The cemetery bears the graves of Polish civilians who were evacuated from the Soviet Union in 1942, the state PAP news agency reported.
The facility has now been renovated under a culture ministry programme launched in 2019 that seeks to regenerate all Polish cemeteries located in former British colonies, officials said.
From the Soviet Union to Africa
At the height of World War II, Polish civilians were first evacuated from the Soviet Union to Iran, alongside the soldiers of the Polish Armed Forces in the East, which had been formed in the Soviet Union. They were then transported to temporary settlements in India, Mexico, New Zealand and Africa.
By late 1944, Polish people constituted the largest European minority in east Africa, with 13,000 refugees living in several camps and settlements.
The Kidugala estate in the then British colony of Tanganyika housed some 900 Poles in its thatched brick cottages. Teeming with life, the settlement had its own schools, factories and newspapers, as well as a hospital, a church and a community centre. It existed until 1947, with some other Polish estates in Africa active until 1952.
The Cemetery for Polish Refugees in Kidugala has been refurbished by Poland’s culture ministry in collaboration with academic and non-governmental partners, as well as with the country’s embassy in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, the PAP news agency reported.
(pm/gs)
Source: PAP