THE PERPECTIVE OF KRZYZOWA. On The 30th Anniversary of the signing of the Polish-German ‘Good Neighbours and Friendly Cooperation Treaty’
On the 17th of June, 1991, Poland and Germany signed a ‘Good Neighbours and Friendly Cooperation Treaty’.
This Treaty formed the third part of a ‘triad’ that unfolded as efforts were taken to build a solid foundation for a new quality of Polish-German relations. This triad consisted of:
1. The Reconciliation Mass in Krzyzowa (this opened up new opportunities for dialog),
2. ‘The German-Polish Border Treaty’ (1990) (this treaty settled long standing territorial issued), and thirdly,
3. The ‘Good Neighbours and Friendly Cooperation Treaty’, (designed to create a solid foundation for political, economic, social, scientific and cultural reconciliation).
The Treaty is particularly important to our Foundation. It was on its basis that the Polish-German Youth Cooperation was established, which contributed to the development of the International Youth Meeting Center in Krzyżowa - one of the largest centers of this type in Europe. Over the past thirty years, the Center has managed to implement thousands of educational projects with the participation of tens of thousands of young Europeans, mainly Poles and Germans.
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Krzyżowa - reconciliation in practice || Jolanta Steciuk
Imagine a place where a dream has come true. In a former state farm, surrounded by dilapidated farm buildings and a palace with a hole in the roof, the leaders of two countries burdened with the trauma of war met. In a joint effort, Poles and Germans, supported by friends from other countries, created in this place - in the Lower Silesian village in Krzyżowa - an international meeting house.
It was 1989, Poland was emerging from communism, Germany was on the road to reunification. Architects, engineers and gardeners began to build bridges across the divide - despite a difficult shared history, differences in legal systems, shortages of supplies, transport problems. The assumption was to work in international teams, although it would have been faster, easier with colleagues from one's own country.
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