TORTURE AND THREATS

Evening Star, Issue 25993, 7 January 1947, Page 5

TORTURE AND THREATS

HOW TO VOTE IN POLAND PEASANT PARIY PERSECUTION LONDON, Januaty 6. With the Polish 'election approaching, the ‘Daily Telegraph’s’ \Varsaw correspondent interviewed a number of Peasant Party supporters who described how the Communist-con-troued Security Police . known as U. 8., arrested, intimidated, and tortured their victims. A coal miner, after signing a list supporting the Peasant Party candidate, was arrested by U. 8., who tried to make him remove nis name from the list; He was. punched and beaten with a rubber hose until unconscious and made to crouch doubled up for hours and was kicked aud threatened with a pistol. A young middle-class woman, after signing a Peasan Party list, was forced to stand live hours in a temperature ‘below freezing point until slie fainted., A mechanic withdrew his signature to gain freedom. A policeman told him: ’■ The whole Peasant Party are bandits with M. Mikolajezyk at the head.” A garage proprietor was arrested for collecting money to buy a batirier for the Peasant Party, He refused to answer questions by a uniformed .Russian officer. He was told he was one of those who wanted the Russians out of Poland and that M. Mikolajezyk was a bandit working for London and “ we shall never allow your .party to go to the elections.” A woman factory worker had to stand in a courtyard five hours in the frost, A U.B. chief asked: “ Why do you belong to a party that is financed by England, which is preparing atom bombs to drop oil Poland? ” The correspondent says that he does not find it easy to believe that these people were lying or exaggerating. They ran tod great a risk talking to an Englishman because their movements were closely watched. ‘