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From Solidarity to Democracy - with Adam Michnik « Thread Started on Nov 7, 2009, 5:40am »
'Fantastyczne!"
That's the word Adam Michnik, the man who played one of the starring roles in bringing the Cold War to an end, exclaims in Polish as he thinks back over the two decades since the Berlin Wall fell that Nov. 9 evening. He repeats it in rapid fire, each time flawlessly, with no hint of his trademark stutter.
"Fantastic! Fantastic! Poland has not had such 20 years in its last 400 years, 300 years. We are on the side of the West. We are sovereign. We have all possible civil rights. Democratic elections. Open borders. No censorship. That is simply a fantastic change."
So too is the story of his own transformation.
Mr. Michnick was born into the communist establishment. His father, a Polish Jew, was a leader of the illegal pre-war Communist Party. As a teenager, Mr. Michnik took part in leftist discussion groups with names like the "Crooked Circle" or the "Seekers of Contradiction." A believer, he wanted to reform communism. At 18, he was arrested for the first time for writing a protest letter to the government. And in 1968, he was jailed for a year after student protests in Warsaw.
The experience thrust him firmly into the opposition. The next two decades were spent publishing samizdat, advocating for worker's rights and then helping lead, from its founding in 1980, Solidarity, the trade union that morphed into a national movement.
As the Polish intellectual architect of communism's collapse, he was arrested so often in the years of struggle before 1989 that he lost count. But the time since has been good to him. He's built the largest independent newspaper publishing house in Central Europe, the Gazeta Wyborcza, which he heads up, and through his frequent essays and public appearances has remained an influential voice in Poland and beyond.
Dressed casually in an open brown shirt at a friend's Manhattan apartment the other day, he looks the part of dissident emeritus at age 63. It's well before noon when he lights the first of a chain of cigarettes and asks for a cup of coffee and a glass of whiskey to perk up. The previous night some old friends from what he calls "the Anti-Communist International" stayed out late at a hip restaurant in Greenwich Village.
In offering his positive assessment of Berlin's legacy, he knows that not everyone finds it so "fantastic." Many Poles complain that Mr. Michnik and other senior Solidarity leaders who drew up the terms of the transformation gave the old communist establishment a free pass to dominate the politics and the economy in the new era, breeding graft and bitterness. "We are a normal country with normal problems—normal corruption, normal scandals," he says in defense.
Elsewhere in the region, the global recession has soured people on free-market democracy. In countries like Romania, nationalist parties are being revived. Others, like Belarus or Azerbaijan, turned back from or never took the road toward democracy from Berlin. Some, like Ukraine, are wobbly.
'Fantastyczne!"
That's the word Adam Michnik, the man who played one of the starring roles in bringing the Cold War to an end, exclaims in Polish as he thinks back over the two decades since the Berlin Wall fell that Nov. 9 evening. He repeats it in rapid fire, each time flawlessly, with no hint of his trademark stutter.
"Fantastic! Fantastic! Poland has not had such 20 years in its last 400 years, 300 years. We are on the side of the West. We are sovereign. We have all possible civil rights. Democratic elections. Open borders. No censorship. That is simply a fantastic change."
So too is the story of his own transformation.
Mr. Michnick was born into the communist establishment. His father, a Polish Jew, was a leader of the illegal pre-war Communist Party. As a teenager, Mr. Michnik took part in leftist discussion groups with names like the "Crooked Circle" or the "Seekers of Contradiction." A believer, he wanted to reform communism. At 18, he was arrested for the first time for writing a protest letter to the government. And in 1968, he was jailed for a year after student protests in Warsaw.
The experience thrust him firmly into the opposition. The next two decades were spent publishing samizdat, advocating for worker's rights and then helping lead, from its founding in 1980, Solidarity, the trade union that morphed into a national movement.
As the Polish intellectual architect of communism's collapse, he was arrested so often in the years of struggle before 1989 that he lost count. But the time since has been good to him. He's built the largest independent newspaper publishing house in Central Europe, the Gazeta Wyborcza, which he heads up, and through his frequent essays and public appearances has remained an influential voice in Poland and beyond.
