Lech Kaczyński

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Lech Aleksander Kaczyński
President of Poland
Incumbent
Assumed office  23 December 2005
Prime Minister	Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz Jarosław Kaczyński Donald Tusk
Preceded by	Aleksander Kwaśniewski
Justice Minister of Poland
In office 12 June 2000 – 4 July 2001
Prime Minister	Jerzy Buzek
Preceded by	Hanna Suchocka
Succeeded by	Stanisław Iwanicki
Mayor of Warsaw
In office 18 November 2002 – 22 December 2005
Preceded by	Wojciech Kozak
Succeeded by	Mirosław Kochalski (Acting)
President of the Supreme Chamber of Control of Poland
In office 1992 – 1995
Preceded by	Walerian Pańko
Succeeded by	Janusz Wojciechowski
Born	18 June 1949 (1949-06-18) (age 60) Warsaw, Poland
Political party	Independent (2006–present) Law and Justice (2001–2006)
Spouse	Maria Kaczyńska
Profession	Lawyer
Religion	Roman Catholic

Lech Aleksander Kaczyński ([ˈlɛx alɛˈksandɛr kaˈtʂɨɲskʲi] ( listen); born 18 June 1949) is the President of the Republic of Poland, a politician of the conservative party Prawo i Sprawiedliwość (Law and Justice, PiS). Kaczyński served as Mayor of Warsaw from 2002 until 22 December 2005, the day before his presidential inauguration. He is the identical twin brother of the former Prime Minister of Poland, Jarosław Kaczyński.

[edit] Personal life

[edit] Early life

Lech Kaczyński was born in Warsaw, the son of Rajmund (an engineer who served as a soldier of the Armia Krajowa in World War II and a veteran of the Warsaw Uprising)^[1] and Jadwiga (a philologist at the Polish Academy of Sciences)^[2]. As a child, he starred in a 1962 Polish film, The Two Who Stole the Moon (Polish title O dwóch takich, co ukradli księżyc) with his twin brother Jarosław.

Lech Kaczyński is a graduate of law and administration of Warsaw University. In 1980 he was awarded his PhD by Gdańsk University. In 1990 he had his habilitation in labour and employment law. He later assumed professorial positions at Gdańsk University and Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw.

[edit] Marriage and family

He is married to an economist Maria Kaczyńska (born 1943) and has one daughter, Marta (born 1980) who graduated from the Department of Law at Gdańsk University. Marta is married and in 2003 she gave birth to her daughter, Ewa. Mr. and Mrs. Kaczyński are animal lovers. They have two dogs and two cats.^[3]

[edit] Opposition to Communism

In the 1970s Lech Kaczyński was an activist in the pro-democratic anti-Communist movement in Poland, Workers' Defence Committee, as well as the Independent Trade Union movement. In August, 1980, he became an adviser to the Inter-Enterprise Strike Committee in the Gdańsk Shipyard and the Solidarity movement. During the martial law introduced by the communists in December, 1981, he was interned as an anti-socialist element. After his release from internment, he returned to trade union activities, becoming a member of the underground Solidarity.

When Solidarity was legalized again in the late 1980s, Lech Kaczyński was an active adviser of Lech Wałęsa and his Komitet Obywatelski Solidarność in 1988. From February to April, 1989, he participated in Polish Round Table talks.

[edit] Porozumienie Centrum

Kaczyński was elected a senator in the elections of June 1989, and became the vice-chairman of Solidarity trade union NSZZ Solidarność. In the 1991 parliamentary election, he was elected to the parliament as a non-party member. He was, however, supported by the electoral committee Center Civic Alliance, closely related but not identical to the political party Porozumienie Centrum (Center Agreement) led by his brother. He was also the main adviser and supporter of Lech Wałęsa when the latter was elected President of Poland in December 1990. Wałęsa nominated Kaczyński to be the Security Minister in the Presidential Chancellery but fired him in 1992 due to a conflict concerning Jan Olszewski's government.

Lech Kaczyński was the President of the Supreme Chamber of Control (Najwyższa Izba Kontroli, NIK) from February 1992 to May 1995 and later Minister of Justice and Attorney General in Jerzy Buzek's government from June 2000 until his dismissal in July 2001. During this time he was very popular because of his strong stance against corruption.

[edit] Law and Justice

In 2001 he founded the conservative political party Law and Justice (PiS) party with his brother Jarosław. Lech Kaczyński was the president of the party between 2001 and 2003.

