Lech Walsea and the Secret Services

[ezodisy]

Nothing like a little scandal to liven up the morning breakfast. I take it this is causing a right hullabaloo at home, Maciek?

BBC NEWS
Walesa scorns collaboration claim

By Adam Easton
BBC News, Warsaw

In Poland Lech Walesa is a national hero. He is the man who, in the 1980s, led the Solidarity movement, whose defiance of the country's then Communist government started a mass movement which eventually led to its overthrow.

So it is not surprising that a new book published on Monday, accusing the former Nobel peace prize winner of being a communist secret agent in the 1970s, has caused huge controversy here.

The former president strenuously denies the claims.

The book, Lech Walesa and the Secret Services, was written by two historians from the Institute of National Memory, a state institution created to investigate Nazi and communist-era crimes.

Slawomir Cenckiewicz and Piotr Gontarczyk gathered material from the institute's archive, which contains some 86km (54 miles) of communist secret service files.

"In the first half of the 1970s Lech Walesa was treated by the communist secret services as an agent with the codename Bolek," Mr Cenckiewicz told me.

   This is all insinuation and part of the communist secret service campaign against me
Lech Walesa

"The documents say he wrote reports and informed on more than 20 people and some of them were persecuted by the communist police. He identified people and eavesdropped on his colleagues at work while they were listening to Radio Free Europe for example."

Similar accusations first surfaced 16 years ago, but this is the first time a state institution has published a comprehensive investigation of Lech Walesa's contacts with the communist secret services.

The authors allege that, as president in the 1990s, Lech Walesa, tried to cover up his past by removing incriminating pages from his secret police file.

'Fairy tale'

The accusations have sharply divided Polish society. Poland's current president, Lech Kaczynski, who fell out with Mr Walesa when he worked as one of his advisers in the early 1990s, said in a national TV interview he was convinced Mr Walesa was an agent.

But Prime Minister Donald Tusk says the accusations are politically motivated.

When I put the book's claims to Mr Walesa himself, he told me it was full of lies.

   I think that some people now would like to destroy him, but I think he already has his place in our history
Young Polish woman

"Nothing like that happened. I had no influence over what the secret police did and wrote. You will not find any signature of mine agreeing to collaborate anywhere. This is all insinuation and part of the communist secret service campaign against me," he said.

Mr Walesa said a court had cleared him of any suggestion of collaboration when he ran for a second term as president in 2000. He believes the communist authorities falsified his file after he became leader of the Solidarity movement in 1980, to discredit him in the eyes of the world.

"They have created this little fairy tale that Lech Walesa was a brave fighter but in his youth he had a moment of weakness and worked for the secret police. They had to turn up something about me, so they went into ancient history, making it difficult to prove one way or the other," he said.

Many eminent Poles have also come to Mr Walesa's defence. They fear the book could even damage Poland's reputation because Lech Walesa, whose trademark walrus moustache still makes him instantly recognisable, is the one living Pole most foreigners know of.

Reputation undimmed

The book's co-author, Piotr Gontarczyk, argues he had a duty to reveal what he believes is the whole truth about him.

"No serious person denies the importance of Lech Walesa in Polish history. He will remain forever the legendary Solidarity leader. Nobody in their right mind can take that away from him. We have just filled in the unknown gaps in his biography from the 1970s," he told me.

On the streets of Warsaw, the people I asked said the scandal had not influenced their opinion of the great man.

"No, I didn't change the way of thinking about President Walesa," a 49-year-old worker for a non-governmental organisation said.

"In my opinion he deserves much more respect than condemnation actually and it's maybe true that as a young worker he surrendered to the temptation of the secret service, but then with all his work he showed that this was a mistake."

"He was the face of the whole change and for me it really doesn't matter. I think that some people now would like to destroy him, but I think he already has his place in our history," one young mother said.

This scandal has dominated the front pages and television news in the past few weeks.

But it seems to have done little damage to Lech Walesa's reputation.

According to a recent survey, 60% of Poles say even if he did collaborate with the communist police in his youth, he remains a living legend for what he achieved afterwards in helping to bring down the communist regime.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/world/europe/7469763.stm

[knight66]

I hope it is not true. What will be next? Nelson Mandela Eats Babies? We need some heroes. They did give Walesa a somewhat singular code name.

