Lech Kaczynski
Encyclopedia
Lech Aleksander Kaczyński (ˈlɛx alɛkˈsandɛr kaˈt͡ʂɨȷ̃skʲi; 18 June 1949 – 10 April 2010) was Polish
law
yer and politician
who served as the President of Poland from 2005 until 2010 and as Mayor of Warsaw from 2002 until 22 December 2005. Before he became a president, he was also a member of the party Prawo i Sprawiedliwość
(Law and Justice, PiS). He was the identical twin brother of the former Prime Minister of Poland and current Chairman of the Law and Justice
party, Jarosław Kaczyński. On 10 April 2010, he died in the crash of a Polish Air Force Tu-154
while attempting to land at Smolensk-North
airport in Russia.
, 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
) and Jadwiga (a philologist at the Polish Academy of Sciences
). 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 was a graduate of law and administration of Warsaw University. In 1980 he was awarded his PhD by Gdańsk University
. In 1990 he completed his habilitation
in labour and employment law
. He later assumed professorial positions at Gdańsk University
and Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw
.
, 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. After the communists imposed martial law
in December 1981, he was interned as an anti-socialist element. After his release, he returned to trade union activities, becoming a member of the underground Solidarity.
When Solidarity was legalized again in the late 1980s, Kaczyński was an active adviser to Lech Wałęsa
and his Komitet Obywatelski Solidarność
in 1988. From February to April 1989, he participated in the Round Table talks.
in the elections of June 1989, and became the vice-chairman of the Solidarity trade union. 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 Centre Agreement (Porozumienie Centrum) 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 during to a conflict concerning Jan Olszewski
's government.
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.
(Prawo i Sprawiedliwość – PiS), usually labelled 'conservative' by media, with his brother Jarosław. Lech Kaczyński was the president of the party between 2001 and 2003. His brother Jaroslaw is its current chairman.
. He started his term in office by declaring a war on corruption. 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 construction of the museum of Polish Jews in Warsaw by donating city land to the project.
Kaczyński twice banned the Warsaw gay pride parade
in 2004 and again in 2005, locally known as the Parada Równości (the Equality Parade), stating that the application of the parade organizers had not been properly filed, also saying that he did not respect homosexuals' right to demonstrate stating "I respect your right to demonstrate as citizens. But not as homosexuals.” Additionally, he feared the parade would promote a "homosexual lifestyle" and complained that police did not use enough force in breaking it up by stating “Why was force not used to break up an illegal demonstration?”. Kaczynski referred to the organizers of the gay pride parades as "perverts". In 2004 his opponents called his actions unconstitutional
and he was 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."
In 2007, Poland, represented by Kaczyński, was found guilty by the European Court of Human Rights
of violating the principle of freedom of assembly
under Article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights
.
Elected President of the Republic of Poland in defeating the runner up Donald Tusk
, by polling 54.04 percent of the vote, Kaczyński assumed office on 23 December 2005 by taking an oath before the National Assembly.
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 for, or were 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 economic inequalities between various regions of Poland. In his speech he also emphasized combining modernisation with tradition and remembering the teachings of Pope John Paul II.
On 21 December 2008, Kaczyński became the first Polish head of state to visit a Polish synagogue and to attend religious services held there. His attendance coincided with the first night of Hanukkah.
Kaczyński memorialized many of Poland’s national heroes known as cursed soldiers who perished at the hands of the Polish secret police, the Soviet NKVD
, the SMERSH, and other repressive organs of communist rule. Such national heroes as Witold Pilecki, August Fieldorf, and many others, were posthumously rehabilitated and bestowed with Poland’s highest decorations for valor.
, 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 United States 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 relations with the latter.
Aside from those issues, his immediate goals were to develop tangible strategic partnership with Ukraine
and greater cooperation with the Baltic states
and Georgia
.
He was greatly admired in Israel
, because he promoted educating Polish youth about the Holocaust. There was widespread grief in Israel
over his death.
Defense Minister Radosław Sikorski compared the planned Russia to Germany gas pipeline to the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact and Foreign Minister Anna Fotyga stated that the pipeline was a threat to Poland's energy security.
