Polish strikers adamant: We want free unions

Press, 28 August 1980, Page 6

Polish strikers adamant: We want free unions

NJPA-Reuter Warsaw ■The chief Government peacemaker in strikes crippling Poland’s Baltic seaports yesterday returned to Warsaw for an urgent Politburo meeting as strike leaders continued to press their demand for completely- free tra’de unions. The Deputy Prime Minister (Mr l.Lccyslaw Jagielski) earlier offered fresh concessions to the strikers in negotiations at the key port city of Gdansk. He agreed to discuss demands for free trade unions and offered consideration of the right to strike, which does not exist anywhere in Communist Europe. Whe~ he left Gdansk for th? Politburo meeting there were persistent rumours among the strikers of further Government initiatives. a political comrfientator warned the strikers rjbt to carry; their demands too far and said their action fuld create a 'catastrophic tuation in which a neighbouring Power could take W er - X “If this, movement 4s not Sopped it cculd lead to a tastrophe of incalculable 'jjroportions comparable only what happened to our '4®untry in the eighteenth ■century (when Poland was partitioned),” said the tele-

vision commentator, Ryszard Wojna. He described as “negative” demands by strikers for the dismantling of the official union structure.

The commentator’s warning was echoed by the country’s Roman Catholic prima t e , Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski, who called for peace and calm in a sermon that was given full coverage on television, an event unprecedented in 36 years of Communist rule in Poland.

Cardinal Wyszynski reminded Poles of bitter experiences in the past when their country \vas carved up between rival Powers and wiped off the map. The decision to show huge crowds listening, to the cardinal was seen as a gesture to strikers in Gdansk, who have included among their demands greater access for the. Church of the official media. It was also clear that the authorities, aware they had lost the confidence of many Poles, were openly seeking the support of the Church. In its coverage of the Gdansk meeting with Mr Jagielski, Polish State Radio quoted several strike leaders as making unequivocal demands for free trade unions.

It quoted one speaker as telling the Deputy Prime Minister: “You continue toj talk about streamlining orl

improvement. What matters to us is not improvement . . but the creation of entirely new trade unions. This is why we do not quite understand one another.’.’

The concept of free trade unions previ usly has been abhorent to the Communist Party leader, Edward Gierek, who rejected the idea as an opportunity for enemies of the State to undermine the Communist structure in Poland.

However, the Government announced yesterday that Jan Szydlak. head of the Government-sponsored trade union, had been dismissed. He lost his place on the Politburo earlier. After Mr Gierek’s unsuccessful attempt to woo the strikers back to work with pledges to i form the existing Government-sponsored trade union, his position as party leader may now be under threat. The Politburo has been meeting on the labour crisis for several weeks and there is a possibility that members are already engaged in power play over Mr Gierek’s failure to resolve the issue. No time has been fixed for resuming talks between the Government and the leaders of the strikes, which have crippled the Baltic ports and important trade outlets a..d now f reaten to spread into southern Poland.