Traditional feast held in city center for haves and have ... - Krakow Post

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NO. 33 WWW.KRAKOWPOST.COM DECEMBER 20-JANUARY 9, 2008 

Traditional feast held in city center for haves and have-nots 

Poland remembers 

martial law in 1981 

On Dec. 13, 1981, the arrests 

and jailings started. Radio 

programs were halted. The 

borders were shut down. 

Martial law was imposed 2 

Valuable primeval 

forest under threat 

Environmental organizations 

are raising the alarm about the 

management of Poland’s most 

valuable primeval forest: 

Bialowieska Forest 2 

School students 

can read, not count 

Assessments of teenage students 

showed that they performed best 

in reading tasks, while they had 

difficulty in math exercises 4 

Military takes part 

in peace program 

Partnership for Peace sends 

troops overseas to deal with 

terrorism and proliferation 6 

Int’l women raise 

money for orphans 

The Int’l Women’s Association 

holds Christmas Charity Ball to 

support local poor children 11 

Local Guggenheim 

Museum underway 

A Krakow resident has decided 

to build a Guggenheim 

Museum in his hometown 12 

The 10th annual event has become the biggest holiday gathering in Poland, where those who have resources share with those who haven’t. It is far from the only such event, 

however. Many cities reach out to the poor during the holiday season. The cooks at the Krakow event prepared about 6,000 liters of mushroom soup with pasta. 

Kinga Rodkiewicz 

STAFF JOURNALIST 

About 50,000 homeless, poor and lonely ate free on 

Rynek Glowny (Main Market Square). 

The 10th annual event has become the biggest holiday 

gathering in Poland, where those who have resources 

share with those who haven’t. It is far from the only 

such event, however. Many cities reach out to the poor 

during the holiday season. 

The cooks at the Krakow event prepared about 6,000 

liters of mushroom soup with pasta, six tons of cabbage 

with mushrooms and 100,000 homemade dumplings. 

“Ten years ago, I had no idea that Christmas Eve on 

the main market square in Krakow” would become so 

big, said Jan Kosciuszko, owner of the Chlopskie Jadlo 

restaurant, who started the tradition. 

When he initiated the program, he said, he hoped it 

would become a tradition that spread to many locations 

– and it would involve people of means helping those 

without. 

Mayor Jacek Majchrowski and Cardinal Stanislaw 

Dziwisz are among the notables who have embraced the 

event. 

Ninety percent of those who ate on the main market 

square this year were needy, meal organizers said. 

Christmas is Poland’s most important religious holiday. 

The Catholic Church tells its members that those 

with means should celebrate Jesus’ birth by helping the 

less fortunate. 

In almost every Polish home on Christmas, Eve there 

is a place at the dinner table for anyone who wanders 

in. If someone comes to the door unexpectedly, the tradition 

is that the host invites him or her to eat the 12 

traditional Christmas dishes with the family. 

The tradition started in the 19th Century, when many 

families reserved a chair for a family member whom the 

Russians had sent to Siberia for fighting for Polish independence. 

In many Polish cities, local governments, private 

sponsors and volunteers put together a Christmas Eve 

meal for the poor. 

In Wroclaw, the event is associated with one determined 

woman, journalist Wanda Ziembicka. She has 

been organizing a Christmas meal for 20 years. 

“I do this for very poor people, for the lonely, ill and 

those abandoned by relatives,” she said. “The disabled 

and multi-children families come as well.” 

So many people look forward to the event that “sometimes 

at the beginning of September people ask me if 

they will receive an invitation,” Ziembicka said. 

Ziembicka prepares for the event by sending a letter 

each year seeking donations from 300 companies, businessmen, 

editors, actors and politicians. 

“I ask them to put together parcels with the most 

important necessities, such as sugar, tea, coffee, flour 

and rice,” she said. 

At the Christmas Eve event, those in the crowd get 

raffle tickets. Numbers are called, and every person 

receives a gift. 

“I remember that once a man who had a big family 

received a parcel in which there was food – and 500 

zloty,” Ziembicka said. 

It is a tradition that if the beneficiary of a gift knows 

who the donor is, he must express his thanks. When 

the man with the big family sent his appreciation letter, 

the donor was so pleased that he gave the family 

another 1,000 zloty. 

Katowice also has a Christmas Eve meal for the 

homeless and poor. 

Bishop Gerard Bernacki told 

the 60 Silesians at this year’s 

event to fill their hearts “with 

love, kindness and goodness. 

I wish you on this Christmas 

peace, joy and kindness.” 

Non-governmental organizations 

estimate the number of 

homeless in Poland at between 

80,000 and 130,000. The number 

in Katowice has grown each 

year over the last several years, 

the mayor’s office said. Last 

year about 5,000 people got 

Mediterranean dishes 

Exotic drinks 

Hookahs 

Arabian music 

Belly dancers 

Maly Rynek 2 

Tell.: (0) 12 421-6498 

Email: shisha@shisha.pl 

help from homeless programs. 

Gdansk has a Christmas Eve meal program that gets the young 

involved in the spirit of the season. Since 1989, students from all 

the universities in the Pomeranian region have staffed the Kitchen 

of Santa Claus, cooking soup every Thursday for the homeless 

and poor. 

They prepare special meals on Christmas Eve and Easter for the 

90 or so people they serve. 

Lublin held its 8th Christmas Eve meal program this year. The 

main organizer was the Dominican Order. 

When the Old Town event was first held, it was only for the 

homeless. Now it’s for everyone. 

Residents, including people dressed as angels holding candles, 

wander through the streets singing Christmas carols. At the main 

market square the carolers take part in the most important part of 

each Christmas Eve – sharing wafers and good wishes.

2 

The Krakow Post 

R E G I O N A L N E W S 

Gazprom warns of possible 

tensions with Ukraine 

P O L A N D 

DECEMBER 20-JANUARY 9, 2008 

Poland remembers introduction of martial law in 1981 

Russian energy giant Gazprom late last week 

warned of a risk of “tensions” with Ukraine’s 

future government, two days before pro-Western 

Yulia Tymoshenko was voted in by the parliament 

as prime minister. 

