Summer of discontent

They're mad as hell and they're not going to take it anymore! That was the message from the slew of protestors who took to the streets last week to vent their frustrations with the government and the state of the country's economy. Andrzej Lepper's Self-Defense party tried (and failed) to stop the traffic in Kraków, Radom, and at the Charles de Gaulle traffic circle in Warsaw. Members of the National Trade Unions Alliance (OPZZ) demanded that interest rates be cut outside the National Bank of Poland head office, while representatives from the Individual Farmers Solidarity union stood their ground outside the prime minister's office, protesting about the sugar industry crisis. Then there were the workers from the financially stricken Szczecin Shipyard and the machinery manufacturing company, Bison-Bial, who also went marching to draw attention to their plights. But will these protests see the government change its policies?

"Well, things may change during the fall, but right now in the summer, I wouldn't expect anything very important politically," said Antoni Kamiński, head of the International Security Department at the Polish Academy of Science's Institute of Political Studies. According to Kamiński, while in the 1980s protestors from the Solidarity union may have hastened the downfall of communism, today's protests lack people power. He quoted figures from a June poll by the Center For Research of Public Opinion (CBOS) indicating that 48% of people support street marches as a legitimate form of protest against the government, while 47% are against it. But that's not enough to keep the protestors from marching. "What is certain is that there is a uniformity in these types of situations," Kamiński said. "Protests are particularly aggressive when, after a period of (economic) growth, there is a sudden drop in the standard of living and that is what Poland has experienced. "The economic situation is very difficult. A lot of factories are going bankrupt, and I think this is a very important factor. Unemployment is close to 18% and there is uncertainty with European Union accession and I think their fears are justified." But those fears have failed to translate into a groundswell of action. Kamiński noted that Self-Defense's attempt to paralyze the streets was quelled when police quickly moved away the small groups of protestors.

"You probably noticed that the protests were not very spectacular," Kamiński said. "It was rather a political defeat for Lepper than a success. The lack of effectiveness shows that this group of people is not very well mobilized. They didn't appear because they did not want to waste their time." Self-Defense's spokesman, Krzysztof Sikora, saw the situation differently. "Our protests were successful," he said. "They were devised as a peaceful manifestation of our disgust with the work of the government, not as a show of force. We have to remind the government of pensioners and poor farmers." As for any more protests planned this summer, Sikora said it depends on what other issues arise. "People go on strike because they are restless," he said. If there are more protests, Kamiński said politicians will definitely be keeping an eye on them because they "could translate into electoral votes." But he doubts that protest will bring about the fundamental changes needed to kick-start Poland's stalled economy. "Protest usually results in (government) retreat," Kamiński said. "If there is an unpopular decision, then the government retreats, and I think this is very demoralizing because if the government is strong and it makes a responsible decision, it should stand by this." Self-Defense's Sikora put it more bluntly. "Those hard heads in the government are not protecting Polish interests," he said.