Polish tragedy
Daniel Korski 2:47pm
Polish President Lech Kaczynski, his wife and a number of top Polish officials,
including the Central Bank president, the Polish ambassador to Moscow and an Army chief, were killed when the presidential plane crashed near an airport in
western Russia. The tragedy – the worst in modern Polish history – ends an extraordinary career for the actor-turned-politician who, alongside his twin brother Jaroslaw Kaczynski,
upended Poland’s political system when they founded the conservative party Law and Justice, and in 2006 controlled both the presidency and the government.
The brothers first found fame as child actors, with angelic faces in a film version of the popular children's book The Two That Stole The Moon. But though Lech Kaczynski only gained international prominence when he defeated current Prime Minister Donald Tusk in the race for the presidency in 2005, the brothers had by then been a near-permanent fixture of Poland’s transition from communism. They were instrumental in helping Solidarity hero Lech Walesa defeat Tadeusz Mazowiecki in the first free elections and were awarded for their efforts with government posts. But Lech quickly fell out with President Walesa over the pace of Poland’s economic reforms and left government. He later returned to government as Minister of Justice
In 2005, Lech was elected president and, following the victory of the Law and Justice party in a subsequent parliamentary election, appointed his brother Jaroslaw as prime minister. But their ascension to power did not turn out to be smooth. Homophobic, seen by many as intolerant, ultranationalist and eager for a scrap with Poland’s neighbours, the twins set alarm bells ringing in and out of the country. Relations with Germany fell to a low during their tenure, and scraps with Poland’s EU allies became frequent.
Domestically, the Kaczynski record is a matter of dispute. Their vigorous pursuit of "lustration" policy, which required officials and professionals who had dealings with the former communist secret police to confess their collaboration or lose their jobs, caused considerable tensions. But the brothers achieved a number of things in office that previous governments did not. They include the streamlining of government spending to properly disburse billions of euros in EU assistance, and greater budgetary discipline. Unemployment fell by four points from a high of 18 percent on the brothers' watch, and the economy grew at an impressive rate.
Two years after coming to power, however, the Kaczynski twins were beaten in a parliamentary election by the opposition Civic Platform led by Donald Tusk, the man who Lech Kaczynski had defeated in the race for the presidency a few years earlier. In the last three years, Kaczynski “co-habitated” with Tusk, but maintained a critical view of the economically liberal government, often vetoing its bills, including 2008 plans to encourage hospitals to operate on a commercial basis - a plan the President Kaczynski said amounted to privatisation. Lech Kaczynski was due to face off with parliamentary speaker Bronislaw Komorowski in this year’s race for the presidency – a contest Kaczynski was almost certain to loose.
President Kaczynski’s death is not only a personal and national tragedy, but has in many ways brought to an end an important chapter in Poland’s post-transition history.
Previous
stepney
April 10th, 2010 3:36pm Report this commentYou're a sick bastard Richard. This really is no time for such juvenile behaviour. Our thoughts should be with the Polish people.
Your words shame you and this site.
Off you go now. Leave the serious stuff to the grown ups. I'm sure you've got some revision to do or something.
Verity
April 10th, 2010 3:37pm Report this commentHeartfelt condolences to the families of those who perished, and to the fine people of Poland . What a devastating loss for the families, and for the country.
GnosticBrian
April 10th, 2010 3:38pm Report this commentRichard of York
Surley it is Broon who is the master of the blame game? He asserts that our current economic mess was is nothing whatsoever to do with him.
echo34
April 10th, 2010 3:45pm Report this commentRichard of Dork,
Find it amusing eh? trivial news.. some point to be made somewhere?
No wonder your lot are shot to pieces when this is the best you can do.
The fact that a fair percentage of your comrades in the uk is made up of Poles is lost in that dense chicken nugget you like to call a brain.
TomTom
April 10th, 2010 4:02pm Report this commentSikorsky in Gibraltar 1943 just as Katyn was revealed to the world......Kaczynski in Smolensk 2010 on the way to Katyn....and Putin to head the investigating commission.......the truth will never be revealed !
Peter From Maidstone
April 10th, 2010 4:03pm Report this commentThat's a pretty crass sort of thing to say.
Richard of York
April 10th, 2010 4:35pm Report this commentAll this vitriol from posters who were two days ago calling Woolas vile names for telling the truth on immigration....Tories believing Polish workers taking 98% of the new jobs...huh!
Hypocrits.
Matt
April 10th, 2010 4:37pm Report this commentRichard of York – Why do you think it appropriate to soil a non-political posting with such puerlie, contemptuous remarks?
CH – can you not moderate this cretin on the grounds of public taste and decency? It’s one thing for the brainless troglodyte to sound off with his fatuous drivel in other more political discussions but allowing comments like this is pointless and cheapens the otherwise excellent blog you have.
echo34
April 10th, 2010 5:27pm Report this commenti invite you to provide evidence of anything i posted on Woolas in the last few days.
Richard, playing the blame game again are we?
Dont blame Richard because we all called woolas a dullard the other day, didn't we?
This is labours' level of debate, spite because their too dense to understand anything, go and have a bath and wash the smell of excrement off.
TrevorsDen
April 10th, 2010 6:28pm Report this commentPerhaps Richard can be moderated out of existence? Permanently. His post seems to have gone. I can imagine how puerile it was buy the comments.
