Tradition of the Workers’ Defence Committee and the „Solidarity” movement in the political thought of the Democratic Union, Freedom Union and the Democratic Party demokraci.pl

Abstract

The aim of the article was the analysis of the political thought of Unia Demokratyczna, Unia Wolności and Partia Demokratyczna demokraci.pl, that refers to one of fundamental pillars of the activity of this group, i.e. the past, and the influence of Komitet Obrony Robotników (Workers’ Defense Committee) and „Solidarności” (Solidarity) on the ideological heritage and functioning of UD, UW and PD. The focus was also put on the issue if, and in what way the leading figures of the analysed political subjects emphasised, in the new political reality, their origins while being in widely understood political opposition in the 70s and 80s of the 20th century, and how the program content of KOR and „Solidarity” was reflected in UD, UW and PD statements. The research aim undertook within the considerations was verification of the following research hypotheses: 1) referring to the tradition of Solidarity in the communities of UD, UW and PD was treated as legitimization of power and social trust; 2) associating of UD, UW and PD with the tradition deriving from the period of political opposition was something artificial and created entirely for the purposes of the political campaign and treated as a marketing measure. Among the applied research methods a significant meaning had the analysis of the sources of political thought, including program documents, stenographs of conferences or numerous interviews, as well as the comparative method that served to compare positions of political parties towards particular issues. The conducted analyses imply that UD, UW and PD had different approaches towards the tradition of KOR and „Solidarity”, which resulted from grading the political heritage and adaptability of these aspects of activities undertaken in 70s and 80s that suited the new political reality. In this sense the only acceptable form of emphasising the tradition of „Solidarity” in the political thought of UD, UW and PD was using it for promotional purposes in the period of political campaigns, with almost no reference to the tradition of KOR.