“Today, the only place where there could be 

tensions is in Ukraine,” said Gazprom spokesman 

Sergei Kuprianov on the Russian news channel 

Vesti 24. Problems could arise “if a new government 

is elected that tries to modify the accord 

signed” earlier this month concerning the price of 

gas deliveries to Ukraine, he said. 

“There have been statements in that regard by 

the Ukrainian party and that worries us,” he added, 

alluding to comments by Tymoshenko’s party. 

On Dec. 4, Ukraine and Russia agreed on the 

price for gas deliveries in 2008 at $179.5 (122 

euro) per 1,000 cubic meters. 

The current price for Russian gas paid by 

Ukraine is $130. However, a lawmaker from the 

Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc, which is set to form 

Ukraine’s governing coalition, criticized the deal, 

saying it was proof of the “incapacity” of outgoing, 

pro-Moscow prime minister Viktor Yanukovych. 

Russia cut off gas supplies to Ukraine in 

2006 after Kiev refused to accept a much higher 

price for imports. The move subsequently disrupted 

gas supplies to EU countries further downstream, 

raising criticism that Moscow was using 

its energy resources to put pressure on neighboring 

governments. (AFP) 

cc:sa:Hiuppo 

Martial law was declared for 586 days until July 22, 1983. 

Gazprom sets price limit at 

$119 for Belarus 

Russian energy giant Gazprom late last week 

set a gas price limit for Belarus at $119 (82 euro) 

per 1,000 cubic meters for the first quarter of 2008, 

a day after President Vladimir Putin promised 

Minsk to freeze natural gas costs. 

Gazprom spokesman Sergei Kuprianov made 

the announcement on Echo of Moscow radio, saying 

it met with the conditions of the contract signed 

in Dec. 31, 2006. In comparision, gas prices in the 

first quarter of this year were at $100 per 1,000 

cubic meters. In late 2006, relations between Moscow 

and Minsk soured over a sudden increase in 

gas prices. 

Until then the former Soviet state had benefitted 

from a special price, which had been a key way 

for Moscow to show support for Belarus’s authoritarian 

leader Alexander Lukashenko. 

Belarus is again on Moscow’s good side after 

Lukashenko, a political pariah in the EU and the 

U.S., told Putin at a summit that Minsk backed 

Russia’s opposition to U.S. plans to install part of a 

missile defense shield in Eastern Europe. 

Putin reassured Lukashenko that Russia would 

not raise prices for natural gas, also promising 

there would be no obstacles to delivery of Russian 

supplies this winter through Belarus to the 

EU. (AFP) 

Norway takes over NATO 

patrols of Baltic skies 

Iwona Bojarczuk 

Staff Journalist 

On Dec. 13, 1981, the arrests and jailings 

started. Radio and television programs were 

halted. Newspaper publication was stopped. 

The government prohibited Poles from traveling. 

The borders were closed. So were 

airports. Curfews were imposed. Correspondence 

was censored. 

One hundred thousand police and soldiers 

enforced martial law. Their enforcement 

tools included 1,750 tanks and armored vehicles. 

Martial law, which the government 

declared after a Solidarity-led general uprising, 

lasted 586 days, until July 22, 1983. 

In the first week after the declaration 

of a security emergency, the government 

put 5,000 people in prisons or internment 

camps. At one time or another during martial 

law, about 10,000 people served time in 

49 internment camps. Many were leaders of 

the trade union movement Solidarity and the 

advisers and intellectuals connected with 

it. Fifty-six people were killed during the 

strikes and demonstrations. 

Last week Poland marked the 26th anniversary 

of the introduction of martial law, 

the bitterly despised clampdown that hastened 

Polish independence. The anniversary 

included masses, historical re-enactments, 

meetings and exhibitions. 

It also included some supporters of martial 

law, who contend that Russian troops 

would have come into Poland to suppress 

the uprising if the Polish government had 

not declared martial law. 

The Civic Responsibility Foundation 

organized the re-enactment of a clash in 

Warsaw. The “government” forces included 

young men wearing uniforms, a SKOT armored 

vehicle, a Nysa military car and water 

cannons for dispersing crowds. The “military” 

pitched a tent in front of the Wizytki 

Church and Convent. 

The re-enactment of the clash between 

the ZOMO units and the anti-government 

forces came in the evening in the Bemowo 

district. 

“We need to show the dark side of history” 

so it won’t fade from our memories, 

said Artur Luszczak, who played one of the 

soldiers. “Many old people do not remember 

or do not want to remember” the uprisings, 

he said. “The young do not know” 

what happened. 

Poznan’s celebration included a special 

“war tram,” with a former Solidarity 

member at the controls. It transported high 

school students dressed in ZOMO uniforms. 

Another group of students was distributing 

leaflets about the anniversary of martial law. 

When the tram arrived at the stop where the 

leaflet distributors were, sirens began blaring. 

The ZOMO forces rushed from the tram 

to arrest those distributing leaflets. 

In Krakow, Defense Minister Bogdan 

Klich joined the head of an uprising memorial 

organization in opening an exhibition 

titled “Poland’s Undergound State – Solidarity.” 

Wladyslaw Bartoszewski is chairman 

of the Committee to Preserve the Memory 

of Fighting and Martyrdom. 

A Jagiellonian University exhibition dealt 

with the Independent Student Association’s 

role in the uprising and in battling martial 

law. Priests at the Church of Saint Anna 

said a mass to commemorate martial law 

victims. 

Another memorial mass was held at the 

Mariacka Basilica. Afterwards, mass participants, 

politicians and former Solidarity 

members marched to the Katyn Cross in 

Saint Idzi Square to pay homage to those 

who had fought to free Poland. 

As has become a tradition, on the nights 

of Dec. 12 and Dec. 13 opponents of martial 

law gathered in front of the Warsaw home of 

General Wojciech Jaruzelski to protest. The 

man, whom many Poles despise for declaring 

martial law, is still alive. 

As in previous years, those who gathered 

outside the house included martial law supporters. 

They used candles to spell out the 

message: “We remember.” 

Then they fired flares and sang the national 

anthem and the patriotic song “Rota.” 

At the end they shouted “Murderer” and 

“Down with Communists.” 

