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The recent tragic deaths of the president of Poland, Lech Kaczyński and his wife Maria Kaczyńska were marked on the 13^th of May 2010 in special ceremony at the Katyn cross in Krakow by Davy Hagan representing The Friends of the 36^th Ulster Division and associated groups.
 
The touching ceremony took part in the shadow of Wawel Castle, the royal home and final resting place of the former royal kings of Poland and the country’s greatest heroes including General Sikorski and Joseph Pilsudski.  Now within the castles vaults lies its former president and his wife. 

The touching ceremony seen a wreath being laid at the Katyn cross along with a short service of remembrance and a lecture on the treatment of the polish famines of the katyn officers murdered by the soviets in between April and May 1940.  This heart wrenching story was recounted by Marta Urbanska of the Historical faculty of the Technical university of Krakow whose grandfather was murdered at katyn.

Marta recounted how even the memory of katyn was suppressed by the post war Soviet regime including the persecution of her father and her humiliation of being forced to learn the Russian language for eight years as part of the soviet occupation of Poland. 

Davy Hagan presented Marta the wreath of flowers and she asked Davy to lay the wreath on her behalf for the 22000 officers who died during the massacre and the president and officials of Poland who died in the Smolensk air crash on their way to mark the 74th anniversary of the killings.

Marta commented “I am deeply touched by this gesture by the people of Northern Ireland in marking the terrible tragedy of Smolensk, I want to thank you all on behalf of the people of Krakow and indeed Poland for your sincerity at this time at our special place at the katyn cross in Krakow. 

Davy Hagan on behalf of the Friends of the Somme Associations replied “We have learned how the Polish people fought with honour on our behalf during World war II and who were ultimately betrayed by the western powers for political aims, we must remember the Poles in Northern Ireland today are the grandsons and granddaughters of those people” 

Davy went on to say “I have been asked to convey the most sincere sorrow on the death of your president, his wife and such important officials by the organisations I represent.”  Davy finally commented “We are an organisation who tries to maintain the memory of those who have fallen in battle with honour, we now honour those brave Poles who died fighting tyranny on our behalf and who’s memory was so long forgotten , we will always remember them.”