From Hitler to Putin: One woman's century of resilience

Anastasia Hulej, a former prisoner of the Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen camps, shares her extraordinary survival story. In an interview with the portal Sestry.eu, she discusses the harsh experiences of the Second World War and the current situation in Europe.

In 1943, at just 17 years old, Anastasia was forced into labour by the German occupiers. Despite attempts to hide, she was betrayed by her cousin's husband and sent to Katowice, where she worked unloading slag from railway cars. Soon she attempted an escape, which ended in failure. She was caught in Rzeszów and taken to Auschwitz-Birkenau. In the camp, she witnessed mass extermination and brutal repression. Despite hunger and hard labour, she never lost hope for a better tomorrow.

Dreams saved us. We dreamed of food and freedom – she recalls.

By the end of the war, she was transferred to Bergen-Belsen, where she survived a typhus epidemic. In 1945, the camp was liberated by the Allies.

After the war, Anastasia returned to Kyiv, where she faced judgment and lack of acceptance.

My classmates didn't want to be friends with me because of the number on my arm – she says.

In time, she started studying, founded a family, and began a new life.

However, on 24th February 2022, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Anastazja had to flee once again. Through Lviv and Poland, she reached Germany, where she was warmly welcomed.

I was no longer afraid of Germans – she emphasises, adding that the younger generations of Germans are moved by her story.

Despite her challenging experiences, Anastasia Hulej remains hopeful for a better future.

We survived Hitler, we survived Stalin, so we simply must survive Putin – she states, emphasising that in the modern world, there is no place for hatred.