Jaroslaw Krajewski, chairman of the Law 

and Justice party’s Warsaw Forum of The 

Young, said Poles have an obligation to remember 

the victims of the uprising. “That is 

why we come here every year,” he said. 

Jaruzelski’s supporters rallied behind the 

slogan “Let history judge the general.” 

They contended that Jaruzelski chose the 

lesser of two evils. If he had not introduced 

martial law, they say, the Russian army 

would have entered Poland, causing enormous 

bloodshed. 

“Jaruzelski should be respected for making 

such a hard decision and bearing the responsibility 

for it with honor and dignity,” 

said Krzysztof Mroz of the organization 

Right of the Polish Left. 

Norway late last week took over a NATO mission 

patroling the skies of the three Baltic states 

bordering Russia, the Lithuanian Defense Ministry 

said. Norwegian pilots will patrol the air space of 

the alliance’s new members using four F-16 fighters 

deployed at the Zokniai air base in northern 

Lithuania. Some 60 members of the Norwegian 

military will be deployed at the base, the ministry 

said. This is Norway’s second time as head of the 

security mission which it took over from the Portuguese 

military. 

Other members of the 26-nation North Atlantic 

Treaty Organzation (NATO) have taken turns patrolling 

the skies of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania 

since the three Baltic states joined the alliance in 

March 2004. The three Baltic republics which regained 

their independence from the crumbling Soviet 

Union in 1991, lack the aircraft and personnel 

to police their skies themselves. (AFP) 

Russian stands accused of 

killing 40 women in Ukraine 

The trial of a Russian ex-convict accused of raping 

and killing dozens of young women and girls 

has opened in Ukraine, a court official said late last 

week. Sergey Tkach, a 55-year-old father of five 

who has been married three times, is accused of 

committing some 40 murders in the east and south 

of the country, the regional prosecutor’s office 

said. Tkach is also suspected of 40 other murders 

currently under investigation, while another 60 

crimes, some committed in Russia, have not been 

investigated yet, the prosecutor’s office said. 

“The trial of Sergey Tkach started behind 

closed doors to protect the rights of victims’ relatives,” 

a spokeswoman for the prosecutors, Svitlana 

Tchorna, told AFP. 

Tkach was arrested in southern Ukraine in 2005, 

where he had been living. He came to Ukraine in 

1982 from Kemerovo in Siberia, Russia, where he 

had worked for the police. 

Young women and girls started disappearing 

in 1984 in the Dnipropetrovsk region where 

Tkach was living, the Interior Ministry said. His 

lawyer Yuri Syrotynko said he had confessed but 

did not specify exactly to what. Tkach was judged 

sane and will stand trial, which is expected to last 

at least six months. He faces a lifetime in solitary 

confinement if found guilty, as the death penalty in 

Ukraine was abolished in 2000. (AFP) 

Valuable primeval forest under threat 

Zofia Owczarek 


Environmental organizations are raising 

the alarm about the management of 

Poland’s – and Europe’s – most valuable 

primeval forest: the Bialowieska Forest. 

Ecologists are alarmed by the heavy logging 

in areas of the forest not protected by 

the Bialowieski National Park. 

The World Wide Fund for Nature has 

already collected 100,000 signatures in an 

appeal to protect these areas. 

The appeal is to be handed to President 

Lech Kaczynski. Bialowieska Forest is 

without a doubt the oldest and most precious 

woodland in Europe. It constitutes an 

area of 150,000 hectares. 

Most of the forest – 87,500 hectares – belongs 

to Belarus, with only 62,500 hectares 

being situated within the Polish borders. 

The forest’s value lies primarily in the 

fact that, thanks to early protection, until 

the 20th Century the vast majority of the 

forest escaped the detrimental influences of 

civilization and agriculture. 

But after World War I, illegal logging 

began posing a threat to the integrity of the 

natural woods. 

“There is no other forest like this throughout 

Europe,” Stefan Jakimiuk of WWF Poland 

told the newspaper Dziennik. 

However, only 17 percent of the priceless 

area is protected as Bialowieski National 

Park. The rest is still being logged. 

The management of the area by State 

Forests was already questioned by the Supreme 

Chamber of Control at the beginning 

of this year. 

Now, the alleged mismanagement might 

result in the loss of a prestigious FSC (Forest 

Stewardship Council) certificate given 

for quality management. 

And of even greater concern, Bialowieski 

National Park could cease being registered 

by UNESCO as Poland’s only natural 

item on the list of the world’s cultural 

heritages. 

In 2006 the forest was visited by professor 

Eckhart Kuijken from the European 

Council, who was displeased with the management 

by State Forests. 

“I found that the policies of the area’s supervisors 

are still aimed at financial profit,” 

he told Dziennik. “Procedures applied here 

were valid years ago, while now ecological 

recommendations are of higher importance.” 

Kuijken’s report might result in the Bialowieska 

Forest being deprived of the 

certificate of the European Council. To 

prevent further loggings of the old-growth 

forest, WWF has launched a campaign to 

extend the Bialowieski National Park to 

cover the entire forest. 

However, the campaign is certain to 

meet resistance from the local people, because 

many employers depend on the timber 

economy. 

“No other trees are being logged other 

than the ones attacked by bark beetles,” said 

Bogumil Olszynski, a retired forester from 

Hajnowka, a town adjacent to the forest. 

“There is no other way to fight the insect, 

as no chemicals are allowed in the 

park area.” 

Still, WWF and other environmental organizations 

hope that the new Polish minister 

of the environment will take their appeals 

into account. 

Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year! 

We wish our readers, journalists and advertisers a wonderful 

holiday season and a prosperous New Year. Thank you all for 

being with us through 2007. We will be suspending our weekly 

news service for the holidays, and rejoin you on Jan. 10 of 

the New Year. We look forward to seeing you in 2008!


Polish PM 

wants troops 

out of Iraq in 

October 2008 

agence france-presse 

Prime Minister Donald Tusk said late 

last week he wants to end the country’s Iraq 

deployment in October 2008 in line with his 

election pledge. 

“At the request of the minister of defense, 

we, as the government, are submitting 

a request with the president to prolong 

the mandate until October 2008 to enable us 

to complete the mission,” Tusk told journalists. 