Dressed casually in an open brown shirt at a friend's Manhattan apartment the other day, he looks the part of dissident emeritus at age 63. It's well before noon when he lights the first of a chain of cigarettes and asks for a cup of coffee and a glass of whiskey to perk up. The previous night some old friends from what he calls "the Anti-Communist International" stayed out late at a hip restaurant in Greenwich Village.
In offering his positive assessment of Berlin's legacy, he knows that not everyone finds it so "fantastic." Many Poles complain that Mr. Michnik and other senior Solidarity leaders who drew up the terms of the transformation gave the old communist establishment a free pass to dominate the politics and the economy in the new era, breeding graft and bitterness. "We are a normal country with normal problems—normal corruption, normal scandals," he says in defense.
Elsewhere in the region, the global recession has soured people on free-market democracy. In countries like Romania, nationalist parties are being revived. Others, like Belarus or Azerbaijan, turned back from or never took the road toward democracy from Berlin. Some, like Ukraine, are wobbly.
Jaga PolishSite Nothing is black and white. One country's terrorist is another country freedom fighter. Spy is either a hero or a traitor - depending where.
Re: From Solidarity to Democracy - with Adam Michn « Reply #1 on Nov 7, 2009, 4:00pm »
Adam Michnik
Adam Michnik was born in October 17, 1946 in Warsaw. He was a Historian, co-founder of KOR (Committee for the Defense of Workers) 1976, detained many times during 1965-1980, a prominent "Solidarity" activist during the '80ties, spent a total of six years in Polish prisons for activities opposing the communist regime, member of the Round Table Talks 1989, member of the first non-communist parliament 1989-1991, editor-in-chief of the first independent Polish newspaper - "Gazeta Wyborcza".
His articles have been printed in Der Spiegel, Le Monde, Liberation, El Pais, Lettre International, New York Review of Books, The Washington Post, El Pais and many others.
Michnik is the recipient of a doctorate honoris causa from The New School for Social Research in New York and from the University of Minnesota, University of Michigan, also from Connecticut College. Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award 1986, The Koscielski Prize 1986, the French Pen Club Freedom Award 1982, the Jurzykowski Prize 1986, selected Europe's Man of the Year for 1989 by La Vie, Shofar Award 1991, Brucke-Preis 1995 - Germany, the Award of the European Journalists Association 1995, the Medal of Imre Nagy 1995. OSCE Price on Journalism and Democracy awarded by the OSCE Assembly, May 1996. He obtained Officer's Cross of Merit of Republic of Hungary from President Arpad Goencz in April 1998; in June he received The Day of First Bell - ringing Award from municipal council of Plzne and The Golden Pen from Bauer Verlag, the German press concern. In July 1999 he received prestige The Francisco Cerecedo Journalist Prize as a first non-Spanish author, later in November he was decorated with Bernardo O'Higgins Commander's Order, one of the most important Chilean honours. In May 2000 Adam Michnik received from IPI the title Press Freedom Hero for his courage and dedication shown to the principles of free expression. In June 2000 he was awarded by European University Viadrina in Frankfurt upon Oder for his contribution to Polish-German reconciliation. In September 2001 Michnik was honoured with Grand Prince Giedymin Order for his contribution in development Polish-Lithuanian relations. The same month he was awarded by Carl Bertelsmann Prize as a tribute for his outstanding merits during transformation process that leads Poland into democracy and free market economy specially for his courage and efforts in creating civil society and independent press. In October 2001 he received Grand Cross of Merit from President Johannes Rau as editor-in-chief of "Gazeta Wyborcza" which political, moral and economical success leads Poland day by day to Europe.
In November 2001 Adam Michnik received in Royal Palace in Amsterdam The Erasmus Prize for the role he plays in the development of civil society in post-war Poland, for courage and respect for his political adversaries in a truly Erasmian sense, for keeping intellectual distance in his sharp analysis of the cultural and political forces at work before the events of 1989, for founding of the newspaper "Gazeta Wyborcza" which analysis helps a country develop a democratic tradition. Also in November in Madrid he received The Joaquin Garrigues Walker Award Ceremony from Salvador de Madariaga Foundation for his fight for human and civil rights and defending democracy.