[edit] Mayor of Warsaw

In 2002, Lech Kaczyński was elected the mayor of Warsaw by a large margin.^[4] He started his term in office by declaring a war on corruption and the fight aganst the so-called „Warsaw connections”. He strongly supported the construction of the Museum of the Warsaw Uprising and in 2004 appointed a historical panel to estimate material losses that were inflicted upon the city by the Germans in the Second World War (an estimated 85% of the city was destroyed in the Warsaw Uprising) as a direct response to heightened claims coming from German expellees from Poland. The panel estimated the losses to be at least 45.3 billion euros ($54 billion) in current value. He also promoted currently under construction museum of Polish Jews in Warsaw by donating city land to the project.

Kaczyński banned the Warsaw gay movement parade in 2004 and 2005, stating the lack of necessary documentation by organisers as the reason but also saying the parade would promote a "homosexual lifestyle".^[5] He also cited as reasons for the ban security measures, it being offensive to public morals and the fact that the parade coincided with the unveiling of a monument to general Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski. In 2004 his opponents called his actions unconstitutional and he has been repeatedly criticised by the Mazowieckie voivodeship administration, which officially supervises the Mayor of Warsaw. In 2005, he allowed a counter-demonstration, the "Parade of Normality."^[6]

Republic of Poland

This article is part of the series: Politics and government of Poland

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[edit] Presidency

[edit] Presidential elections

see: Polish presidential election, 2005

On 19 March 2005, he formally declared his intention to run for president in the October 2005 election. Elected President of the Republic of Poland were he defeated runner up Donald Tusk, polling 54.04 percent of the vote, Kaczyński assumed the office on 23 December 2005 by taking an oath before the National Assembly.

[edit] Domestic policy

In his first public speech as president-elect, Kaczyński said his presidency would have the fundamental task amelioration of the Republic. This will consist of "purging various pathologies from our life, most prominently including crime (...), particularly criminal corruption – that entire, great rush to obtain unjust enrichment, a rush that is poisoning society, [and preventing the state from ensuring] elementary social security, health security, basic conditions for the development of the family [and] the security of commerce and the basic conditions for economic development.^[7]

During his inauguration he stated several goals he would pursue during his presidency. Among those concerning internal affairs were: increasing social solidarity in Poland, bringing justice to those who were responsible or affected by communist crimes in the People's Republic of Poland, fighting corruption, providing security in economy, and safety for development of family. Kaczyński also stated that he would seek to abolish differences between regions. In his speech he also put emphasis on combining modernisation with tradition and remembering the teachings of Pope John Paul II.

On December 21, 2008, Lech Kaczyński became the first Polish head of state to visit a Polish synagogue for a religious service. His attendance coincided with the first night of Hanukkah.^[8]

[edit] Presidential pardons

In the years 2005-2007, as per article 133 of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland, president Lech Kaczyński has pardoned 77 people and declined to pardon 550.

[edit] Foreign affairs

This section requires expansion.

In foreign affairs, President Kaczyński noted that many of Poland's problems were related to the lack of energy security and this issue would have to be resolved in order to protect Polish interests. Strengthening ties with the USA while continuing to develop relations within the European Union are two main goals of Polish foreign affairs, as well as improving relations with France and Germany despite several problems in the relations with the latter. Outside those issues, the main tasks include developing a visible strategic partnership with Ukraine and greater cooperation with the Baltic states and Georgia.

Defense Minister Radosław Sikorski compared the planned Russia to Germany gas pipeline to the infamous Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact and Foreign minister Anna Fotyga stated that the pipeline was a threat to Poland's energy security.^[9]

In November 2006 Helsinki European Union—Russia meeting Poland vetoed the launch of EU-Russia partnership talks due to Russian ban on Polish meat and plant products imports.^[10]

As a reaction to claims by an obscure German exile group Preussische Treuhand, which represents post-1945 German expellees from Eastern Europe, the Polish Foreign Minister Fotyga (a protégé of Kaczyński) mistakenly threatened to reopen a 1990 Treaty fixing the Oder and Neisse rivers as the border between the two countries instead of the Neighborhood Treaty signed in the same year.^[11][12]

In 2008 following the military conflict between Russia and Georgia, Lech Kaczyński has provided the website of the President of Poland for dissemination of information for blocked by the Russian Federation Georgian internet portals.

During the state visit to Serbia in 2009 Kaczyński said that the Polish government, on the basis of its constitutional competences, decided to recognize Kosovo and emphasized that he, as the President of the state, did not agree with that.^[13]