In November 2006 in Helsinki
, at a European Union—Russia meeting, Poland vetoed the launch of EU-Russia partnership talks due to a Russian ban on Polish meat and plant products imports.
As a reaction to claims by a German exile group Preussische Treuhand, which represents post-1945 German expellees from Eastern Europe
, the Polish Foreign Minister Fotyga 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.
Following the military conflict between Russia and Georgia in 2008, Kaczyński provided the website of the President of Poland for dissemination of information for blocked by the Russian Federation Georgian internet portals.
During a 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.
Kaczyński married economist Maria Kaczyńska
in 1978. They had one daughter, Marta Kaczyńska-Dubieniecka, and two granddaughters named Ewa and Martyna. His brother is Jarosław Kaczyński, the former Prime Minister of Poland.
M plane was carrying Lech Kaczyński, his wife Maria Kaczyńska, and other members of a Polish delegation (top public and military figures of Polish state) from Warsaw
to commemorate the Katyn massacre
. The plane crashed while approaching Smolensk Air Base
in Russia. The governor of Smolensk Oblast
confirmed to Russia 24 news channel that there were no survivors of the crash. 96 people were killed in the crash, including many of Poland's highest military and civilian leaders.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev
ordered a government commission to investigate the crash. Russia's Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin
, was placed in charge of the investigation.
at the Presidential Palace
in Warsaw. The state funeral was held in Kraków
on 18 April 2010. After a Roman Catholic mass
at St. Mary's Basilica
, the presidential couple were laid to rest in a sarcophagus
, which is placed in the antechamber of the Crypt Under the Tower of Silver Bells beneath the Wawel Cathedral
, A significant number of foreign dignitaries were unable to attend the funeral as a result air travel disruption after the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption
in Europe following the eruption of the volcano Eyjafjallajökull
in Iceland.
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Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
yer and politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
who served as the President of Poland from 2005 until 2010 and as Mayor of Warsaw from 2002 until 22 December 2005. Before he became a president, he was also a member of the party Prawo i Sprawiedliwość
Law and Justice
Law and Justice , abbreviated to PiS, is a right-wing, conservative political party in Poland. With 147 seats in the Sejm and 38 in the Senate, it is the second-largest party in the Polish parliament....
(Law and Justice, PiS). He was the identical twin brother of the former Prime Minister of Poland and current Chairman of the Law and Justice
Law and Justice
Law and Justice , abbreviated to PiS, is a right-wing, conservative political party in Poland. With 147 seats in the Sejm and 38 in the Senate, it is the second-largest party in the Polish parliament....
party, Jarosław Kaczyński. On 10 April 2010, he died in the crash of a Polish Air Force Tu-154
2010 Polish Air Force Tu-154 crash
The 2010 Polish Air Force Tu-154 crash occurred on 10 April 2010, when a Tupolev Tu-154M aircraft of the Polish Air Force crashed near the city of Smolensk, Russia, killing all 96 people on board...
while attempting to land at Smolensk-North
Smolensk (air base)
Smolensk North Airport is a decommissioned military airbase in Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located 4 km north of the city of Smolensk. It is now used as Smolensk's sole airport for civil and military flights...
airport in Russia.
Early life
Kaczyński was born in WarsawWarsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, the son of Rajmund (an engineer who served as a soldier of the Armia Krajowa
Armia Krajowa
The Armia Krajowa , or Home Army, was the dominant Polish resistance movement in World War II German-occupied Poland. It was formed in February 1942 from the Związek Walki Zbrojnej . Over the next two years, it absorbed most other Polish underground forces...
in World War II and a veteran of the Warsaw Uprising
Warsaw Uprising
The Warsaw Uprising was a major World War II operation by the Polish resistance Home Army , to liberate Warsaw from Nazi Germany. The rebellion was timed to coincide with the Soviet Union's Red Army approaching the eastern suburbs of the city and the retreat of German forces...