He also said he would visit Iraq before 

Christmas to announce the end of the mission 

to Polish soldiers. 

Tusk said he hoped President Lech Kaczynski, 

whose party was defeated by Tusk’s 

Civic Platform in the October elections, 

would not block the withdrawal. 

Kaczynski has repeatedly said he wants 

Polish forces to remain in Iraq. The previous 

government, led by Kaczynski’s twin 

brother Jaroslaw Kaczynski, also supported 

maintaining Poland’s deployment in Iraq. 

Tusk’s liberal party dealt a stinging election 

defeat to the Kaczynskis’ right-wing 

Law and Justice party. 

During the election campaign, Tusk had 

promised to withdraw from Iraq, and in a 

speech outlining his policies to parliament 

on Nov. 23, he promised that Poland would 

wind up its mission by the end of 2008. Tusk 

had made political capital of the issue in a 

pre-election televised debate with Jaroslaw 

Kaczynski, demanding: “What gives you 

the right, you and your brother, to extend the 

mission in Iraq ... to put the lives of Polish 

soldiers at risk?” 

Jaroslaw Kaczynski had responded that 

Poles “have never been deserters or cowards.” 

According to a recent poll, some 85 

percent of Poles are against their soldiers 

being deployed in Iraq, while only 12.1 percent 

back the deployment. 

Polish forces have been present in Iraq 

since the start of U.S.-led military action in 

2003. It had 2,600 troops in Iraq in 2003 but 

the number has been slashed to 900 at present. 

Twenty-two Polish soldiers have been 

killed in Iraq. 

P O L A N D The Krakow Post 3 

Major political changes in 2007 

cc:sa:Marek Silarski 

Agriculture Minister Andrzej Lepper (Center). 

Michal Wojtas 


The year 2007 brought many changes to Poland’s 

political scene. Some people and parties 

gained power. Others suffered heavy losses or 

even dropped out of the political scene. 

The main turning point for all of the players 

was the parliamentary elections of Oct. 21. The 

voting came after the Law and Justice party-led 

government dissolved parliament and scheduled a 

snap election after two years in office. 

Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski had little 

choice. His coalition with two smaller parties – the 

Self-Defense party and the League of Polish Families 

– disintegrated in August due to several scandals 

and ongoing tension. 

That led to the Civic Platform party ousting 

Law and Justice. 

In the 2005 elections the Law and Justice party 

won the most seats with 27 percent of the vote. 

Its main rival, the Civic Platform party, got 25 

percent. 

Four other parties earned seats in the lower 

house that year: the: populist Self-Defense party, 

with 11 percent of the vote; the Alliance of the 

Democratic Left, with 11 percent, the League of 

Polish Families with 8 percent and the Polish Peasants’ 

Party with 7 percent. 

Two years later, voter sentiment had changed, 

with more favoring the two largest parties over the 

smaller ones. Political journalists maintained that 

this shift was bringing Poland closer to a two-party 

system. 

Law and Justice’s former coalition partners, the 

Self-Defense party and the League of Polish Families, 

had almost no support in October’s elections. 

A key reason the Self-Defense party was battered 

was scandal. The most prominent party 

member to be accused of a crime – bribery – was 

Agriculture Minister Andrzej Lepper, the Self-Defense 

chairman. 

Law and Justice capitalized on Self-Defense’s 

disintegration by picking up many of its conservative 

voters. 

Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s Civic Platform 

party won big in the elections, obtaining 42 percent 

of the vote. While having to give up the reins 

of government, Law and Justice topped its 2005 

performance with 32 percent of the votes. 

The voter turnout was 54 percent of the electorate 

– or roughly 17 mln people. That made it the 

biggest in post-Communist Poland. 

Two other parties managed to get seats in the 

lower house: the Left and Democrats with 13 percent 

and Polish Peasants’ Party with 9 percent. The 

Civic Platform party asked the peasants party to 

join it in forming a governing coalition. 

The Self-Defense party got two percent of the 

vote and the League of Polish families one percent 

– far below the 5 percent threshhold needed for 

lower-house seats. Neither is likely to play an influential 

role in Polish politics again, analysts say. 

Law and Justice leaders are looking for a new 

strategy for returning to power. 

Law and Justice attracted few of Poland’s 

young voters in the 2005 election. It also fared 

poorly in the big cities. One of its biggest challenges 

will be reversing those trends. 

Another problem the party needs to deal with is 

what some complain is the leadership’s inability to 

accommodate diverse views. 

The membership recently re-elected Kaczynski 

as chairman. But some members say they are 

unhappy with his refusal to listen to other views. 

Prominent members Kazimierz Ujazdowski and 

Pawel Zalewski left the party last week after an 

argument with the former prime minister. 

Civic Platform’s future appears bright but major 

challenges await Tusk and his cohort. 

Doctors’, nurses’ and teachers’ strikes last 

summer diminished popular support for Kaczynski’s 

government. The issues that caused the strikes 

are still unresolved. 

The opposition will be ready to pounce if the 

ruling coalition is unable to deal with medical 

practitioners’ and teachers’ grievances – and any 

other important domestic matter. 

As in previous years, 2007 brought scandals 

that decreased Poles’ trust in politicians. 

The biggest was what government investigators 

say was Agriculture Ministry officials’ efforts 

to obtain bribes. The bribes were to be taken for 

changing the status of rural land in Mazury, a region 

in northeast Poland. The Central Anti-Corruption 

Bureau was investigating the issue when 

the situation became public. 

News of the investigation led to potential witnesses 

clamming up. So far the government has 

failed to bring any charges in this case. 

Tomasz Lipiec, the sports minister in the Kaczynski 

government was arrested on allegations of 

bribery in October. Prosecutors accuse him of taking 

bribery in the awarding of the contract to build 

the National Sports Center. 

In July, Self-Defense parliamentarian Stanislaw 

Lyzwinski was charged with raping of Urszula K., 

who claimed she was raped after asking Lyzwinski 

for a job. During the election campaign, prosecutors 

charged Civic Platform parliamentarian Beata 

Sawicka with bribery for setting up a tender of a 

parcel in Hel, a city in northern Poland. 

