
Poland’s Political Future [PODCAST]
In this episode of the Liberal Europe Podcast, Leszek Jażdżewski (Fundacja Liberté!) talks about Polish upcoming parliamentary elections, EU funds and the rule of law, and how to deal with populists.
In this episode of the Liberal Europe Podcast, Leszek Jażdżewski (Fundacja Liberté!) talks about Polish upcoming parliamentary elections, EU funds and the rule of law, and how to deal with populists.
Russia attacked Ukraine. The first missiles and rounds fell in the south, including the capital – Kiev. The Russian army crossed the borders of Ukraine in a number of points, including across the border with Belarus.
When no one was waiting, Tusk decided to return. What challenges will Tusk encounter? Poland has changed a lot during his absence. Much more than one might think judging by press reports or occasional meetings with supporters. Tusk’s former comrades refuse to acknowledge this. If Tusk becomes a hostage of their phobias and expectations, he will be doomed to failure.
In order to defeat the Law and Justice party, it is essential to take the microphone away from the “scary grandpas”. Poland is still ruled by metrical and mental old-timers, who built their position in the early day of the Third Polish Republic. They are described as the creators and symbols of the Third Republic – the Deserving Ones.
In the midst of a pandemic, an unstable situation beyond our eastern border, disastrous relations with the EU countries, and uncertainty about the future of Poland’s key military ally, i.e. the United States, power focused on factional wars is a scenario that Poland simply cannot afford.
With a presidential election looming next year, the prospect of Tusk taking a one-man stand against the well-organised machine of the ruling Law and Justice party (PiS) had come to seem risky, especially with all the lies pumped out by state TV depicting him as a puppet of Germany.
Leszek Jazdzewski, Editor-in-Chief of Liberte!, with his honest introductory address on Consitution Day, delivered before Donald Tusk, has caused a lot of controversy in all mainstream media, on social media, among politicians and within the society.
The controversial cover of the Wysokie Obcasy (High Heels) issue released on February 17, 2018, featuring three women wearing t-shirts with the “Abortion is OK” slogans, brought about a heated discussion in Poland. Interestingly, it resonated the most in the anti-PiS (Law and Justice) camp.
Katarzyna Lubnauer’s declarations (made right after winning in the vote for the leader of the Nowoczesna party) in favor of integral liberalism – both ideological and economic – are a beacon of hope that the new leadership may bring a change in quality of the party.
In the times of Polish People’s Republic, when religion and all other key aspects of Polish identity were being actively supressed, the interests of the Catholic Church in Poland as an institution and the interests of raison d’etat were aligned to a great extent. Today it is not the case.