The “Civic Strike” Protests
In dozens of towns and cities across Poland today, people marched in protests against the current government’s efforts to weaken liberal democracy. I posted a summary of their demands here. In Warsaw the demonstration included tens of thousands of people (preliminary estimates place the crowd at 30,000), despite the sub-zero temperatures. Flags for the Committee for the Defense of Democracy (KOD) dominated, but there were also many banners from the liberal party Nowoczesna (Modern), the teachers union (whose grievances I wrote about here), and several other organizations. I did not personally spot any signs for the other main opposition party, Civic Platform (PO), but several leading figures from that party were present. The march began outside the old headquarters of the PZPR (the communist party), and ended outside the headquarters of the ruling PiS (Law and Justice) party. The symbolism of that linkage was obvious.
There was a small counter-protest along the route, but aside from some shouted invectives it was not noteworthy. They chanted taunts like “all of Poland is laughing at you” and “then you were commies, now you are in KOD, but you are still covered in filth” (loosely translated). Later a demonstration was also held in support of the government, which was much smaller than the opposition’s march. Jarosław Kaczyński spoke, downplaying the opposition as a little more than defeated remnants of the former rulers of the country, who could not reconcile themselves to PiS’s triumph. He evoked today’s 35th anniversary of the 1981 declaration of martial law, and linked that in turn to the suffering that Poland experienced during and immediately following WWII. “We must always defend ourselves against such historical tendencies,” he said. The idea that the Nazis, the communists, and today’s liberal democrats are all part of the same pattern of anti-Polish force is a cornerstone of the PiS worldview.
The theme of the anti-government march was the slogan “we will not be divided,” which was used explicitly to counter the efforts by the government to separate the country into two camps, “true Poles” vs. an “elite” that was just trying to defend its privileges and power. All the speakers from KOD stressed their demands that the constitution be respected and pluralism and diversity honored. There was also discussion of the misguided educational reforms, the erosion of the separation of Church and State, and the increasingly weak position of Poland in world opinion. There were angry moments as well. When a television reporter for the state-run pro-government media began broadcasting, he was surrounded by people with vuvuzelas, and others shouting “liars!” One of the more dramatic moments came when a speaker promised that someday Jarosław Kaczyński, Prime Minister Beata Szydło, and President Andrzej Duda will have to answer for their crimes before a State Tribunal. That promise generated some of the loudest applause of the night. While it seems like a distant, even unreal topic for discussion at this point, that’s undoubtedly going to be a difficult issue that Poles will eventually have to face.
For now, these protests demonstrate that (contrary to all the talk of resisting divisiveness) this country is deeply split. Attitudes on both sides are only growing more ossified, with the accusations in both directions growing more heated. Any resolution of this situation seems as distant as it has ever been.