In the year 2007 high-profile politicians announced 

their withdrawal from public life. Former 

two-term President Aleksander Kwasniewski came 

back to lead Left and Democrats party’s election 

campaign. When the party faltered in the balloting, 

he said he would not return to politics again. 

Jan Rokita, whom some political analysts in 

early 2007 believed would be Civic Platform’s 

prime minister if the party pulled off an election 

victory, left the party shortly before the October 

elections. 

One reason was that several run-ins with Tusk 

had hurt his standing in the party. Another was that 

his wife Nelly had taken an important in President 

Lech Kaczynski’s office. 

In January, Leszek Balcerowicz ended his term 

as chairman of the National Bank of Poland and 

decided to found a non-governmental organization. 

He was the key author of the plan to turn Poland 

into a free-market economy in the early 1990s 

and also former chairman of the centrist Freedom 

Union party. 

Young Poles 

remember 

martial law on 

streets of Warsaw 


Tanks and militiamen sporting Kalashnikovs 

appeared on the streets of Warsaw 

late last week in events marking 26 years 

to the day since the 1981 Communist 

crackdown against Poland’s Solidarity 

movement. 

“Learning about that time from books 

is one thing, but we want to bring history 

alive, to make people remember and 

to learn directly from their experience,” 

Damian Pietrzyk told AFP. Dressed in the 

khaki green military garb of a Communistera 

militiaman, the 20-year-old Warsaw 

University law student is keen to hear the 

stories of passers-by who, unlike himself, 

remember communism all too well. 

“Its not easy for my generation to imagine 

that time,” says Pietrzyk. 

“Bringing it back to the streets is a good 

way to remember those who died and how 

far Poland has come.” 

The young Pole took part in the “Youngsters 

Remember” event organized by the 

Polish Foundation for Civic Responsibility. 

A re-enactment of a street-clash between 

pro-Solidarity protestors and infamous 

ZOMO militiamen was planned for later 

Thursday along with seminars and a Catholic 

mass commemorating martial law victims. 

In one of the most dramatic episodes 

of modern Polish history, then prime minister 

General Wojciech Jaruzelski ordered 

the military crackdown on the fledgling 

anti-Communist Solidarity trade union 

movement. While opponents contend it was 

designed to re-enforce the Communist party’s 

grip on power on the heels of a massive 

wave of unprecedented strikes organized by 

Solidarity, Jaruzelski himself argues it was 

the only way to prevent a potentially catastrophic 

invasion by Soviet troops. 

However, few historians believe any 

such invasion was on the cards. 

Key Solidarity members including union 

leader Lech Walesa and Poland’s current 

President Lech Kaczynski were imprisoned 

along with thousands of other dissident. 

Telephone lines were cut, media blacked 

out, borders closed and public mobility was 

severely restricted by curfews and strict 

travel restrictions. Tragically, 56 people are 

known to have perished during the brutal 

crackdown. Martial law was formally lifted 

on July 22, 1983. The Solidarity movement 

re-surfaced nationwide in a fresh wave of 

strikes during the late 1980s paving the 

way to Poland’s famous Round Table talks 

which brought a bloodless end to communism 

in watershed elections in 1989. 

Czech-U.S. deal within view on anti-missile radar sites 

Czech Deputy Foreign Minister Tomas Pojar. 


Czech and U.S. negotiators late 

last week said they had made progress 

in talks aimed at a deal over the 

siting of part of a U.S. anti-missile 

defense shield in the Czech Republic 

– but refused to set a target for 

their completion. 

“I think we are making very good 

progress I do not think we will need a 

tremendously large number of future 

[negotiating] rounds if we continue to 

make the progress we have made so 

far,” commented U.S. Assistant Secretary 

of State John Rood in a joint 

news conference with Czech Deputy 

Foreign Minister Tomas Pojar. 

“The finish line is certainly within 

view but predicting exactly when we 

will reach those dates is something I 

have cautiously avoided so far,” he 

added. 

A final deal looks possible “within 

a few small months, but we do not 

rule out that it could be within a few 

weeks,” Pojar said, adding that the 

Czech side was still studying similar 

deals between the U.S. and other 

countries to “get the best possible 

result.” 

Pojar said six of the 18 negotiating 

chapters being discussed had been 

closed and another three or four were 

close to being sealed. “On about half 

of the text there is no accord,” he 

added. 

Progress in the latest talks had 

been made on “safety aspects” such 

as the provision of emergency flights 

to the base and the obligations of 

Czech authorities to police a security 

zone around it, Rood added. 

The proposed Czech radar would 

be paired with 10 interceptor missiles 

in neighboring Poland which 

could counter the threat of an attack 

from “rogue” states, such as Iran, according 

to Washington. Rood said 

that the U.S. still holds the view that 

“the missile threat from Iran and 

similar countries is real and growing 

and continues to evolve.” 

Iran was continuing its missile 

development program. “It remains 

a concern to the U.S. and poses a 

threat to our NATO allies,” he added. 

As well as two general agreements 

setting out the framework for 

the radar’s operation and the rules 

governing the foreign base, a third 

agreement allowing Czech firms and 

businesses to take part in the general 

anti-missile development is also being 

discussed, Pojar said. 

Czech opposition to the U.S. radar 

has however climbed to 68 percent 

according to a survey by the CVVM 

institute published this week, compared 

with 65 percent in June. 

A referendum on whether to host 

the base is wanted by 73 percent of 

the population according to the same 

survey. The center-right government 

in power since the start of the year 

has resolutely refused a referendum 

saying lawmakers in parliament 

should approve the project.

4 



Latvia and Russia seal 

long-delayed border treaty 

Latvia and Russia sealed their long-delayed 

border treaty in a public ceremony early this 

week, 16 years after the Baltic state regained its 

independence from the Soviet Union. 

Latvian Foreign Minster Maris Riekstins exchanged 

ratification documents with his Russian 

counterpart Sergei Lavrov, who is on an official 

visit to Riga. 

The border accord between Latvia and its Soviet-era 

overlord, which had been on ice for more 

than a decade, had already been approved by lawmakers 

and the countries’ leaders. The formal exchange 

of documents was the final hurdle before 

it could come into force. 