) and Jadwiga (a philologist at the Polish Academy of Sciences
Polish Academy of Sciences
The Polish Academy of Sciences, headquartered in Warsaw, is one of two Polish institutions having the nature of an academy of sciences.-History:...
). As a child, he starred in a 1962 Polish film, The Two Who Stole the Moon
The Two Who Stole The Moon
The Two Who Stole the Moon is a 1962 Polish children's film based on Kornel Makuszyński's 1928 story "The Two Who Stole the Moon". The film stars the Kaczyński twins, two of the country's future political leaders....
(Polish title O dwóch takich, co ukradli księżyc) with his twin brother Jarosław.
Lech Kaczyński was a graduate of law and administration of Warsaw University. In 1980 he was awarded his PhD by Gdańsk University
Gdansk University
- History :The University of Gdańsk was established in 1970 by the amalgamation of the Higher School of Economics in Sopot and Gdańsk College of Education .- School Authorities :* Rector: Prof. dr hab. Bernard Lammek...
. In 1990 he completed his habilitation
Habilitation
Habilitation is the highest academic qualification a scholar can achieve by his or her own pursuit in several European and Asian countries. Earned after obtaining a research doctorate, such as a PhD, habilitation requires the candidate to write a professorial thesis based on independent...
in labour and employment law
Labour and employment law
Labour law is the body of laws, administrative rulings, and precedents which address the legal rights of, and restrictions on, working people and their organizations. As such, it mediates many aspects of the relationship between trade unions, employers and employees...
. He later assumed professorial positions at Gdańsk University
Gdansk University
- History :The University of Gdańsk was established in 1970 by the amalgamation of the Higher School of Economics in Sopot and Gdańsk College of Education .- School Authorities :* Rector: Prof. dr hab. Bernard Lammek...
and Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw
Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw
Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw is a state university in Warsaw. It was founded 1999 and is named after Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński.- History :...
.
Opposition to Communism
In the 1970s Kaczyński was an activist in the pro-democratic anti-Communist movement in Poland, the Workers' Defence CommitteeWorkers' Defence Committee
The Workers’ Defense Committee was a Polish civil society group that emerged under communist rule to give aid to prisoners & their families after the June 1976 protests & government crackdown...
, as well as the Independent Trade Union
Free Trade Unions of the Coast
Free Trade Unions of the Coast were a government-independent trade union in the People's Republic of Poland.This trade union was founded in Gdańsk on 29 April 1978 by Andrzej Gwiazda, Krzysztof Wyszkowski and Antoni Sokołowski...
movement. In August 1980, he became an adviser to the Inter-Enterprise Strike Committee
Inter-Enterprise Strike Committee
Inter-Enterprise Strike Committee was an action strike committee formed in Gdańsk Shipyard, People's Republic of Poland on 16 August 1980...
in the Gdańsk Shipyard
Gdansk Shipyard
Gdańsk Shipyard is a large Polish shipyard, located in the city of Gdańsk. The yard gained international fame when Solidarity was founded there in September 1980...
and the Solidarity movement. After the communists imposed martial law
Martial law in Poland
Martial law in Poland refers to the period of time from December 13, 1981 to July 22, 1983, when the authoritarian government of the People's Republic of Poland drastically restricted normal life by introducing martial law in an attempt to crush political opposition to it. Thousands of opposition...
in December 1981, he was interned as an anti-socialist element. After his release, he returned to trade union activities, becoming a member of the underground Solidarity.
When Solidarity was legalized again in the late 1980s, Kaczyński was an active adviser to Lech Wałęsa
Lech Wałęsa
Lech Wałęsa is a Polish politician, trade-union organizer, and human-rights activist. A charismatic leader, he co-founded Solidarity , the Soviet bloc's first independent trade union, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1983, and served as President of Poland between 1990 and 95.Wałęsa was an electrician...
and his Komitet Obywatelski Solidarność
Solidarity Citizens' Committee
The Solidarity Citizens' Committee , also known as "Citizens' Electoral Committee" , previously named "Citizens' Committee with Lech Wałęsa" was an legal political organisation of the democratic opposition in communist Poland...
in 1988. From February to April 1989, he participated in the Round Table talks.
