The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1925-05-16
Note to Poland on Murder Of
Exchange Prisoners

CnlIcnerln, peoples cOmm1SSar Tor
foreign affairs of the Soviet Union, on
April 2, 1925, with regard to the muir
der of two Communist prisoners by
a Polish police sergeant while they
were being taken to the border to be
exchanged for two Polish prisoners
held by the Soviet government:
T the instruction of the Soviet
"A government have the honor to
bring the following to your knowl-
edge:
con March 26 of the current year
the Polish government gave its as
sent to the exchange of Messrs. Weic-
zorkiewicz and Baginski, convicted in
November, 1928, during the trial of a
political organization, for Mr.. Ussas,
an expert attached to the Polish dele
cation on the mixed Russo-Polish re-
evacuation commission, charged with
crimes provided against in Articles 10,
157, part 2, 1913 and 169a of the Grim
inal code of the r. s. F. S. R., covering
acts of sexual perversion and cruelty
committed upon subordinates, and
Mr.. Laszkiewicz, sometime secretary
of the former Polish consulate gener-
al at Tifiis, indicted under Article sc
of the criminal code.
CAS- was decided by both parties,
the actual exchange was to take place
on the 18th of March at the border
station of Kolosovo, whittier Messrs.
Usas and Laszkiewicz, the individuals
subject to exchange, were transferred
in the custody of representative of
the peoples commissariat for foreign
affairs.
"At four O'Clock on March 20, Mr..
Kulikowsh, the head of the Polish
repatriation delegation, having up to
that moment delayed carrying out the
exchange for reasons not understood,
.anRovaeed- IS Mr.. Plieha, the agent.
of the peoples commissariat for for
eign affairs of the Union of S. S. R.,
that the exchange could not be eff
fected due to causes beyond his con-
troll.
According to advices subsequently
received from eye-witnesses, the de-
tails of which were confirmed by the
Polish press, and likewise according
to the oral report of Mr.. Zelezinski,
counselor on the Polish mission,
Messrs. Baginsh and Wieczorkiewicz
were, in situation precluding the
possibility of supposing it case Of
chance concurrence of circumstances
or of individual criminal impulses,
brutally murdered in the presence of
representatives of the local and cen
trail Polish authorities and while in
the custody of their convoy on the
journey from Stolbtzy station to the
place appointed for the exchange
Kolosovo station.
I'm the name of the Soviet govern
ment lodge the most vigorous pro-
test against this crime committed by
Polish authorities, crime unheard of
among civilized countries muir
der of Baginski and Wieczorkiewicz
by an individual employed in the gov
ernment's service almost at the mo-
ment of their exchange and under the
eyes of Polish officials specially as
signed in connection with this ex-
change.
"The indignation aroused among the
broad masses Of the Soviet Unions
population by the aforementioned
crime, is further intensified by the
fact that an analogous murder occur
red in Poland on January 2, 1919,
when Russian Red Cross delegation,
headed by Mr.. Veselovsky and includ-
ing M. Altman, Aivazoya and the
physician, DIR. HOFFMAN, was massa-
cred while being deported across the
frontier of Poland by the Polish au-
thorities.
"The Soviet government therefore
had grounds to expect that on this
occasion the Polish government would
adopt all the necessary measures to
prevent the repetition Of similar oc-