Latvia broke free from the crumbling Soviet 

Union in 1991, after five decades of Kremlin 

control, and completed border talks with Russia 

in 1997. 

But the draft treaty was only signed by both 

countries’ prime ministers in March, after being 

held up by differences over territory which is now 

in Russia but was part of independent Latvia before 

World War II. 

The spat compounded Moscow’s annoyance 

with Latvia for joining NATO and the EU in 

2004. 

Latvia’s 276-kilometer (164-mile) border with 

Russia has since 2004 become one of the easternmost 

frontiers of the EU. 

Latvia’s neighbor Estonia, which was also 

ruled by Moscow until 1991, is now the only 

post-Communist EU member state still to fix its 

border with Russia, because of political differences. 

(AFP) 

Most EU states ready to 

sign pact with Serbia 

A majority of EU nations want to sign a pact 

on closer ties with Serbia, perhaps as soon as next 

month, Czech European Affairs Minister Alexandr 

Vonda said late last week. He said that, with the 

EU supporting moves by the Serbian province of 

Kosovo to break away, the bloc was keen to demonstrate 

that Belgrade has a European future to 

stop it from turning toward Russia. 

“I’m in favour of a political approach,” Vonda 

told reporters on the sidelines of an EU summit in 

Brussels. He said the EU should do its best to conclude 

a Stabilisation and Association Agreement 

“no later” than the end of January. 

“Our interest is to keep Kosovo under European 

influence ... and to keep Serbia under European influence 

rather than Russian influence,” he said. 

The only real obstacle to a signature of the accord 

– a first step for Balkans states to join the 

EU – is that former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan 

Kardzic and his war-time military chief Ratko 

Mladic are still at large. 

The two have been indicted for genocide by the 

UN war crimes tribunal over the 1995 Srebrenica 

massacre of about 8,000 Muslim men and boys 

– the worst atrocity in Europe since World War II. 

The EU has always insisted that Serbia’s EU future 

depends on full cooperation with the International 

Criminal Tribunal for former Yugoslavia, baseed 

in The Hague, The Netherlands. 

UN chief war crimes prosecutor Carla Del Ponte, 

whose mandate ends at the end of the month, 

said this week that full cooperation meant getting 

Mladic, whom she says has been hiding in Serbia, 

behind bars. Del Ponte has been supported by The 

Netherlands and Belgium. 

But several countries, led by Italy, have been demanding 

that the pact be signed quickly to staunch 

Serbian anger as it parts with its ethnic-Albanian 

majority southern territory, almost certainly by 

May. Signing in January would provide a boost for 

pro-European Serbian President Boris Tadic as he 

confronts the nationalists in presidential elections 

set for Jan. 20. If Dutch objections are overcome, 

diplomats said that the trade and aid pact could be 

signed at the next meeting of EU foreign ministers 

on Jan. 28 in Brussels. 

In an interview with Le Soir newspaper in Belgium, 

Del Ponte expressed concern that Europe 

appeared to be backing away from its past tough 

stance on Serbia. 

“Serbia only cooperates when it’s under pressure 

and that must continue,” she said. “I am 

stunned by the attitude of France, Germany and 

Italy who want to soften their position.” 

“As these decisions are taken by unanimity, I’m 

counting on Belgium and The Netherlands,” she 

said. 

In conclusions from their summit, the EU’s 

leaders expressed confidence that Serbia’s “progress 

on the road towards the EU, including candidate 

status, can be accelerated.” (AFP) 

Ukraine parliament names 

pro-Western foreign minister 

Ukraine’s parliament named a strongly pro- 

Western foreign minister early this week after 

picking Orange Revolution leader Yulia Tymoshenko 

as prime minister. 

The parliament voted 227-0 for Volodymyr 

Ogryzko, who has been serving as deputy foreign 

minister and favours the ex-Soviet republic joining 

NATO and the EU. 

Opposition deputies, who oppose the NATO 

bid and back closer ties with Russia, boycotted the 

vote. Tymoshenko, who helped lead the pro-democracy 

Orange Revolution in 2004, earlier won 

the post of prime minister. The pro-Russian opposition 

also boycotted that vote. (AFP) 

P O L A N D 


German town becoming Polish suburb 

GFDL 1.2:J23-007 

Little by little, Loecknitz is being transformed into a cross-border suburb of Szczecin, as Poles go hunting for real estate bargains. 


Poland is bracing to join the Schengen 

passport-free zone this week, but dozens 

of its citizens have already helped melt the 

frontier by snapping up property in a small 

German border town. 

Loecknitz, a 3,000-strong community in 

northeast Germany, lies in the hinterland of 

Szcezcin, a Polish port city of some 420,000 

people. 

Little by little, Loecknitz is being transformed 

into a cross-border suburb of Szczecin, 

as Poles go hunting for real estate 

the krakow post 

bargains. They now make up 10 percent of 

the population. 

“After joining the EU in 2004, Poles 

started looking for apartments and houses 

on the German side,” said estate agent Jan 

Rybski, who is himself Polish. 

“Loecknitz is turning back into what it 

was before the war,” he told AFP. 

Until 1945, Loecknitz was a well-heeled 

district of the then German city of Stettin. 

But the Polish-German border was shifted 

westwards after Germany lost World War II. 

Loecknitz found itself in Communist-ruled 

East Germany. Poland also became part of 

Assessments of teenage Polish students in 2006 showed that they 

performed best in reading tasks, while they had difficulty applying their 

mathematical and scientific knowledge to practical problems outside of 

school. The Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) recently 

published the results of tests taken by more than 400,000 15-year-olds 

from 58 countries around the world. The research has been carried out by 

PISA since 2000. 

It gathers information useful for projects to improve the quality of educational 

systems. 

The tests, conducted every three years, are aimed at assessing the practical 

skills of secondary school students in three main areas: reading comprehension, 

mathematical skills and scientific literacy. 

“In reading, Polish teenagers are above average, which is a significant 

improvement within the last couple of years,” Michal Fedorowicz, the 

manager of the PISA 2006 research team in Poland, told the daily newspaper 

Gazeta Wyborcza. Polish students ranked 8th overall among the 

58 countries. 

In the remaining two categories, however, the Polish did not do as well. 

