You must have heard about the biggest civil movement in eastern Europe Solidarity and the massive strikes it organized! And once upon time had read the name Lech Wałęsa that fighter who led the protests in Gdansk against the communist Government at that time. But did you know that it all began in Lublin?
Polish Civil Society
Contrary to the known fact, civil society in Poland has not existed after the collapse of communism in the country. In fact, although the first civil society organizations were legalized in the 1990s, but the 80s registered hectic movement in communal associations. After all, for a true believers, the 44 years of oppression under Communism did nothing more than strengthening that faith and society from inside. Farmers’ Self-Defence Committees, The People’s University, the Movement for the Defence of Human and Civil Rights, Students’ Solidarity Committees, Believers’ Self-Defence Committees and the Young Poland Movement. Nevertheless, Solidarity, established as early as September 1980, was the pioneer civil movement that affiliated around ten million of Poles out of 17 million of working population.
The Mother of All
Lublin had its share of the active civil movement even before Solidarity with the famous Lublin July protests in 1980 (Polish: Lubelski Lipiec) where massive strikes, that started from Swidnik, paralyzed the city: railway workers had found that a train called “fish” was filled with meat and was on his way to the Soviet Union; they shut down rail traffic by stacking trains and engines on the tracks. Everything was on strike: buses, bread and milk delivery, nursing, construction, water service; all for one decisive demand: the meat would have to be distributed to the population. Lublin’s Strikes led to what was known later with the August Strikes in the same year. Interesting enough, the latter strikes were the womb which mothered Solidarity. After a decade of struggle where the movement was severely oppressed, Wałęsa being exiled, and a Martial Law imposed between that lasted two years from December 1981 to July 1983, the famous Round Table Talks were held between the Solidarity and the then-communist Government, which culminated to semi-free elections in 1989. After a year, what it looked as a surreal dream at the beginning has turned into reality, and in December 1990, Wałęsa was elected President of Poland.
It is always the Proud pride. Lublin!
By: Assef Salloom