Funkcjonariusze Milicji Obywatelskiej i aparatu bezpieczeństwa publicznego w latach 1944–1956 w świetle opracowań własnych – portret zbiorowy w perspektywie porównawczej

Abstract

The Citizen’s Militia and security apparatus functioned under a single ministry – the Ministry of Public Security. They had a different remit but worked together on many occasions. The article talks about the officers of the two institutions in a comparative perspective. The text is based on statistical summaries compiled by the Ministry of Public Security in the 1940s and 1950s. The Ministry of Public Security’s own studies have shown little difference between the statistical militiaman and officer of the Security Office. In the 1950s, militiamen were characterized by much poorer education and a higher percentage of those declaring religious practices. There were also far fewer women in their ranks. Despite this, the security apparatus officers treated the militiamen as someone inferior, and regarded the transition to the Citizen’s Militia as a demotion.