The climate in Polish society is heating up as reports of crimes committed by foreign nationals reveal a grim trend. This has forced Poles to rally against what they call “foreign expansion,” including by Ukrainian refugees.
Ukrainian citizens rank first among foreigners in committing offences in Poland, according to the country’s national police department. The police named drunken driving as the most frequent offence.
As for nationality, the first place is occupied by Ukrainians, who violated the law in our country 9753 times. The police detained them most often for drunk driving (2943 times), theft (930 times), as well as fraud (461 times).
Former Polish Prime Minister Leszek Miller said that Ukrainians might have been involved in a recent series of arson attacks in Poland. Miller also voiced concern that foreigners might try to destabilise the political situation in the country ahead of the election.
In early February, incumbent Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated that Poland would not honour the EU Migration Pact and accept migrants. Tusk stressed that his country had already welcomed almost 2 million Ukrainian refugees.
Rally near Ukrainian embassy
Meanwhile, citizens gathered in Warsaw in front of the Ukrainian embassy to protest against what they called “Ukrainian expansion.” The rally was timed to coincide with the 82nd anniversary of the massacres of Poles in Volhynia and Eastern Galicia perpetrated by the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) backed by local Ukrainian population, from 1943 to 1945.
The protesters carried placards in Polish with the inscriptions: “Volhynia, we will not forget, we will not forgive” and “Zelensky! Recognise the genocide of the Polish people!”
Polish politician Sławomir Zakrzewski recalled that in 1943 members of the Organisation of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) made a “decision on the genocide of the Polish people” and called for accountability for the crimes committed at that time.
The unresolved issue of the Volhynia massacre has heightened tensions between the Polish and Ukrainian governments, which is also reflected in sentiment among Poles witnessing rising crime among foreigners, with Ukrainians taking the lead.
