Język Polski
English
The Office for State Protection 1992 Investigation into the Destruction of MSW Department I Operational Records Between 1989 and 1990
Przegląd Archiwalny Instytutu Pamięci Narodowej, Vol. 18 (2025), pages: 131-172
Publication date: 2025-12-30
https://doi.org/10.48261/PAIPN251805
PDF (Język Polski)
Abstract
The problem of the destruction of active and archived MSW Department I operational files during the political transformation is discussed in the article. After the Contract Sejm elections and the formation of Prime Minister Tadeusz Mazowiecki’s government, all units of the Security Service, including the civilian intelligence service, began destroying case files and other types of documentation. This process began in September 1989 and reached its peak in the second half of January 1990. Many documents were also destroyed at a later date. After the formation of Prime Minister Jan Olszewski’s government (December 1991), a Research Division was established in the Office of the Minister of Internal Affairs. Its purpose was to examine the Security Service archives with a view to vetting the authorities of the Polish Republic. In the course of these activities, it was discovered that the some of the protocols from the culling of cases in MBP Department I had been falsified. Evidence was also found indicating that former SB functionaries had misappropriated archival materials for themselves. An investigation into this matter was conducted by the Investigative Office of the Department of State Protection. After the dismissal of the government and changes in the leadership of the services, the proceedings were discontinued. The documentation available today is an important supplement to our knowledge of the circumstances surrounding the destruction of documents by the intelligence services of the Polish People’s Republic.
Keywords
wywiad • wywiad cywilny • Departament I MSW • akta • brakowanie akt • niszczenie akt • Służba Bezpieczeństwa • Ministerstwo Spraw Wewnętrznych • MSW • Urząd Ochrony Państwa • UOP • Zarząd Śledczy UOP • Zarząd Wywiadu UOP • Wydział Studiów • lustracja intelligence • civilian intelligence • MSW Department I • file • file culling • file destruction • Security Service • Ministry of Internal Affairs (MSW) • Department of State Protection (UOP) • UOP Investigative Office • UOP Intelligence Office • Research Division • vetting
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