Borys Romanchenko

Borys Tymofiyovych Romanchenko (Ukrainian: Борис Тимофійович Романченко; 20 January 1926 – 18 March 2022) was a Ukrainian public figure, activist and Holocaust survivor who survived the Buchenwald, Peenemünde, Dora and Bergen-Belsen concentration camps. He was killed by Russian airstrikes during the Battle of Kharkiv during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.[1][2][3][4]

Borys Romanchenko
Борис Тимофійович Романченко
Born(1926-01-20)20 January 1926
Bondary, Sumy Oblast, Ukrainian SSR, USSR
Died18 March 2022(2022-03-18) (aged 96)
Kharkiv, Ukraine

Life

At age 16, Romanchenko was deported to Dortmund in Germany, where he had to do forced labour in a coal mine. After a failed attempt to escape, he was interned at Buchenwald concentration camp. Later, he was forced to work in the production of V-2 rockets at Peenemünde. He was transferred to Mittelbau-Dora concentration camp and finally liberated at Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. After returning home, he studied in Kharkiv.[1]

After surviving four Nazi concentration camps, Romanchenko actively shared his memories of those events and was involved in preserving the memory of tragedies caused by Nazis. He was vice-president (from Ukraine) of the International Committee of Former Prisoners of Buchenwald-Dora.[5]

On 12 April 2015, he spoke at the site of the former Buchenwald concentration camp, citing from the Buchenwald Oath in Russian: "Наш идеал — построить новый мир мира и свободы" ("Our ideal is building a new world of peace and freedom").[5]

He was living in the Saltivka area of Kharkiv at the time of his death.[2]

His granddaughter Yulia Romanchenko said that there was shelling in the area and when she went to his house it was completely burned down.[2] The Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba commented on Twitter: "Unspeakable crime. Survived Hitler, murdered by Putin."[2]

References
  1. "Trauer um Boris Romantschenko" (in German). Maximilian-Kolbe-Werk. Retrieved 21 March 2022.
  2. "Ukraine war: Holocaust survivor killed by Russian shelling in Kharkiv". BBC News. 21 March 2022.
  3. "Holocaust-Überlebender in Charkiw getötet" (in German). Tagesschau. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  4. "Buchenwald-Überlebender durch Bomben in Charkiw getötet". mdr.de (in German). 21 March 2022. Retrieved 21 March 2022.
  5. "Boris Romantschenko getötet". buchenwald.de (in German). Retrieved 21 March 2022.
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