[edit] Gallery

Lech Kaczyński	President Lech Kaczyński during military parade in Warsaw August 15, 2007.	Jarosław Kaczyński (left), Lech Kaczyński (middle) and Pope Benedict XVI	Halemba coal mine briefing 2006-11-22
With Vaclav Klaus	With Ahmet Sezer	With Abdullah of Saudi Arabia	Lech Kaczyński in Brussels
With scarf	2007 World Men's Handball Championship 2007-02-04	With his wife Maria	With Boris Tadić
Mikheil Saak’ashvili, Lech Kaczyński and Valdas Adamkus in Tbilisi, November 2007.	President and Mrs. Kaczyńska (center, left) with former United States First Lady Nancy Reagan (center, in tan suit) at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library 17 July 2007, as Mrs. Reagan prepares to accept the Order of the White Eagle from the President on behalf of the late U.S. President Ronald Reagan.	Lech Kaczyński at the groundbreaking ceremony for the Museum of the History of the Polish Jews, Warsaw 26 June 2007.	Lech Kaczyński as child actor in the 1962 film The Two Who Stole the Moon; Lech is on the right and his brother Jarosław Kaczyński is on the left.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Lech Kaczyński

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Lech Kaczyński

• (Polish)/(English) Official site
• (Polish) [1]
• Strong and Moral State: Lech Kaczynski Speaks on His Presidential Plans
• Lech Kaczynski – The Head of the Capital Ready to Head the State
• The Times: New Polish leader finds demons lurking at home and abroad
• The Economist: Twins together, Poles apart
• Jewish Currents: The Return of the Radical Right in Poland
• (Polish) Fundacja Batorego: Wykład Lecha Kaczyńskiego, 19 September 2005
• (Polish) Wprost: Sylwetka
• BBC profile: [2]
• The Guardian: Polish leader's anti-gay stance threatens EU voting rights - 25 October 2005
• (Polish) WP.pl:About Independence
• Kaczynski Brothers: Movie Stars That Turned Politicians
• President to Welcome Polish President Lech Kaczynski to the White House
• IISS by H.E. Lech Kaczyński, President of the Republic of Poland
• GW:Kaczyński prezydentem
• US Congartulation
• With USA Vc-president
• The Polish President Lech Kaczyński visited the United States (8-11 February 2006).
• Visit in Ukraina
• Raport ws. żołnierzy WSI będzie jawny - Wojskowe Służby Informacyjne
• Lithuanian president in Warsaw
• Poland supports Turkish EU entry
• Poland hopes for complete pullout from Iraq by end 2007

v • d • e Mayor of Warsaw First Polish Republic: Ignacy Wyssogota Zakrzewski | Józef Michał Łukasiewicz | Andrzej Rafałowicz | Ignacy Wyssogota Zakrzewski | Józef Michał Łukasiewicz and Andrzej Rafałowicz Prussian Occupation: Franz Schimmelpfennig von der Ove | Friedrich Georg Tilly Duchy of Warsaw: Joachim Moszyński | Paweł Bieliński | Stanisław Węgrzecki Congress Poland: Karol Woyda | Stanisław Węgrzecki | Jakub Ignacy Łaszczyński | Aleksander Graybner | Teodor Andrault de Langeron | Kazimierz Woyda | Zygmunt Wielopolski | Kalikst Witkowski | Sokrates Starynkiewicz | Mikołaj Bibikow | Wiktor Litwiński | Aleksander Miller World War I: Zdzisław Lubomirski | Piotr Drzewiecki Second Polish Republic: Stanisław Nowodworski | Władysław Jabłoński | Zygmunt Słomiński | Marian Zyndram-Kościałkowski | Stefan Starzyński General Government: Julian Kulski | Marceli Porowski People's Republic of Poland: Marian Spychalski | Stanisław Tołwiński | Jerzy Albrecht | Janusz Zarzycki | Zygmunt Dworakowski | Janusz Zarzycki Jerzy Majewski | Mieczysław Dębicki | Jerzy Bolesławski Third Polish Republic: Stanisław Wyganowski | Mieczysław Bareja | Marcin Święcicki | Paweł Piskorski | Wojciech Kozak | Lech Kaczyński | Mirosław Kochalski (interim) | Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz (interim) | Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz

v • d • e Candidates in the Polish presidential election, 1995 Winner Aleksander Kwaśniewski Lost in runoff Lech Wałęsa (incumbent) Other candidates Leszek Bubel · Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz · Janusz Korwin-Mikke · Tadeusz Koźluk · Jacek Kuroń · Andrzej Lepper · Jan Olszewski · Waldemar Pawlak · Jan Pietrzak · Kazimierz Piotrowicz · Tadeusz Zieliński Withdrew Lech Kaczyński · Marek Markiewicz · Leszek Moczulski · Bogdan Pawłowski

v • d • e Candidates in the Polish presidential election, 2005 Henryka Bochniarz • Marek Borowski • Leszek Bubel • Włodzimierz CimoszewiczW • Maciej GiertychW • Liwiusz Ilasz • Lech KaczyńskiE • Jarosław Kalinowski • Janusz Korwin-Mikke • Andrzej Lepper • Daniel PodrzyckiD • Zbigniew ReligaW • Adam Słomka • Donald TuskR • Stanisław Tymiński E - elected, R - defeated in runoff, W - withdraw from race, D - died before election