After 1989 political activity
Kaczyński was elected senatorSenate of Poland
The Senate is the upper house of the Polish parliament, the lower house being the 'Sejm'. The history of the Polish Senate is rich in tradition and stretches back over 500 years, it was one of the first constituent bodies of a bicameral parliament in Europe and existed without hiatus until the...
in the elections of June 1989, and became the vice-chairman of the Solidarity trade union. In the 1991 parliamentary election
Polish parliamentary election, 1991
The Polish parliamentary election in 1991 to the Sejm and the Senate of Poland was held on October 27. In the Sejm elections, 27,517,280 citizens were eligible to vote, 11,887,949 of them cast their votes, 11,218,602 of those were counted as valid. In the Senate elections, 43.2% of citizens cast...
, he was elected to the parliament as a non-party member. He was, however, supported by the electoral committee Center Civic Alliance
Center Civic Alliance
Center Civic Alliance , an electoral alliance of several Polish parties initiated and led by Centre Agreement . Other members, as Forum Ludowo-Chrześcijańskie "Ojcowizna" and Komitety Obywatelskie played a minor role...
, closely related but not identical to the political party Centre Agreement (Porozumienie Centrum) 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 during to a conflict concerning Jan Olszewski
Jan Olszewski
Jan Ferdynand Olszewski is a Polish lawyer and political figure. He is best known for serving as Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland from 1991 to 1992....
's government.
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
Attorney General of Poland
The Public Prosecutor General is the top prosecuting officer in Poland. Until 2010 the office was combined with the one of the Minister of Justice. Andrzej Seremet is current Public Prosecutor General of Poland....
in Jerzy Buzek
Jerzy Buzek
Jerzy Karol Buzek is a Polish engineer, academic lecturer and politician who was the ninth post-Cold War Prime Minister of Poland from 1997 to 2001...
'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.
Law and Justice
In 2001 he founded the political party Law and JusticeLaw and Justice
Law and Justice , abbreviated to PiS, is a right-wing, conservative political party in Poland. With 147 seats in the Sejm and 38 in the Senate, it is the second-largest party in the Polish parliament....
(Prawo i Sprawiedliwość – PiS), usually labelled 'conservative' by media, with his brother Jarosław. Lech Kaczyński was the president of the party between 2001 and 2003. His brother Jaroslaw is its current chairman.
Mayor of Warsaw
In 2002, Kaczyński was elected mayor of Warsaw in a landslide victoryLandslide victory
In politics, a landslide victory is the victory of a candidate or political party by an overwhelming margin in an election...
. He started his term in office by declaring a war on corruption. 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
Warsaw Uprising
The Warsaw Uprising was a major World War II operation by the Polish resistance Home Army , to liberate Warsaw from Nazi Germany. The rebellion was timed to coincide with the Soviet Union's Red Army approaching the eastern suburbs of the city and the retreat of German forces...
) as a direct response to heightened claims coming from German expellees from Poland
Expulsion of Germans after World War II
The later stages of World War II, and the period after the end of that war, saw the forced migration of millions of German nationals and ethnic Germans from various European states and territories, mostly into the areas which would become post-war Germany and post-war Austria...
. The panel estimated the losses to be at least 45.3 billion euros ($54 billion) in current value. He also promoted construction of the museum of Polish Jews in Warsaw by donating city land to the project.
Kaczyński twice banned the Warsaw gay pride parade
Gay pride parade
Pride parades for the LGBT community are events celebrating lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender culture. The events also at times serve as demonstrations for legal rights such as same-sex marriage...
in 2004 and again in 2005, locally known as the Parada Równości (the Equality Parade), stating that the application of the parade organizers had not been properly filed, also saying that he did not respect homosexuals' right to demonstrate stating "I respect your right to demonstrate as citizens. But not as homosexuals.” Additionally, he feared the parade would promote a "homosexual lifestyle" and complained that police did not use enough force in breaking it up by stating “Why was force not used to break up an illegal demonstration?”. Kaczynski referred to the organizers of the gay pride parades as "perverts". In 2004 his opponents called his actions unconstitutional
Constitutionality
Constitutionality is the condition of acting in accordance with an applicable constitution. Acts that are not in accordance with the rules laid down in the constitution are deemed to be ultra vires.-See also:*ultra vires*Company law*Constitutional law...
and he was 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."
