Z historii ukraińskiego radykalnego ruchu lewicowego na Wołyniu w okresie międzywojennym
From the History of the Radical Leftist Movement in Volhynia in the Interwar Period

Summary/Abstract: The aim of this article is to demonstrate the reasons for the spread and the character of radical left-wing ideology in the territory of Western Volhynia in 1920–1939 in order to discover the forms and methods of communist propaganda in the Volhynia province, and the authorities’ attitudes towards the activity of the left-wing Ukrainian parties and organizations. It demonstrates that the communist movement in Volhynia remained one of the dominant political forces during the entire interwar period, which was predetermined by both internal and external factors. The Communist Party of Western Ukraine became the leading left-wing party in Volhynia. The most widespread forms of that party’s activity in the territory of the province were the following: the distribution of agitation leaflets; hanging anti-government posters; participating in the organization and the organization of strikes by agricultural and industrial workers, foresters, and school employees; and campaigns against equality. Thus, it did not reject terrorist-diversionary methods of struggle. The Polish administration considered the left-wing movement to be one of the greatest dangers to the territorial integrity and safety of the state; therefore, it employed all its resources against the left-wing movement. In the article, I showcase the reasons which resulted in the reduction of the influence of left-wing parties on the social and political life of people in the area, which resulted in the weakening of the pro-Soviet atmosphere in the community of local Ukrainians in the late 1930s.

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