1. Personal data (name, surname, rank, age, profession, marital status):
Corporal Romuald Jacewicz, born 1919, farmer, single.
2. Date and circumstances of arrest:
I was arrested on 27 March 1940, for crossing the border.
3. Name of the camp, prison, forced labor site:
Peczorskije łagiera; working at railway construction.
4. Description of the camp, prison:
Taiga; low, muddy terrain; dirty, minimal hygiene. Living in large barracks, 250 people to each.
5. Compositions of prisoners, POWs, exiles:
Most of the people were Polish, part were Russian. Poles never lost their spirits. Mutual relations were good.
6. Life in the camp, prison:
We worked at railway construction, 12 hours [a day]. Remuneration depended on filling the quota beyond 115 percent. The quotas were high; each person had to transport 7 cubic meters of ground 120 meters far.
7. Attitude of the local NKVD towards the Poles:
the NKVD was brutal. Interrogations usually took place at night and didn’t come without a beating.
8. Medical assistance, hospitals, mortality:
Medical assistance was poor. Many people, whose names I don’t recall, died.
9. Was there a possibility to contact one’s country and family?
No contact [was possible].
10. When were you released and how did you manage to join the army?
I was released on 3 January 1942. After being released, I came to Lugovoy, where I joined the army on 27 February 1942.