I had, when I was able to get to the location where the troops were being accommodated (date of joining the army: May 1942).