WARSAW, Poland, Oct. 5 (UPI) -- Poland’s president postponed a ceremony commemorating the 1940 massacre of Polish officers by Soviet forces until after the country's elections.
An aide to Polish President Lech Kaczynski said the ceremony marking the Katyn massacre was postponed from Friday to early November to avoid claims it could be used for political gains by the nationalist government of Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the president’s twin brother, Polish Radio said Friday.
Ewa Junczyk-Ziomecka, undersecretary of state in the president’s office, said the head of state postponed the ceremony because of criticism by politicians and film director Andrzej Wajda, whose movie on the Katyn massacre was recently released in Warsaw.
Wajda has said that the ceremony on the WWII massacre shouldn't be held before parliamentary elections Oct. 21, as it could be used by political parties.
Janczyk-Ziomecka rejected claims the conservative Law and Justice party of the Kaczynski brothers had tried to score political gains in the election campaign.
The Katyn ceremony will be Nov. 9-11, the radio said.
