In the centre of Ostrava, in the Czech Republic, on the evening of 11 September, a Polish cyclist, Kuba Heisig, was attacked whilst taking part in a charity ride along the historic borders of Upper Silesia. According to Wirtualna Polska, the attackers were his fellow countrymen, who saw a blue-and-yellow hat bearing the inscription «GÓRNY ŚLONSK», mistook it for Ukrainian symbolism and began calling the man a «Ukrainian» and a «Banderite». After being beaten, Heisig was taken to hospital and decided to call off the planned 800-kilometre charity ride.
Briefly about the main points
- Kuba Hajzig, a Polish national, was beaten up on the evening of 11 September in the centre of Ostrava.
- The attackers mistook the blue and yellow colours of Upper Silesia for the Ukrainian colours.
- The man was called a «Ukrainian» and a «Banderite», after which he was beaten and kicked.
- Following the attack, the cyclist was taken to hospital and had to abandon the charity ride.
- He was raising money for his partner’s treatment; she is battling stage III cervical cancer.
- Following the publicity, the fundraising campaign, which had raised 300,000 zlotys, was closed overnight, having exceeded its target.
The blue and yellow colours of Upper Silesia were mistaken for the Ukrainian flag
The attack took place on Friday evening, 11 September, in the centre of Ostrava.
Kuba Gaizig was wearing a blue and yellow hat with the words «GÓRNY ŚLONSK» — «Upper Silesia». It is precisely these colours that are traditionally associated with Upper Silesia, a historical region which today lies on both sides of the Polish-Czech border.
According to Wirtualna Polska, the attackers assumed he was Ukrainian. They allegedly began shouting that the man was a «Ukrainian» and a «Banderite», after which they resorted to physical violence. Hajziga beat and kicked, after which he was taken to hospital for a medical examination. Photographs released following the incident show a bruise under his eye and other signs of assault.
The case has been referred to the Czech police, who are to establish all the circumstances of the attack. Consequently, the anti-Ukrainian motive is currently based primarily on the account of the victim and the organisers of his charity campaign, rather than on the final conclusions of the investigation.
They were beaten up by some Poles who thought they were dealing with a Ukrainian
What makes the story particularly absurd is that, according to the Polish publication, the attackers were as well as Polish citizens.
In fact, the Polish man was beaten up by his own compatriots after they misinterpreted the traditional colours of his region.
Blue and yellow are the historic colours of Upper Silesia and are used in its regional symbolism. It was precisely because of Silesia that Geisig set out on his journey: his route was to take him through Polish and Czech territories along the region’s historic borders.
After being assaulted, the cyclist reported that cancels the trip and returns home. The planned route was to be around 800 km.
The trip was intended to help save his partner from cancer
«Rajza dlo Marceliny» was not just a sporting journey.
Geizig set off on 9 September from Chorzów to raise awareness of a fundraising campaign for the treatment of his 30-year-old partner Marcellinas, who has been diagnosed with stage III cervical cancer. She is the mother of three children and is undergoing a difficult course of treatment.
The route was deliberately planned so that the man would remain relatively close to home and the hospital and could return quickly should his partner’s condition deteriorate.
Before the attack, Geizig had planned to drive approximately 800 km on a cargo bike, whilst broadcasting and promoting the fundraising campaign.
After the beating, 300,000 zlotys were raised in a single night
The attack effectively brought the charity ride to a halt, but had the exact opposite effect on the fundraising effort itself.
After news of the assault spread across Polish social media and the media, people began donating money en masse to help pay for Marcelina’s treatment.
Wirtualna Polska reports that In just one night, they managed to raise the entire target amount – 300,000 zlotys – and even significantly exceeded the target. At the current exchange rate, that is approximately 3.5 million UAH.
Consequently, the attack forced Haizig to bring the physical part of «Rajza dlo Marceliny» to a premature end; however, the main objective of the campaign was ultimately achieved much sooner than expected.
Incidents based on the false assumption that someone is of Ukrainian origin have already occurred
This is not the first time a person has been attacked on the assumption that they are Ukrainian.
In July, in Łódź, Poland, a man assaulted a passer-by, whom he mistakenly took for a Ukrainian. The victim also turned out to be Polish and suffered serious injuries. The police then launched an investigation and were searching for the attacker.
That same summer, an attack on Ukrainian teenagers on public transport in Bielsko-Biała caused a widespread outcry in Poland. According to an analysis by Res Futura, the majority of participants in the online discussion linked such incidents to the rise in anti-Ukrainian rhetoric.
In the case of Ostrava, the situation turned out to be even more paradoxical: The yellow and blue colours of Upper Silesia’s regional symbols turned out to be similar enough to those of Ukraine for the charity cycle ride to end with a trip to hospital.