Independent thinking by means of theoretical knowledge both in science 

and mathematics are their weakest points, as reflected by the 23rd and 

25th-place rankings, respectively. 

“Our students have considerable knowledge, but they fail to use it in 

their own reasoning or experiment planning,” Ewa Bartnik of the PISA 

2006 team told the newspaper Rzeczpospolita. 

She said the Polish educational system might be to blame. 

Practical skills in science are hardly ever required at schools, and most 

students don’t even have the opportunity to carry out experiments during 

lessons. A similar problem concerns mathematics. 

“Polish teenagers perform excellently as long as the task is imitative,” 

Fedorowicz said. The conclusion is that Polish schools fail to teach problem 

solving, which might cause problems when the students have to adjust 

to the job market in the future. 

the Soviet-dominated bloc, which collapsed 

from 1989. 

After East and West Germany were reunited 

in 1990 – bringing the ex-Communist 

state into the EU – the town felt the chill 

wind of economic crisis. Its young people 

left in droves to look for work in the west, 

investors shied away, and today around a 

quarter of the population is jobless. Across 

the border in Poland, meanwhile, the onceshambolic 

economy gathered steam in the 

1990s, and has powered ahead since the 

country joined the EU. 

When Poland and seven other ex-Communist 

EU newcomers join the borderless 

Schengen zone from Dec. 21, it will boost 

Loecknitz’s existing draws for Poles. 

The town is only a 20-minute drive from 

central Szczecin, and has schools, hospitals, 

a gym and other leisure facilities, as well as 

being set in the largely unspoilt Pomerania 

region. Polish property hunters also get far 

more for their money. Real estate prices have 

spiralled in Poland in the past three years, 

but have barely changed in Loecknitz. 

Marek Fiuk, 30, bought a magnificent 

red-brick farmhouse near Loecknitz with 

his brother several weeks ago. The price tag: 

under 50,000 euro ($73,000). 

“For that, I’d have been able to buy a 

studio apartment in Szczecin, around 32-35 

square meters. In other words, nothing,” he 

said, smiling. 

“Here I’ve got a whole house. I always 

dreamed of that.” 

Fiuk is also planning to set up the headquarters 

of his multimedia firm in his newfound 

home. 

“I travel a lot to Germany for work, and 

now I’m going to live there. And from Dec. 

21, there won’t be any border checks. You 

won’t have to show your ID card, which is 

sometimes pretty tiresome,” he said. 

Maria Theresia Odentall, head of Loecknitz’s 

municipal housing office, said that all 

the homes bought by the newcomers had 

been on the market for years. 

“The Poles do these places up,” she said. 

Less well-off Poles also opt to rent in Loecknitz. 

“Three years ago, 15 percent of municipal 

apartments in Loecknitz were empty. Now 

it’s around one percent,” Odentall said. In 

public, the Polish influx does not appear to 

have caused bad feeling. 

“At the beginning, we had to get used to 

it. Now it doesn’t bother us at all,” said 83- 

year-old resident Anne Marie Hedwig. 

Nonetheless, Germany’s far-right NPD 

party, which is hostile to Polish migrants, 

won almost 21 percent of the vote in Loecknitz 

in regional elections last year. 

Secondary school students can read, not count 

Officers arrest 29 in child porn swoop 


Polish police detained 29 Poles 

on suspicion of possessing and 

copying child pornography via the 

internet, in an operation sparked 

by a tip-off from the EU body Europol, 

a spokesman told AFP late 

last week. 

“We’ve detained 29 individuals 

following a search of 34 apartments, 

private homes and businesses 

across the country and the 

seizure of 34 computers, 24 hard 

drives and 5,000 CDs, videos cassettes 

with paedophile content,” 

police spokesman Robert Horosz 

told AFP. 

“We took action after receiving 

a tip from Europol at The Hague,” 

Horosz said. Europol is an EU 

law enforcement organzation that 

Assessments of teenage Polish students in 2006 showed that they performed best in reading tasks, while 

they had difficulty applying their mathematical and scientific knowledge. 

handles criminal intelligence and 

helps to coordinate police work 

across the EU. 

Several of the suspects confessed 

to acquiring child pornography 

over the internet during police 

questioning, he said. 

In March of this year Polish 

police detained 33 suspects in a 

crackdown against an internet paedophile 

ring. 

Police have detained 29 Poles on suspicion of child pornography. 

GDFL 1.2:Nevit Dilmen


P O L A N D The Krakow Post 5 

Cave-in kills two 

in copper mine 


Two miners perished and five were injured 

in a cave-in in a Polish copper mine 

in Rudna, southwest Poland, mine officials 

in Katowice said late last week. 

The cave-in occurred 1,050 meters (3,445 

feet) underground following a seismic jolt. 

A 33-year-old miner was killed instantly 

while rescuers found the body of the second 

victim, mine official Edyta Tomaszewska 

told the Polish Press Agency (PAP). 

Five miners were hospitalised with light 

injuries while 22 others were able to escape 

the danger zone unscathed, Tomaszewska 

said. 

One miner was killed and a further three 

injured in a similar cave-in in February in 

the same copper mine owned by Poland’s 

KGHM mining conglomerate. 

Poland’s worst mine disaster in 30 years 

occurred in November 2006 in the Halemba 

coal mine in the southern Silesian coal basin. 

Twenty-three miners were killed in a 

methane explosion. 

New bird flu outbreak at farm 


Poland has been hit by a fresh outbreak 

of bird flu, authorities told the Polish Press 

Agency (PAP) early this week, with the 

deadly H5N1 virus confirmed at a small 

northern poultry farm. 

Infected birds were discovered at a small 

farm near Milakowo in the northern region 

of Ostrada, PAP quoted veterinary service 

spokesman Adam Wojtaszek was quoted as 

saying. 

Infected poultry had also been discovered 

last week in two other small farms in the 

same region. 

Five other outbreaks of the strain, which 

can also be fatal to humans, have been discovered 

since the beginning of this month at 

larger chicken and turkey farms in central 

and northern Poland. 

Polish authorities have slapped security 

zones around the affected farms. 