In February 2002 he received the prize from Romanian weekly "Adevarul" for common sense, persistence in aspiration for democracy and consolidation it. In November 2002 he received the prize of Gramota for merits to the Ukrainian nation. In September 2003 Adam Michnik was made Chevalier de la Legion d'Honneur by the French government in October 2005 Adam Michnik and Vaclav Havel were honoured with the St. George Medal - awarded by "Tygodnik Powszechny". In October 2005 he received the medal "Gloria Artis" from Polish minister of Culture. In March 2006 he was honoured with the Dan David Prize for being the journalist most associated with the collapse of the Soviet bloc and the rise of freedom in Eastern Europe. In June 2006 he was awarded an honorary senator of the University of Ljubljana, in September 2006 an honorary professor of the Kyiv Mohyla Academy. In October 2006 President Juszczenko conferred him the Order of Yaroslav the Wise. The same year he was honoured with the Jan Karski Eagles Award. In September 2007 he received Interdependence Award, in November Pelican Award, from the Czech weekly "Letters". In 2007 (beginning 2008) he was Georgia Struggle for the Freedom of the Press Mediator nominated by the European Union and Poland. He was the Ambassador of European Year of Intercultural Dialogue 2008. In April 2009 he received a doctorate honoris causa from Vytautas Magnus University in Kaunas.
Adam Michnik is the author of the books: "Cienie zapomnianych przodkow" (The Shadows of the Forgotten Ancestors), 1975; "Kosciol, Lewica, Dialog" (Church, the Left, Dialogue), Paris 1977; Penser la Pologne, 1983; "Szanse Polskiej Demokracji" (Chances of Polish Democracy), London 1984; "Z dziejow honoru w Polsce. Wypisy wiezienne" (from the History of Honour in Poland. Prison Notes), Paris 1985; "Takie czasy...Rzecz o kompromisie" (Such Other Times: Concerning Compromise), London 1985, "Listy z Bialoleki" (Letters from Bialoleka), "Polskie pytania" (Polish Questions), Paris 1987; "Druga faza rewolucji" (La Deuxieme Revolution), Paris 1990; "Miedzy Panem a Plebanem", Warszawa 1995, "Wyznania nawroconego dysydenta" (2003), "Wscieklosc i wstyd" (2005).
Re: From Solidarity to Democracy - with Adam Michn « Reply #2 on Nov 7, 2009, 4:10pm »
Adam Michnik
Adam Michnik (born 17 October 1946, Warsaw, Poland) is the editor-in-chief of Gazeta Wyborcza, where he sometimes writes under the pen-names of Andrzej Zagozda or Andrzej Jagodziński. In 1968-1989 he was one of the leading organizers of the illegal, democratic opposition in Poland. A historian, essayist, and political commentator, he is the recipient of laureate of many awards, including a Knight of the Legion of Honour and European of the Year.
Family
Adam Michnik was born to Ozjasz (Uzziah) Szechter, the first secretary of the Communist Party of Western Ukraine and his wife Helena (née Michnik), a children's book writer and Communist. (Michnik's parents happened to be of Jewish and non-Jewish descent, respectively. Michnik describes himself as a Pole of Jewish origins.) His half brother, Stefan Michnik, was a judge in the 1950s, during the period of Stalinism and currently resides in Sweden; he publicly admitted passing death sentences on alleged spies, such as major Zefiryn Machalla.
Education
While attending primary school, he was an active member of Walter’s Troop in Polish Scouting Association (ZHP), which was led by Jacek Kuroń. During secondary school, the Walter’s Troop was banned, and he began to participate at meetings of Klub Krzywego Koła (Club of the Crooked Circle). After its closing in 1962, with the encouragement from Jan Józef Lipski and under Adam Schaff’s protection, he founded a discussion club Hunters of Contradiction Club (Klub Poszukiwaczy Sprzeczności). Disappointed with life in the People's Republic of Poland, young people were discussing ways to change it. They read and analyzed the classical texts of leftist thinkers.
