Poland, the Poles are a nation for which the freedom is very important - freedom from foreign occupation and also personal freedom, Ambassador of the Republic of Poland to the Republic of Moldova Bartlomiej Zdaniuk stated in an interview for IPN Agency given on the occasion of the national holiday of Poland related to the adoption of the Constitution of 1791, which is celebrated on May 3.
“Poland, the Poles are a nation for which the freedom is very important. Freedom from foreign occupation and also personal freedom. We have some rights and we want to keep these rights. That’s why a dictatorship could not take roots in our country. We headed the struggle against the Communist system. The first protests against the system were mounted in 1956 and then in 1968, 1970, 1976, 1980 and so on,” stated the Polish diplomat.
“The democratic processes in Poland started earlier than the Constitution of 1791. Our Parliament has existed since the end of the 15th century. During over 500 years, no law could take effect without the Parliament’s vote. So, there was democracy in Poland earlier too, but this was for the nobility only. It was a kind of nobility democracy, aristocratic democracy. Not everyone had political rights. Unlike other states in Western and Eastern Europe, we had yet very powerful representation. Other states witnessed absolutism, but we didn’t. We had a democratic system then already even if, I repeat, not for everyone, but for about 10% of society. This marked our history in the immediate period.
“What happened then, at the end of the 18th century? An attempt was made to save the Independence, to modernize the State? How did Poland look in that period? It regrettably looked badly, with a very inefficient state system. I will give you an example. For the laws to take effect, they had to be adopted by a unanimous vote. So, it was enough for an MP to be against and the law wasn’t passed. That’s why we entered a period of stagnation. The Polish state didn’t develop. At the same time, the neighbors developed at a very swift pace and we thus became a very easy prey for our neighbors that became our enemies too. On May 3, 1791, there was voted a Constitution that eliminated some of the obstacles to the development of the state. That unanimity of votes was replaced by a majority of votes. Regrettably, several months after the adoption of that Constitution, our enemies, with the help of a traitor from inside the country, started a so-called insurrection that we call the Confederation of Targowica and the King was obliged to abrogate that Constitution. However, even if it didn’t resist long, we celebrate this day to show our wish to keep the Independence and the capacity to make progress,” Bartlomiej Zdaniuk said in the interview for IPN entitled “My dream is to build a strong connection between people here and those in Poland”.
