Poland, the fatherland of Nicolas Copernicus, Frederic Chopin and Jean-Paul II, is widely regarded as an icon of the emancipation of the people's democracies of Central and Eastern Europe with respect to the USSR. More still, Poland appears in the international imagery as an effective illustration of a rapid democratic transition after Soviet totalitarianism. It was the first people's democracy to organize a trade-union opposition and first to organize free elections.
Poland was the pioneer in transition of democracies of Central and Eastern Europe to liberal democracies. Protest crises that occurred in the 1970s magnified in 1980 with the creation of the Solidarity trade union emblematized by the worker Lech Walesa, who then organized major strikes in the shipyards of Gdansk (shipbuilding being practically the only productive sector of the country as part of the policy of economic specialization that the Soviet Union imposed upon its various states and sister countries).
The regime change was so evanescent and non-violent.
Faced with popular unrest fueled by Solidarity and the country's economic deterioration, the Workers' Party (affiliated with the CPSU) signed agreements with the opposition during the roundtable of April 5, 1989. With this organization holding free elections (a first in the Soviet bloc), what resulted was the victory of Solidarity in June 1989.
Tags: Lech Walesa, Polish Workers' Party, CPSU
[...] Has Poland managed its return to democracy? Poland, the birthplace of Nicolas Copernicus, Frederick Chopin and John Paul II, has become an icon of emancipation among the democracies of Central and Eastern countries vis-à-vis the USSR. Moreover, Poland appears in the international imaging as strong country with a rapid democratic transition after the Soviet totalitarianism. The first popular democracy to organize a union opposition and the first free elections in Poland, did not even progress towards full integration at the heart of democratic European Union. [...]
[...] Moreover, it has found the relative weakness of the Parliament before the Kaczynski twins last two years. Finally, we also note the power of the Church which maintains a relative salience of politics in the country, as we see today, with the fiery debate for the teaching of creationism on par with the Darwinian theory of evolution, or with the controversy over the legalization of abortion. The Catholic Church seems to have supported the movement of Lech Walesa in the 1980s very efficiently, especially since Pope John Paul II, who had been inducted in 1978, was Polish (besides being the first Pope who is neither Italian nor French). [...]
[...] B / A rapid harmonization with liberal democracies The reform of the organization and how elections can actually talk now of elective democracy: The new electoral law establishes the multiparty political alternation allowed through the election meetings of suffrage with a proportional threshold of (except for parties representing ethnic minorities such as the Electoral Committee of the German minority which was was able to obtain two members of the Lower House with of the vote) and the regularity of elections (every four years). Note that popular election has even been established at the base of the scheme since its constitution was adopted by referendum, like accession to the European Union. Democracy is also progressing with an effort to balance power between the bicameral parliament and the President, as it is a semi- presidential system. The Sejm (460 seats) and the Senate (100 seats) effectively monitor government activity and good production. [...]
[...] However, it had the chance to choose a constitutional court in 1985 (although it did not), and the election of the House is single direct suffrage and majority plurinominal, leaving a relative freedom of choice (albeit small). Crises and disputes which occurred in the 1970s were amplified in 1980 with the creation of Solidarnosc emblématisé by the worker Lech Walesa, who then organized major strikes in the Gdansk shipyards (shipbuilding being virtually the only sector production of the country in the framework of the policy of economic specialization that the USSR imposed its different states and countries Brothers). [...]
[...] Conclusion Thus we see that while Poland led a democratic transition which was impressive and exemplary for all the former people's democracies after, and even a little before the fall of communism, it does not have less flaws related to diet and democratic block, delays its full integration from the heart with the liberal and democratic European Union. Poland has achieved a great return to democracy, without being able to be on par with liberal democracies. The arrival of Donald Tusk as Prime Minister at the end of last year still leaves strong hopes of deepening democratic progress after the conservative era of the Kaczynski twins. [...]
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