Polish Govt condemns ‘insults’ to Soviets

Press, 27 May 1981, Page 9

Polish Govt condemns ‘insults’ to Soviets

NZPA-Reuter . Warsaw Ppland’s harassed Government has revealed and condemned cases >of hostility towards locally-based Soviet troops as well as anti-Com-munist statements and leaflets.

A tough Government attack yesterday on what it called an upsurge of lawlessnes came shortly after word that two former Government Ministers, removed since labour unrest erupted last year, had committed suicide in the past few days. Student-sponsored street demonstrations in Warsaw and other towns yesterday, demanding freedom for political prisoners, passed off without serious incident.

Yesterday’s Government statement, after a meeting of the Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister (General Wojciech Jaruzelski) condemned instances of “insults” to Soviet soldiers stationed in Poland.

A report on the meeting by •the official news agency

P.A.P. had initially spoken of “attacks” on Soviet troops but later changed this to “insults” without explanation. Soviet Army and Air Force units are stationed in Poland to safeguard vital lines of communication from their homeland to Soviet forces in East Germany. The Government statement said an upsurge of lawlessness was being aggravated by anti-Communist statements, leaflets and placards, and attempts to stir up anti-Soviet feeling. The Polish authorities would take necessary action to protect and uphold their obligations to the Warsaw Pact allies, it said. Some 10,000 Poles marched through Warsaw to demand freedom for political prisoners. P.A.P. said students in some other cities, heeding advice to avoid possible trouble, had cancelled street marches. P.A.P. also reported earlier that-the former Foreign Trade Minister, Jerzy

Olszewski, aged 60, and the former Building Minister, Edward Barszcz, aged 53, had committed suicide. It gave no details. The two men were among dozens of officials swept from their posts in the Government and ruling Communist Party after labour unrest last (Northern) summer plunged Poland into politial turmoil. Mr Olszewski had been criticised over his Ministry’s share of responsibility for Poland’s present economic crisis. The Building Ministry, which Mr Barszcz headed for less than a year, had also been heavily attacked. Negotiating teams from the Government and the Solidarity free trade union reported they had agreed on most points of demands by the union for access to the mass news media. The only main unsettled issue was a bid by Solidarity to have its own television programme, controlled entirely by the union, they said.