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UKRAINIAN WOMAN OUR ENGLISH COLUMN A Letter from Slave Labor Camp The Ukrainians all over the Free W orld have been profound ly moved last July by an unusual occurence. A letter sent out from behind the Iron Curtain and ad dressed to the Ukrainian em igra tion in the W est has caused this deep stirring-. The authors of the letter, the Ukrainian women im prisoned in the concentration camp Mordovia, subsequently managed to transm it it through the underground to the Free W orld. The original text was w ritten on a linen cloth in a purple that looks rather like the old-fashion ed “indelible pencil” marking. For only in such manner it could have been transported as a lining of a coat or a bag. The w riting is legible, and similarly clear are the well-measured thoughts ex pressed therein. In scanty sen tences its authors are trying to convey the m atters of great con cern to them. Half of the letter is given up to the conditions of existence of political prisoners in USSR. This situation was most difficult in the early post-w ar years when famine, unendurably hard labor, and appalling sanitary conditions took a toll of thousands of poli tical prisoners. In 1948 the conditions w orsen ed extremely. The “intensified regim e” prohibited the corres pondence witih relatives, and the barracks had to be locked for the night. The inm ates were likewise inhibited from engaging in han diwork. They were to w ear only prison garb, otfher clothes having been debarred. They also were not perm itted to possess any money. All this m alpractice was coupled w ith twelve hours of hard labor and a deliberate increase in the work norms. The unbearable living condi tions brought about uprisings in various -camp cen ters: V orkuta in 1953, Norilsk in the spring and summer of 1953, and Kingir (K a zakhstan) in 1954. In suppressing them, the enemy used all kinds of weapons, including tanks. At the cost of several thousands of comrades killed or wounded, the political prisoners gave rise to abolition of the stricter regime and to introduction of the 8-hour day. This shows that every allevia tion in the prison regime has been won by the prisoners through, heavy sacrifices. The basic feat ures of the bolshevik prison camp system have not changed, how ever. Am nesty which has lately been given such wide blazoning, pertains merely to a small part of prisoners. But even these are left in the settlem ents in Siberia, as compulsory slave laborers. In the second part of the letter the women political prisoners in form the Ukrainians in the Free W orld that the bolshevik regime is w atching closely their activi ties. The prison authorities are picturing them (apart from oth ers) in the w orst shades. But the Ukrainian political prisoners do understand the tricks о-f bolshe vik propaganda. They trust that the Ukrainians in the Free W orld will fulfill their duty with honor — a m oral duty imposed by the nation upon its political emigres. They wish them firmness in their actions and believe that one day they will be found w orking for the restoration of nationhood to their native land. And now they, the women -po litical prisoners in the camps of Mordovia, hold the name of the political prisoners in profound re spect, and aver that they have gained favor and recognition of political prisoners of other na tionalities. The Ukrainian women in the Free W orld have been deeply moved by this letter. Their sisters behind the Iron Curtain have de m onstrated a great spiritual strength by maintaining their courage and the a warness of their great mission. Hence we realize that the struggle for independence waged by the Ukrainian people is grow ing and is striking ever deeper roots. And our women, abreast of men, are in the first lines of re sistance. ONE OF THE BEST SOPRANOS IN EUROPE The cover of this issue of our mamagazine is adorned with the picture of one of the best C ar mens of present-day Europe. She is Ira Malanyuk, the Ukrainian singer. Ira studied music in Lviv and Vienna. She made her debut in A ustria and subsequently was en gaged to appear in Switzerland. From there began her artistic itinerary throughout W estern Europe. H er vigorous mezzo-sop»- rano enables her to sing in W ag ner's operas and she often sings the parts of Elsa and Brangena. Recently the musical critics of Paris, where she was singing, called Miss M&lanyuk one of the six great singers of W agnerian operas in the world. The singer is constantly travel ing. She appears in Milan, M ad rid, Hamlburig, Berlin, Paris. On the occasion of celebration of M ozart’s anniversary she was in vited to sing “Requiem” at V i enna. She also sang in the operas during the M ozart festival in Salbuzburig, Austria. Видання C оюзу Українок A мерики - перевидано в електронному форматі в 2012 році . A рхів C У A - Ню Йорк , Н . Й . C Ш A.
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