The Last Phase of Displacement (Summer 1947–January 1952)

Abstract

In mid-1947 the lives of most Ukrainians who had been displaced by the Second World War continued to be fraught with difficulties and uncertainty. Those who had managed to avoid repatriation to the Soviet Union remained suspended in a temporary situation without legal rights, in difficult economic conditions, and unsure what the future would hold. The millions who had returned to their prewar homes were regarded by the Soviet government as being tainted and were not allowed to resume their normal lives. Over the period of the next four years the situation of both the refugees and returnees changed. Most refugees were resettled to new countries and began new lives. Returnees to the Soviet Union were segregated, despatched to different destinations and forced to accept an inferior status in their own society. This chapter examines the last phase of displacement and dislocation for Ukrainians uprooted during the war and its aftermath.