In 1964 he began studying history at Warsaw University. A year later he was suspended because he disseminated an open letter to the members of Polish United Workers' Party (PZPR) among his school mates. Its authors, Jacek Kuroń and Karol Modzelewski appealed to begin repairing the political system in Poland. In 1966 he was suspended for the second time for organizing a discussion meeting with Leszek Kołakowski, who was expelled from the PZPR several weeks earlier, for criticizing its leaders. In 1965, the PZPR forbade his texts to be printed. Since that time he was writing under a pseudonym to several newspapers, for example: “Życie Gospodarcze”, Więź”, “Literatura”.
In March 1968 he was expelled from the University for his activities during 1968 Polish political crisis, that began after censors forbade an adaptation of Mickiewicz’s “Dziady” to be performed in the National Theatre. He was arrested, and sentenced to three years imprisonment for his “acts of hooliganism”, chiefly for his participation in the March Events. In 1969, he was released from prison under an amnesty, but he was forbidden to continue his studies. Not until the middle of the 1970s was he allowed to continue his studies of history, which he finished at the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań. [edit] Opposition Question book-new.svg This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2008) Wiki letter w.svg Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page. (February 2008)
After he was released from prison, he worked for two years as a welder at the Róża Luxemburg (Rosa Luxemburg) Industrial Plant and then, on the recommendation of Jacek Kuroń, he became private secretary to Antoni Słonimski.
In 1976-1977 he lived in Paris. After he returned to Poland, he got involved in the activity of Workers' Defence Committee (KOR), which had already existed for a couple of months. It was one of the best known opposition organizations of the 70’s. He became one of the most active opposition activists and also one of the supporters of the Society for Educational Courses (Towarzystwo Kursów Naukowych).
Between 1977 and 1989, he was the editor or co-editor of underground newspapers published illegally, samizdat: „Biuletyn Informacyjny”, „Zapis”, „Krytyka”. He was also a member of the management of one of the biggest underground publishers: NOWa.
In years 1980-1989 he was an adviser to both the Independent Self-governing Trade Union "Solidarity" (NSZZ „Solidarność”) in the Mazovia Region and to Foundry Workers Committee of “Solidarity”.
When martial law was declared, in December 1981, he was at first an internee, but when he refused to sign, a ”loyalty oath” and assent to voluntarily leave the country, he was jailed and accused of an “attempt to overthrow socialism”. He was in jail without a verdict until 1984, because the prosecutor’s office prolonged the trial on purpose.
Adam Michnik demanded to end or dismiss his case and he wanted to be granted a status of a political prisoner, so he went on a hunger strike in jail. In 1984 he was released from jail, under an amnesty.
He took part in an attempt to organize a strike in Gdańsk Shipyard. As a result, he was again arrested in 1985 and this time sentenced to 3 years imprisonment. He was released in the next year again under the amnesty. [edit] Activity since 1989 Question book-new.svg This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2008)
In 1988 he became an adviser of Lech Wałęsa’s informal Coordination Committee, and later he became a member of the Solidarity Citizens' Committee. He took an active part in planning and preliminary negotiations for the Round Table Talks in 1989, in which he also participated. After the Round Table Talks, Lech Wałęsa told him to organize a big Polish national daily, which was supposed to be an ‘organ’ of the Solidarity Citizens' Committee, before the upcoming elections. This newspaper, under the Round Table agreement, was „Gazeta Wyborcza” ("Election Newspaper"), because it was supposed to appear till the end of the parliamentary election in 1989. After organizing this newspaper on the basis of journalists who worked in the „Biuletyn Informacyjny”, Adam Michnik became its editor-in-chief. In the elections to the Contract Sejm on 4 June 1989 he became a Member of Parliament from Lech Wałęsa’s Solidarity Citizens' Committee electoral register, as a candidate for the city of Bytom.
Between 12 April and 27 June 1990 Michnik together with Bogdan Kroll, director of the central archive Archiwum Akt Nowych, and historians Andrzej Ajnenkiel and Jerzy Holzer had access to the archives of the Polish Ministry of Internal Affairs (MSW). This group was called “Michnik’s Committee” and was brought into being by an initiative of the historian Henryk Samsonowicz. The result of three months work was a short official report which stated that archives are incomplete.