In 2007, Poland, represented by Kaczyński, was found guilty by the European Court of Human Rights
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
of violating the principle of freedom of assembly
Freedom of assembly
Freedom of assembly, sometimes used interchangeably with the freedom of association, is the individual right to come together and collectively express, promote, pursue and defend common interests...
under Article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights
European Convention on Human Rights
The Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms is an international treaty to protect human rights and fundamental freedoms in Europe. Drafted in 1950 by the then newly formed Council of Europe, the convention entered into force on 3 September 1953...
.
Presidential election
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 in defeating the runner up Donald Tusk
Donald Tusk
Donald Franciszek Tusk is a Polish politician who has been Prime Minister of Poland since 2007. He was a co-founder and is chairman of the Civic Platform party....
, by polling 54.04 percent of the vote, Kaczyński assumed office on 23 December 2005 by taking an oath before the National Assembly.
Domestic policy
In his first public speech as president-elect, Kaczyński said that his presidency would pursue the task of ameliorating the Republic, a process which he said would consist of "purging various pathologies from our life, most prominently 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.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 for, or were 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 economic inequalities between various regions of Poland. In his speech he also emphasized combining modernisation with tradition and remembering the teachings of Pope John Paul II.
On 21 December 2008, Kaczyński became the first Polish head of state to visit a Polish synagogue and to attend religious services held there. His attendance coincided with the first night of Hanukkah.
Kaczyński memorialized many of Poland’s national heroes known as cursed soldiers who perished at the hands of the Polish secret police, the Soviet NKVD
NKVD
The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs was the public and secret police organization of the Soviet Union that directly executed the rule of power of the Soviets, including political repression, during the era of Joseph Stalin....
, the SMERSH, and other repressive organs of communist rule. Such national heroes as Witold Pilecki, August Fieldorf, and many others, were posthumously rehabilitated and bestowed with Poland’s highest decorations for valor.
Presidential pardons
From 2005–2007, in accordance article 133 of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland, Kaczyński pardoned 77 people and declined to pardon 550.Foreign affairs
In foreign affairsForeign Affairs
Foreign Affairs is an American magazine and website on international relations and U.S. foreign policy published since 1922 by the Council on Foreign Relations six times annually...
, Kaczyński noted that many of Poland's problems were related to the lack of energy security
Energy security
Energy security is a term for an association between national security and the availability of natural resources for energy consumption. Access to cheap energy has become essential to the functioning of modern economies. However, the uneven distribution of energy supplies among countries has led...
and this issue would have to be resolved in order to protect Polish interests. Strengthening ties with the United States 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 relations with the latter.
Aside from those issues, his immediate goals were to develop tangible strategic partnership with Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
and greater cooperation with the Baltic states
Baltic states
The term Baltic states refers to the Baltic territories which gained independence from the Russian Empire in the wake of World War I: primarily the contiguous trio of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania ; Finland also fell within the scope of the term after initially gaining independence in the 1920s.The...
and Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
.
He was greatly admired in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, because he promoted educating Polish youth about the Holocaust. There was widespread grief in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
over his death.
Defense Minister Radosław Sikorski compared the planned Russia to Germany gas pipeline to the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact and Foreign Minister Anna Fotyga stated that the pipeline was a threat to Poland's energy security.
In November 2006 in Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
, at a European Union—Russia meeting, Poland vetoed the launch of EU-Russia partnership talks due to a Russian ban on Polish meat and plant products imports.
As a reaction to claims by a German exile group Preussische Treuhand, which represents post-1945 German expellees from Eastern Europe
Expulsion of Germans after World War II
The later stages of World War II, and the period after the end of that war, saw the forced migration of millions of German nationals and ethnic Germans from various European states and territories, mostly into the areas which would become post-war Germany and post-war Austria...