Mike

[Christo]

According to a recent survey, 60% of Poles say even if he did collaborate with the communist police in his youth, he remains a living legend for what he achieved afterwards in helping to bring down the communist regime.

There's much received wisdom in this final remark. In those years, millions of Poles (and East-Germans, Czechs, Romanians, a.s.o.) were `serving' the secret police as an informer, always trying to find a balance between what might be expected and what might be harmful. For many, there was hardly an alternative.

Wałęsa might have been one of these millions. And might not have been among them. Or might have been in an even subtler, middle position.

The fact itself wouldn't reveal much, as the majority of Poles know. It all depends on the details - and they're often very hard to define.

So, at first sight: no real big story here. Unless there are some special reveletions on the specific nature of his reports. But I doubt it, and think the Polish public knows better.

[Drasko]

Walsea? Does that rhyme with Chelsea?

[ezodisy]

Walsea? Does that rhyme with Chelsea?

oops. Maybe that's why Maciek didn't reply

[Maciek]

Oops. Missed the thread.

Yes, the whole thing is getting a lot of attention in the news, mainly due to Wałęsa's unending vexed comments about the whole nation betraying him etc. (I'm sure it would have long died out otherwise - the discussion first broke out a couple of months ago when the book was first announced.)

The fact is that this no news to perceptive obserevers of the political scene. Public accusations first surfaced in 1992, when Wałęsa was still president. It happened during a governmental investigation which was supposed to reveal a full list of all the former agents active in politics. There were two lists: one available to the public, and another one, containing the names of top officials, which was only given to a group of highest ranked politicians (senators, the president, members of the government). Immediately after this second list was circulated, Wałęsa drove over to the Polish parliament and requested that the prime minister and his council step down, and a new cabinet be selected. For the list, he presumably envisioned express shredding. As it happened, one of the senators decided the fact that Wałęsa's name was on the second list had to be made public - and said it in front of TV cameras, during a live broadcast (I was watching - whew! what an exciting night that was!). Despite that, oddly enough, Wałęsa managed to smoothly go through with his plan - before the night was over there was a new prime minister (Pawlak, who back then looked like a sort of puppet on drugs), cabinet etc. The matter of the "lists" was quickly forgotten. But I suspect I wasn't the only person in the country (and I was more or less a kid back then) who no longer believed in the "Wałęsa myth" (OTOH, I still think he was a great politician, and would take him, agent or not, over a legion of Kwaśniewskis).

Two years later a very interesting documentary (Nocna zmiana) was made, with a nice step by step analysis of what happened in 1992. Amongst many revelations (the documentary uses private footage from frantic meeting Wałęsa held with other politicians, trying to quickly put together a new cabinet), there was the following: immediately after the second list was circulated, the Presidential Palace released a statement for the press, wherein Wałęsa said he was sorry - it was true, he signed some papers, he wasn't sure what they were, but it was nothing of terrific importance. A short while later, this statement was withdrawn (therefore no one except the press ever saw it), and a new one was released, this time claiming it was all a hoax, a scandal if there ever was one, that they were all trying to frame him, etc.

As far as the book is concerned, it has received favourable reviews from fellow historians - while not exactly cool and unemotional, it is supposed to be very meticulously researched and well argued, and, really, there's no way of arguing around it.

If you want my personal 0:) opinion: it's all a farce. He obviously was an agent, on the SB (Polish Secret Service) payroll. He is acting like a clown now, making a fool of himself. And I think now the story actually holds both more human interest, and historical interest: here was this man, who almost singlehandedly destroyed the regime. Yet, he was also an agent. How exactly did that work? Was he realizing a plan to dismantle the system without actually destroying any of the pieces? (Many say that was the case, and that we, as a country, are still paying the price.) Or was he perhaps acting conscientiously, without consulting his secret service superiors (who probably weren't his superiors anymore at that time anyway)? Did his family know? How was he able to reconcile his two roles? Etc. etc. etc.

One thing I have to emphasize: I haven't read the book. (And am not planning to, at least not the forseeable future.)

