16 Facts About Ryszard Siwiec

Ryszard Siwiec's story remained mostly forgotten until the fall of communism, when it was first recounted in a documentary film by Polish director Maciej Drygas.

Since then, Ryszard Siwiec has been posthumously awarded a number of Czech, Slovak, and Polish honours and decorations.

Ryszard Siwiec was the first person from Central and Eastern Europe to self-immolate in protest of the invasion.

Ryszard Siwiec was born in Debica on 7 March 1909, under the Austrian Partition of Poland, then part of Austria-Hungary.

Ryszard Siwiec graduated from the Lwow University with a degree in philosophy.

Ryszard Siwiec worked as an accountant since the 1930s in Przemysl, where he moved shortly after graduation.

Ryszard Siwiec obtained passes to a national harvest festival taking place on 8 September 1968 at the 10th-Anniversary Stadium in Warsaw.

Ryszard Siwiec's goal was to have his act be witnessed by nearly 100,000 spectators, including numerous journalists and the national leadership of the Polish United Workers' Party.

Ryszard Siwiec set himself ablaze during one of the festival dances using a flammable solvent.

Ryszard Siwiec had a banner with the words "For our freedom and yours" and "Honour, Fatherland" as well as some leaflets, which he is said to have thrown around right before the incident, though neither attracted much attention, and both items are primarily mentioned only in the documents of the investigating secret police.

Ryszard Siwiec retained consciousness after the flames had been extinguished, giving brief statements, as well as later when he was transferred to a hospital, where he was able to communicate with the medical personnel, and where he received a brief visit from his wife.

Ryszard Siwiec was censored out of official photographs of the Central Photographic Agency, which had a monopoly on issuing photos for the press in the era of communist Poland.

Ryszard Siwiec's act was captured in a 7-second film by a motion picture camera of the Polish Film Chronicle, but the official newsreels of the festival omitted any mention of the incident.

Ryszard Siwiec's family reported that while some acquaintances were supportive and aware of Siwiec's true purpose, many turned away from them, either intimidated by the authorities or believing the stories that Siwiec had been drunk or mentally ill.

Ryszard Siwiec's timing has been described as unfortunate, as he chose to commit his act during a dance, at which time his cry was muffled due to the sounds of an orchestra playing.

Drygas, who is credited with reconstructing and popularizing Ryszard Siwiec's story, remarked that compared to other similar incidents of that time, such as the self-immolations of Palach or Romas Kalanta, Ryszard Siwiec death's is unique in how little attention it attracted.