, the Polish Foreign Minister Fotyga 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.
Following the military conflict between Russia and Georgia in 2008, Kaczyński provided the website of the President of Poland for dissemination of information for blocked by the Russian Federation Georgian internet portals.
During a state visit to Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
in 2009, Kaczyński said that the Polish government, on the basis of its constitutional competences, decided to recognize Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
and emphasized that he, as the President of the state, did not agree with that.
Marriage and family
Maria Kaczynska
Maria Kaczyńska was the First Lady of Poland from 2005-10 as the wife of Lech Kaczyński, late President of Poland.-Early and personal life:Born as Maria Helena Mackiewicz in Machowo to Lidia and Czesław Mackiewicz. Her father fought in the Vilnius Armia Krajowa , while an uncle fought in the...
in 1978. They had one daughter, Marta Kaczyńska-Dubieniecka, and two granddaughters named Ewa and Martyna. His brother is Jarosław Kaczyński, the former Prime Minister of Poland.
Death
On 10 April 2010, a Tupolev Tu-154Tupolev Tu-154
The Tupolev Tu-154 is a three-engine medium-range narrow-body airliner designed in the mid 1960s and manufactured by Tupolev. As the mainstay 'workhorse' of Soviet and Russian airlines for several decades, it serviced over a sixth of the world's landmass and carried half of all passengers flown...
M plane was carrying Lech Kaczyński, his wife Maria Kaczyńska, and other members of a Polish delegation (top public and military figures of Polish state) from Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
to commemorate the Katyn massacre
Katyn massacre
The Katyn massacre, also known as the Katyn Forest massacre , was a mass execution of Polish nationals carried out by the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs , the Soviet secret police, in April and May 1940. The massacre was prompted by Lavrentiy Beria's proposal to execute all members of...
. The plane crashed while approaching Smolensk Air Base
Smolensk (air base)
Smolensk North Airport is a decommissioned military airbase in Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located 4 km north of the city of Smolensk. It is now used as Smolensk's sole airport for civil and military flights...
in Russia. The governor of Smolensk Oblast
Smolensk Oblast
Smolensk Oblast is a federal subject of Russia . Its area is . Population: -Geography:The administrative center of Smolensk Oblast is the city of Smolensk. Other ancient towns include Vyazma and Dorogobuzh....
confirmed to Russia 24 news channel that there were no survivors of the crash. 96 people were killed in the crash, including many of Poland's highest military and civilian leaders.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev is the third President of the Russian Federation.Born to a family of academics, Medvedev graduated from the Law Department of Leningrad State University in 1987. He defended his dissertation in 1990 and worked as a docent at his alma mater, now renamed to Saint...
ordered a government commission to investigate the crash. Russia's Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
, was placed in charge of the investigation.
State funeral
On 11 April 2010, President Kaczynski's body was returned to Poland, where he and his wife lay in stateLying in state
Lying in state is a term used to describe the tradition in which a coffin is placed on view to allow the public at large to pay their respects to the deceased. It traditionally takes place in the principal government building of a country or city...
at the Presidential Palace
Presidential Palace, Warsaw
The Presidential Palace in Warsaw, Poland, is the elegant classicist latest version of a building that has stood on the Krakowskie Przedmieście site since 1643. Over the years, it has been rebuilt and remodeled many times...
in Warsaw. The state funeral was held in Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
on 18 April 2010. After a Roman Catholic mass
Mass (liturgy)
"Mass" is one of the names by which the sacrament of the Eucharist is called in the Roman Catholic Church: others are "Eucharist", the "Lord's Supper", the "Breaking of Bread", the "Eucharistic assembly ", the "memorial of the Lord's Passion and Resurrection", the "Holy Sacrifice", the "Holy and...
at St. Mary's Basilica
St. Mary's Basilica, Kraków
St. Mary's Basilica , is a Brick Gothic church re-built in the 14th century , adjacent to the Main Market Square in Kraków, Poland...
