„We are proud of how much has been done in this relatively short period of time. We do not forget about failures, but we believe that we can pass upright on a report of our work. We are proud, but we know that these achievements we share with many people, communities and institutions,” said President of the IPN Łukasz Kamiński during the celebration of the 15th anniversary of the Institute in the Royal Castle in Warsaw.

Thanking employees for the jubilee President Kaminski said: „Founding the IPN and the Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes Against the Polish Nation, the Polish authorities wanted to preserve the memory of the enormity of suffering on the part of the Polish nation during the Second World War and after, patriotic traditions of the Polish nation struggle with the occupiers, Nazism and Communism, the obligation to prosecute crimes against peace and humanity and war crimes, as well as the duty of reparation by our country to those who were victims of human rights violations – the above has defined the mission of the IPN for 15 years. We operate sometimes imperfectly, but we constantly try to read these words again.

The celebration of the 15th anniversary was attended by distinguished guests, among others: Primate of Poland, Archbishop Wojciech Polak, President-Elect Andrzej Duda and President of the World Association of Home Army Soldiers prof. Leszek Żukowski. In addition, letters from President of Poland Bronisław Komorowski and President of the Federal Republic of Germany Joachim Gauck were read. State awards to deserving employees of the IPN were handed by Head of the Chancellery of the President of Poland Jacek Michałowski. The special guest of the ceremony was a former Soviet dissident and human rights activist Sergei Kovalev. The ceremony was graced by the performance of the renowned pianist Włodek Pawlik.

Photo: Piotr Gajewski