Here you will find materials on the transition of Poland from a socialist to a democratic state in 1989–1990. The arrangements made at that time by the communist authorities and the opposition shaped Poland for the next decades and still continue to influence Polish political life, economy, international relations, and culture. Please note that for the time being the materials below are avaialable only in Polish
Breakthrough 1989–1990
Sources and Studies After World War II Breakthrough 1989–1990
Introduction
Łukasz Jasiński, “Polska 1989. Pionier ewolucyjnych zmian”
The first step on the road away from authoritarian socialism towards democracy and a market economy in Poland was the Round Table negotiations between the communist government and the opposition in the spring of 1989. Solidarity’s representatives were keen to gain permission to operate legally and to influence public life. The authorities, in turn, aware of the economic catastrophe Poland, tried to shift onto the opposition part of the responsibility for the necessary, socially painful reforms. Regardless of the intentions of both sides, the Polish Round Table became an inspiration for other communist countries.
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Source
Adam Michnik, “Wasz prezydent, nasz premier” (1989)
Solidarity’s success in the elections of 4 June 1989 created a completely new political situation in Poland. Adam Michnik, the editor-in-chief of the opposition daily newspaper “Gazeta Wyborcza”, suggested in his article the division of power between the rulig communist party and Solidarity. This concept was the subject of much discussion and controversy.
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Source
Mieczysław F. Rakowski, “Dzienniki polityczne”, fragments (1989)
Mieczysław F. Rakowski was a journalist and politician, who served as prime minister of the People’s Republic of Poland from 1988 to 1989. His diaries are still an important source for Poland’s recent history, especially for the period of the transition to democracy. Thanks to his carefully cultivated image as an intellectual-liberal, Rakowski also had good contacts with western social democrats, especially with the West German SPD and the former chancellor Helmut Schmidt.
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Source
Election programme of the Solidarity Citizens' Committee (1989)
The Solidarity Citizens’ Committee was established in December 1988. It consisted of opposition intellectuals and social activists. Before the partially free elections planned for 4 June 1989, it prepared lists of candidates and developed a programme announcing reforms.
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Source
A memo by General Zdzisław Sarewicz, the director of the 1st Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (1989)
The authorities of the communist German Democratic Republic (GDR) observed the changes in Poland with concern and distrust, regarding the Polish reforms as a reckless experiment. The leaders of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany feared that the Polish example might provoke GDR society to protest. After a visit in the GDR a general of the Ministry of Interior of the People’s Republic of Poland wrote a mmo describing the dissatisfaction of the GDR authorities with the changes in Poland.
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Source
Statement by Prime Minister Tadeusz Mazowiecki, 12 September 1989
On 12 September 1989 Tadeusz Mazowiecki’s government was given a vote of confidence by the Sejm, the parliament. In his speech to the Sejm, the first non-communist prime minister in over 40 years announced the democratisation of public life and economic reforms.
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Study
Jan Skórzyński, “Krótka historia Solidarności”, fragments (2014)
Jan Skórzyński is a Polish historian and publicist. He was a member of the anti-communist opposition in the 1970s and 1980s. After 1989 he turned to researching its history and the history of the subsequent transition in Poland.
One of his books is Krótka historia Solidarności 1980–1989 (A Brief History of Solidarity, 1980–1989), published in 2014.
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