, the presidential couple were laid to rest in a sarcophagus
Sarcophagus
A sarcophagus is a funeral receptacle for a corpse, most commonly carved or cut from stone. The word "sarcophagus" comes from the Greek σαρξ sarx meaning "flesh", and φαγειν phagein meaning "to eat", hence sarkophagus means "flesh-eating"; from the phrase lithos sarkophagos...
, which is placed in the antechamber of the Crypt Under the Tower of Silver Bells beneath the Wawel Cathedral
Wawel Cathedral
The Wawel Cathedral, also known as the Cathedral Basilica of Sts. Stanisław and Vaclav, is a church located on Wawel Hill in Kraków–Poland's national sanctuary. It has a 1,000-year history and was the traditional coronation site of Polish monarchs. It is the Cathedral of the Archdiocese of Kraków...
, A significant number of foreign dignitaries were unable to attend the funeral as a result air travel disruption after the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption
Air travel disruption after the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption
In response to concerns that volcanic ash ejected during the 2010 eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland would damage aircraft engines, the controlled airspace of many European countries was closed to instrument flight rules traffic, resulting in the largest air-traffic shut-down since World War II...
in Europe following the eruption of the volcano Eyjafjallajökull
2010 eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull
The 2010 eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull were volcanic events at Eyjafjöll in Iceland which, although relatively small for volcanic eruptions, caused enormous disruption to air travel across western and northern Europe over an initial period of six days in April 2010. Additional localised disruption...
in Iceland.
Honours and awards
- Order of the White Eagle, Grand Master
- Grand Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta, Grand Master
- Collar of Order of Merit of Malta (14 May 2007)
- Chain of King Abdul AzizOrder of Abdulaziz al SaudThe Order of Abdulaziz al Saud is a Saudi-Arabian Order of merit. The order has been named after Abdulaziz Al Saud who founded the Saudi kingdom and died in 1953.-History:...
(Saudi Arabia – 25 June 2007) - Knight Grand Cross of the Grand Order of King TomislavGrand Order of King TomislavThe Grand Order of King Tomislav , or more fully the Grand Order of King Tomislav with Sash and Great Morning Star , is the highest state order of the Republic of Croatia...
(Croatia – 10 January 2008) - Order of St. George (Georgia) (23 November 2007)
- The First Class of the Order of Prince Yaroslav the WiseOrder of Prince Yaroslav the WiseThe Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise is an award of Ukraine. It is awarded for distinguished services to the state and people of the Ukrainian nation. The Order was instituted on August 23, 1995 by the Ukrainian President, Leonid Kuchma....
(Ukraine – 6 December 2007) - Collar of the Order of Prince Henry (Portugal – 2 Sept 2008)
- National Order of Merit of the Republic of Malta, First Class (26 January 2009)
- Order of the White Double CrossOrder of the White Double CrossThe Order of the White Double Cross is the highest state decoration of the Republic of Slovakia.The Order was instituted on 1 March 1994 after Slovakia became independent on 1 January 1993...
, First Class (Slovakia – 21 February 2009) - Order of the White LionOrder of the White LionThe Order of the White Lion is the highest order of the Czech Republic. It continues a Czechoslovak order of the same name created in 1922 as an award for foreigners....
, First Class (Czech Republic, 21 January 2010) - Grand Cross of the Order of the Republic of Hungary (18 March 2009)
- Grand Cross of the Order of Vytautas the GreatOrder of Vytautas the GreatThe Order of Vytautas the Great is the Lithuanian Presidential Award. It may be conferred on the heads of Lithuania and foreign states, as well as their citizens, for distinguished services to the State of Lithuania.-History:...
(16 April 2009) - Order of Heydar Aliyev (Azerbaijan – 2 July 2009)
- Order of National Hero of Georgia (10 April 2010)
- Honorary doctorates from the State University of Tbilisi in Georgia (16 April 2007), Hankuk University of Foreign Language in SeoulSeoulSeoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
(6 Dec 2008), Catholic University of Lublin (1 July 2009) - Honorary citizen of Warsaw (15 April 2010)
External links
/ official website of the President of the Republic of Poland|-
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