Have you said, that Russians forced people to join the kolkhoz (soviet collective farm) during the two years they was there?
Yes, they did, and for those who did not want, there was a train , stock cars. And they put about 50 or 60 people in. Young, old, women, young girls, adult or non- adult, and when they loaded the stock cars, they left it standing on the rail. And then the people shouted : "water, water, for God's sake, give us the water !"
Was they Czech people?
Czech , Ukrainian, all mixed. Who didn´t want to join Kolkhoz - was sent to Siberia.
We crossed Dukla borders at sixth at the morning, around nine o clock. 6th October 1944. We went across the borders, we walked along the road, and I said : "Watch out, boys! There are wires, across the road." There were wires above ground, like telephone wires, or something thinner. So we stepped it over. And then there was general Sázavský in his car, driving a little way after us. Suddenly it went "twang" and it blowed up in explosion.
12 kilometers from Zdolbunov was a town called Rovno, and there Germans shot 26 thousands of Jews. There was a big sand pit, and there they shot them, then they strew them with chlorinated lime and soil. but then it bursted, and there was a yellow liquid streaming from this mass grave.
They arranged a meeting in Zdolbice to establish the kolkhoz (soviet collective farm). Nobody didn't want to be chief of kolkhoz and he (Jiránek) applied for it. It ended up that he didn´t survived until next day. They spreaded fear among people, who would be chief, would be killed. He just left home from meeting and didn't live to see tomorrow. Some russians wanted to have democracy, state without communism, so the Ukrainians wanted to have independent Ukraine, without communism.
My colleague Hrouda Jiří was hurt. I said to him: "Jirka, you have a splinter in your knee. Go to hospital to pull it out, or you'll be lame". " Just this attack more, and then I shall go." Just one attack more, but he did't go, he was carried. It was all up the hill, and on that hill was Germans in concrete bunkers. He climbed all the way up. He threw it inside (hand grenade), and he catched it (bullet probably). It was mount Hier formerly, and now its mount Hrouda. They renamed it to mount Hrouda, as a tribute to Hrouda for his heroism.
Until came Bolsheviks, we had everything in shops, like we have now, everything you can imagine, tropical fruit, everythig was there. But after arrival of Russians, they started to loaded everything on the trucks. "Where you take it?" "It is a small room here, we are going to take it to bigger shop." And we never saw that goods. We couldn´t get anything after that.
Did it happen just at the beginnig? at the 1939?
Yes, immediately after russians came, in three months everything was eaten up, and stolen.
Germans used to say when they beat a retreat : Don't be afraid of us, be afraid of Russians. We won't drive you to Siberia. So that is the way that things looked like...
Born 08/25 1923 at Volynie (Zdolbunov) , under polish state. He had 7 siblings. Father worked as weaver, whole family participated in weaver’s craft. Main sortiment was coarse cotton. In this region lived multinational population. After Soviet domination and bolshevik supremacy, people were forced to join Kholkhoz’s and some were deported to Siberia. He recalls violent reaction of kholkhoz’s oponents, too (murder of new kholkhoz cheif).
In 1941 he saw quick arrival of Germans. They interned his brother to carry him to Germany to work. Mr. Jirsák treid to rescue him, but in never happened. Then he was forced to work as a carpenter. He worked two years this way. He saw persecutions of Jews, formations of jewish Ghetto, he recalls of help of citizens to Jews and hiding Jews in families. And mass executions of Jews in cities. In March 1944 after succesful progress of Red Army, joined Czechoslovakian army, he underwent a training to a medical officer. He served in medical paltoon. He absolved training in Rovno, then was transported to Torčín, and then to Dněstr, to Romania for practical army training. Then through Poland to Krosno. He was deployed in fights by Torčín and Zindranová. He was also in famous tank battle by Zindranová. He crossed dukla borders in 1944 10/6 at the morning with co-fighters. He took part in fighting at Dukla, he was injured with splinter. After recovering wasn’t conscripted to first line again. He stayed in rear hospital platoon. Then he got to Uhříněves, and as Red Army was liberated Prague, he couldn’t go to Prague, (it was explicit ban) and had to stay there. Then he moved to Prague, and worked in hospital. He didn’t get a soldier’s pay, so he dealed cigarettes.
After refusing joining of Communist party (he was invited by his commandant Engel), he wa transferred to Žatec. Then he lived in Karlsbad. He was monitored by secret police, he refused funkcion in Svazarm. He knew his wife from Slovenia, both were hospital attendants. After war they married in Šumperk. They had two children. He lived by his daughter in Litoměřice, passeda away on May, the 2nd, 2012.