Both as a Member of Parliament and as editor of “Gazeta Wyborcza” he actively supported Prime Minister Tadeusz Mazowiecki’s government and his candidature in the presidential election campaign against Lech Wałęsa in 1990. After the break up of the Citizens’ Committee and Tadeusz Mazowiecki’s failure, Michnik halted his direct involvement in politics and did not run for a seat in the next parliamentary election, instead focusing on editorial and journalistic activities. Under his leadership, “Gazeta Wyborcza” was converted into a widely read and influential daily newspaper in Poland. On the basis of “Gazeta Wyborcza” assets Agora SA partnership came into existence. Currently (in May 2004) it is one of the biggest media concerns in Poland, administrating 11 titles monthly issued, portal gazeta.pl, outdoor advertising AMS, and shares in several radio stations. Adam Michnik does not have any shares in Agora and does not hold any office headship, excluding head editor, which is unusual in economic field in Poland. Michnik’s shares are kept by Agora.
Prime Minister Tadeusz Mazowiecki in his expose in September 1989 used a term thick line which began new so-called thick line politic. He is proponent and advocate of this term. In “Gazeta Wyborcza” he used his personal influences to protect General Wojciech Jaruzelski and General Czesław Kiszczak against social- political- judicial clearing campaign that refers to different periods when they held party and civil functions in People’s Republic of Poland (PRL). He postulated for quick and efficient adjudication of brought penal actions and to stop press battle. Crucial role played a famous interview “Pożegnanie z bronią. Adam Michnik- Czesław Kiszczak.” by Agnieszka Kublik and Monika Olejnik which was published in “Gazeta Wyborcza” on 3 February 2001.
On 27 December 2002 Adam Michnik and Paweł Smoleński made so-called “Rywin affair” public and the inner history was supposed to be solved by specially called select committee.
In autumn 2004 due to health problems (he suffered from tuberculosis) he resigned from active participation in editing “Gazeta Wyborcza” and passed his duties to editorial colleague Helena Łuczywo.
On the anniversary of the introduction of martial law, on 13 December 2005, Michnik delivered exposition at the University of Warsaw (article published in "Gazeta Wyborcza") in which he appealed to president Lech Kaczyński for statutory abolition for those who were responsible for the martial law. The article was a response to information about instituting an inquiry by Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) against General Jaruzelski. Michnik appealed about abolition even earlier- in 1991 (during the exposition on Faculty of Law at University of Maria Curie- Skłodowska in Lublin (UMCS), "Gazeta w Lublinie" 11-12-1991) and also in 2001 in the article "Stan wojenny 20 lat później" ("Gazeta Wyborcza" 12 December 2001).
In October 2006 recordings of conversations (that took place in September 2006) between Michnik and a well known businessman Aleksander Gudzowaty have been revealed. The conversations have been recorded behind the back of both participants by Gudzowaty’s security. The businessman has accused journalists of Gazeta Wyborcza of being economical with the truth in their articles describing enterprises of Aleksander Gudzowaty and his company “Bartimpex” in the power industry (the criticism concerned mainly Andrzej Kublik and Witold Gadomski.)
The case of revealed conversations arouse controversy among some journalists, mostly steaming form the vulgar language used by both interlocutors, from the announcements made by Michnik concerning punishing the two reporters pointed out by Gudzowaty and revealing that the information of Gazeta Wyborcza come for the secret service. Part of the journalistic milieu (including the columnists of Gazeta Wyborcza) defended Michnik, stating that they did not find the recorded conversations scandalous. Adam Michnik in his commentary in Gazeta Wyborcza criticized the method used to reveal the tapes and compared it to the methods used by KGB. He also denied alleged work of Gazeta Wyborcza for the secret service and its participation in the conspiracy aimed at Aleksander Gudzowaty. Both the columnists of Gazeta Wyborcza and some other journalists claim that the case of “Gudzowaty’s tapes” is exaggerated. According to others it was revealed on purpose, to cover another scandal, that is the revealing of Renata Beger’s recordings. He is a member of Association of Polish Writers and Council on Foreign Relations.
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