On October 5th, the 76th anniversary of the massacre of French Jewish female prisoners from the Women’s Penal Company of KL Auschwitz – Bor/Budy was observed. On this day, the main ceremonies took place at the historic building, a Place of Remembrance where these women—prisoners transferred from KL Auschwitz—were housed. The ceremonies, organized by our Foundation, involved a symbolic laying of flowers to commemorate the brutal murder of these 90 women prisoners from the subcamp KL Auschwitz Frauen Strafkompanie Bor/Budy.
The ceremonies were attended by various dignitaries, including: Cecilia Ślusarczyk, Mayor of Brzeszcze; Ewa Pawlusiak, Member of the Board of the Oświęcim County; Iwona Gibas, Director of the Parliamentary Office of Deputy Prime Minister Beata Szydło; Joanna Florkiewicz-Kamieniarczyk, representing the Małopolskie Voivode Piotr Ćwik; Piotr Śreniawski, Chairman of the Oświęcim Municipal Council; Krzysztof Harmata, Vice-Chairman of the Oświęcim Municipal Council; members of the diplomatic corps, including Honorary Consul of France Anna Krasuska-Terrillon, and Deputy Consul General of Germany Jan Homburg; Zdzisław Filip, President of Tauron Wydobycie S.A.; Robert Lubański, Member of the Board of the Polish National Foundation; Jakub Ryba from the Institute of National Remembrance in Kraków; Jan Parcer from Tauron Wydobycie S.A. Brzeszcze Mining Plant; representatives from the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum; Kazimierz Kulpa, Dean, on behalf of Bishop Roman Pindel of the Bielsko-Żywiec Diocese; representatives from local women’s circles, ZBOWiD, local governments, uniformed services, and residents of Brzeszcze.
Following the ceremonies, a seminar was held as part of a project funded by the Museum of Polish History in Warsaw under the “Patriotism of Tomorrow” Program, titled: “Nearby Places of Remembrance of the KL Auschwitz-Birkenau Extermination Camp – The Fate of Women in the Extermination Camp.” During the seminar, participants heard two lectures titled: “The Functioning of Subcamps KL Auschwitz-Birkenau (KL Auschwitz-Bor/Budy and KL Auschwitz-Jawischowitz)” and “The Fate of Women in the Extermination Camp.” Attendees also received an informational brochure titled: “Subcamps of the Former German Nazi Camp Complex KL Auschwitz-Birkenau: Nearby Places of Remembrance,” produced as part of this project. A letter from Deputy Prime Minister Beata Szydło addressed to the organizers and participants of the seminar was read aloud by Izabela Miłkowska from the Parliamentary Office of Deputy Prime Minister Beata Szydło.