[knight66]

Maciek, Interesting stuff. Nothing is ever what it seems. While you were having excitement with Walesa, we were suffering through the inadequacies of John Major. The only interesting thing about him emerged after his premiership was over. Much to the the amazement of most of us...he had a long running affair with one of his cabinet ministers; Edwina Curry. It would be difficult to imagine a more dispirate couple. 'Noddy beds Cruella de Ville' might be an equivalent. This going on while he was busy sacking other ministers for marital indiscretions and implementing a moral crusade. He seemed such a terminally boring bugger. But, in reality, power goes to the head, and most other parts of the body politic.

Mike

[PSmith08]

Maciek, Interesting stuff. Nothing is ever what it seems. While you were having excitement with Walesa, we were suffering through the inadequacies of John Major. The only interesting thing about him emerged after his premiership was over. Much to the the amazement of most of us...he had a long running affair with one of his cabinet ministers; Edwina Curry. It would be difficult to imagine a more dispirate couple. 'Noddy beds Cruella de Ville' might be an equivalent. This going on while he was busy sacking other ministers for marital indiscretions and implementing a moral crusade. He seemed such a terminally boring bugger. But, in reality, power goes to the head, and most other parts of the body politic.

Mike

I guess that was what the Conservative Party could offer a kid from Brixton.

As to the "on-topic" topic, at this point, I think Walesa has more to gain from a heartfelt admission and mea maxima culpa (particularly if he has some sob-story to go with it) than stonewalling the issue. It isn't like his working or not working with the regime changes anything about what he did and how he did it. It's a consequence-free admission at this point in his life. It could, in fact, be beneficial if he was coerced into working with the regime or if he had a Damascene conversion somewhere along the road.

[Maciek]

There were two lists: one available to the public, and another one, containing the names of top officials, which was only given to a group of highest ranked politicians (senators, the president, members of the government).

Correction: it seems there only was one list. There never was a "public" list.

EDIT: Damn, I'm getting lost in this! It turns out there were two lists after all... But neither of them was officially, publicly revealed.

[Maciek]

It's a consequence-free admission at this point in his life.

Exactly! The thing has been blown beyond proportion because of current political tensions. I'm under the impression it's being used as a sort of political smokescreen to divert attention away from actual issues. Walesa has been absent from the political scene since the late 1990s, so who cares really? It's a matter of historical importance, with little relevance to what's happening today.

BTW, this probably interesting to those with at least a smattering of Polish, but the documentary (Nocna zmiana) is available on YouTube. First part here, and then just find the other 6 through "Related videos".

For the two presidential press releases, go to Nocna zmiana 4/7; the first release (from noon) is at about 2:20, the second (from half past 3 PM), where he denies everything, is at 5:55. In the next video (5/7), at 3:00 you can see Walesa arriving at the parliament (at 21:40! the guy must have been in a state of utter panic - and to think he actually managed to pull the whole thing through on that very night! - there must have been many people who really didn't want those lists to be revealed...).

My favorite place from the whole film - this is something everybody should see, whether you speak Polish or not - is in Nocna zmiana 5/7 (link above). Jump to 4:30. You will see Kazimierz Świtoń, a well known activist of the opposition, who spent half a year as a political prisoner in 1978-9, and then was interned during Martial Law. In this video he comes out and says: ladies and gentlemen, the president is on the list of communist secret service agents. What is really precious here, is Walesa's reaction (just one or two seconds of it shown): that artificial, mock laugh. I'm not sure how somebody innocent would act in that situation, but somehow I'm absolutely certain that that is not an innocent reaction. It's an awkward attempt at levity. (Also note how his face is flushed - only the guilty kid in the room, the one who has actually eaten the cake topping looks like that!)

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

Maciek, Interesting stuff. Nothing is ever what it seems. While you were having excitement with Walesa, we were suffering through the inadequacies of John Major. The only interesting thing about him emerged after his premiership was over. Much to the the amazement of most of us...he had a long running affair with one of his cabinet ministers; Edwina Curry. It would be difficult to imagine a more dispirate couple. 'Noddy beds Cruella de Ville' might be an equivalent. This going on while he was busy sacking other ministers for marital indiscretions and implementing a moral crusade. He seemed such a terminally boring bugger. But, in reality, power goes to the head, and most other parts of the body politic.

I like your typo, Mike - between disparate and desperate!

Addition: interesting background pieces, Maciek.