General Zod
April 10th, 2010 7:10pm Report this commentProbably not, Tervor. He's amusing anyway. The offensive get to stay, hence Verity's continued presence.
Richard of York
April 10th, 2010 7:31pm Report this commentJust looked at the latset poll of the marginals.....makes interesting reading.
I won't crow too much but I am looking forward to the Pringle and blue rinse brigade reaction against Shameron.
Remember..Stab with the knife then hide behind the cloak...not stab with the cloak and hide behind the knife, like Hoon and his merry band of loons.
David Lindsay
April 10th, 2010 7:59pm Report this commentAh, the Katyn Massacre.
Remind me again on which side the Soviet Union entered the War.
Remind me again to whom "The Greatest Briton" allied us when the side-swapping occurred.
And remind me again which country he handed over, with significantly altered borders, to that decidedly late-coming ally, despite our having embarked on the War at all specifically in order to protect both the freedom and the borders of that very country.
Tankus
April 10th, 2010 7:59pm Report this commentAnd just how many stabs in Blairs back did gordon do ...eh Richard ?
Didn't he say he still had the scars ?
djw2009
April 10th, 2010 8:33pm Report this commentLook, the death of any human being is a "tragedy", but the death of the Polish President has no further relevance to members of the British nation.
David Lindsay
April 10th, 2010 9:27pm Report this commentdjw2009, one in 12 people living in Britain is Polish.
Dirty Euro
April 10th, 2010 9:46pm Report this commentPresident Kaczynski was a great hero who stood for freedom. He may have had some right wing values. But he is martyr for freedom.
Where are the people asking what Russia did?
Peter Crawford
April 11th, 2010 12:06am Report this commentI know some people who are connected to the Polish government. I am awaiting their response. There is more to come here. Richard, you are a c**t.
Derek
April 11th, 2010 10:45am Report this commentHow refreshing it must be to shed tears of grief for one's government rather than tears of rage.
Anne Wotana Kaye 1
April 11th, 2010 4:01pm Report this commentDirty Euro: President Kaczynski was a great hero who stood for freedom. He may have had some right wing values. But he is martyr for freedom.
Where are the people asking what Russia did?
-------------------------------------------
He was the great man that he was because of those same right wing values. A pity there are not more people and world leaders
with his values.
Mike
April 11th, 2010 8:23pm Report this commentHi! I'm Polish and i want to thank you all for the kind words. Thats truth that we are't satisfied with Kaczynski's presidency but still he wanted the best for polish nation. And after all no one should die with his love in any accident. Its great tragedy. Many people died. Lots of priests, army generals and many many other important persons. It's such a relief to know that other people consolidate with us in our grief despite the differences and political issues. And after all, you and i are the same human beings.
PS I'm sorry for my grammar mistakes and etc.
Simon Mennie
April 14th, 2010 12:02am Report this commentDavid Lindsay:
The USSR did not "enter" WWII until 22nd June 1941 unless you are perhaps inferring that this took place under the auspices of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Non Aggression Pact of August 1939.This was an act of monumental self interested cynicism by two gangster regimes which sealed the fates of literally millions of Eastern Europeans for a generation but it did not at the time make the USSR a co-belligerent of Nazi Germany against Britain and France in what was still a regional and not a global conflict.
I do not know what practical strategic alternative was available to Churchill in June 1941 other than to ally this country with the USSR on the principle that the enemy of my enemy is my friend.Maybe you feel that the Prime Minister tended to bang on a bit about the need to destroy Hitler to the exclusion of baser calculation of nationalself interest.Perhaps June 1941 would have been a propitious moment to recognise that the game was up,conclude a separate peace with Nazi Germany and join Vichy France as one of Hitler's client states.
The British guarantee to Poland in March 1939 was indeed worthless in view of Poland's geographical position and the absence of any plan to engage and distract the Wehrmacht in the west on the outbreak of war.The diplomatic option a mutual assistance pact with the USSR to deter Nazi invasion of Poland was rendered nugatory by British and French dilatoriness and Stalin's decision to unilaterally protect and augment the USSR's strategic position by dealing direct with Hitler.
By December 1944 Stalin controlled all of Poland by right of conquest.You may argue that the history of wartime Anglo-Polish relations is one of sacrifice on the Plish side and deceit and betrayal on the British side, culminating in the recognition of Poland's reconstitution as a Soviet satellite by Churchill at Yalta.Realpolitik is not a pretty affair but Churchill was not a free agent and British interests and obligations were of small moment in the wider disposition of spheres of influence arrived at by Stalin and Roosevelt.
Having failed to defend Polish territorial integrty in 1939 against Hitler it should come as no surprise that in 1945 a bankrupt and exhausted Britain was equally powerless to defend it against Stalin even had the will to do do existed.
Barbara
April 17th, 2010 8:44pm Report this commentIt is horrible tragedy. Nobody deserve for such death.
France ise
May 16th, 2010 10:52pm Report this commentIt is a good thing that Bronislaw Komorowski would be elected as the President of the Republic of Poland. He is really working for the best insterests of the people and the country. He carries that sense of responsibility in his blood.
People of Poland must have confidence in him and know that it is by God's Will he reached the level of being President of the country of Poland.
People of Poland, be confident in God, He is the best Ruler a country can have!!!
With all my heart
FRANCE LISE
Back to top