Last week, a stork and two buzzards 

which were being cared for at a bird sanctuary 

in Poland’s northwestern lake region of 

Mazuria were also found to have died from 

H5N1. 

Poland was also hit by the virus last year, 

but it only affected wild birds, and this year’s 

outbreaks are the first among poultry. 

Since the latest outbreak began, veterinary 

authorities have as a precaution ordered 

the slaughter of around half a mln domestic 

fowl. 

Agriculture Minister Marek Sawicki has 

warned that the outbreak must be brought 

under control because it could cause major 

economic problems given that the affected 

areas have a high concentration of poultry 

farms. Sawicki has promised farmers 100 

percent compensation for their losses. 

The European Commission has since 

Dec. 3 banned exports of live poultry, meat 

and eggs from the affected areas. 

Poland’s fellow EU member and neighbor 

Lithuania has imposed a blanket ban on Polish 

poultry products, a step likewise taken by 

Belarus, Russia and Ukraine. 

Gravediggers 

are to be taught 

proper language 



Prime Minister Donald Tusk judged 

“unacceptable” late last week a warning by 

Russia’s army head of a possible retaliation 

if U.S. interceptor missiles planned for deployment 

in Poland are ever used. 

“This kind of declaration is unacceptable. 

No declaration of this kind will influence 

Polish-American negotiations” on 

U.S. plans to site 10 interceptor missiles 

in Poland, Tusk said in an interview with 

Poland’s private TVN television channel. 

The U.S. has also outlined plans for a 

radar base in the Czech Republic. Under 

Washington’s schedule, both would be up 

and running by 2012 as part of a missile 

defense shield aimed, the U.S. administration 

says, against a possible missile threat 

from rogue states such as Iran. 

In modern language, slang 

expressions are abundant. 

Slang can enhance the sense 

of belonging to a group, while at 

the same time it makes the language 

more vivid. 

Its use rarely causes problems, 

except in some particular 

cases, as has lately become evident 

to Polish gravediggers. 

The language used by Polish 

cemetery workers leaves much 

to be desired, according to research 

carried out by Monika 

Mroz, a young lawyer. 

In her master’s thesis, she 

studied the use of expressions 

concerning death and the dead 

by this professional group. 

Her findings are alarming to 

the undertakers and cemetery 

owners. 

Given the data collected by 

the young researcher, one can no 

longer be surprised at the large 

number of complaints issued by 

bereaved family members about 

gravediggers’ language. 

Loosely translated, a “pendant” 

means the corpse of a 

hanged man, a “buoy” the body 

of a drowned one. 

“Oak overcoat,” “box” and 

“pencil case” all denote a coffin. 

Colorful as it is, the gravedigger’s 

tongue can be extremely 

offensive to the friends and relations 

of the deceased. 

“When I heard my cousin being 

referred to as a ‘stiff biscuit,’ 

I just couldn’t help bursting into 

tears,” Teresa Janik, a shop assistant 

from Poznan, told the newspaper 

Dziennik Lodzki. 

She, like many other offended 

families, complained to the 

owner of the funeral parlor. The 

numerous complaints resulted 

in the undertakers’ decision to 

provide gravediggers with special 

training on the proper use of 

language while at work. The task 

has been entrusted to the care of 

a renowned linguist, professor 

Jerzy Bralczyk. 

“The problem is that although 

words such as ‘corpse’ are so 

common to the people in our 

business, they sound demeaning 

to the families who suffer 

the loss of a beloved husband 

or mother,” said Tomasz Salski, 

chairman of the Polish Cremation 

Association of Cemetery 

Administrators and Funeral Directors. 

“We therefore should do 

our best to be most considerate 

and tactful.” 

Professor Bralczykis faces a 

challenge. Polish language does 

not abound in expressions concerning 

eternal matters. Still, he 

is enthusiastic about the undertakers’ 

endeavor. 

“It is admirable that they 

want to improve,” the linguist 

said. “In the situations they have 

to face on a daily basis, even 

neutral words acquire a trace of 

cruelty. The most vital thing is to 

refer to the dead as ‘people,’ thus 

stressing their humanity.” 

The training for cemetery 

workers will be in the form of 

lectures and workshops. Professor 

Bralczykis will visit several 

cities, teaching a total of 3,000 to 

5,000 people. 

Russian missile unacceptable 

Russia has strongly objected to the plans, 

considering them a threat to its security. 

On Saturday, Russia’s army chief of 

staff Yury Baluyevsky suggested that a 

“mistaken classification of an interceptor 

missile launch” could trigger a retaliatory 

strike from Moscow, whose security systems 

might misinterpret it as being aimed 

at Russia. 

“When I heard the words of the Russian 

general on an automatic reaction, I was reminded 

of the worst period” of the Communist 

era, Tusk said. 

Baluyevsky’s remarks also triggered 

a sharp reaction from the Czech Foreign 

Ministry which described his language as 

“unimaginable in the democratic world.” 

But Tusk also said Warsaw wanted to 

talk about the missile shield with all parties 

concerned, including Russia. 

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6 The Krakow Post 

P O L A N D 


World’s oldest man dies in 

Ukraine, aged 116 

A Ukrainian shepherd believed by some to 

be the world’s oldest man has died at the age of 

116, authorities in the western Lviv province announced 

early this week. Grygory Nestor put his 

longevity down to never having married: “If I had 

had a wife, I would have been in a coffin long 

ago,” he told AFP in a recent interview. 

Nestor’s passport and birth certificate put his 

date of birth as March 15, 1891, but he is thought 

to have been awaiting confirmation from the 

Guinness Book of World Records when he passed 

away. 

The Ukrainian media has claimed him as the 

world’s oldest man. 

He remained a shepherd until nearly his 100th 

year, and could still read the newspaper without 

glasses. He offered a spartan sampling of other 

reasons for his long-life: a strict regime of no 

cigarettes, light drinking and healthy food – but 

also a routine of prayer and repentance. 

Nestor died in the town of Stary Yarychiv. 

“In the next world, all will be well,” he once 

said. “And if that’s not the case, a lot of people 

will run away.” (AFP) 

Poland prepares withdrawal 

from Iraq for October 2008 

Poland’s new liberal government late last 

week asked conservative President Lech Kaczynski 

to extend the country’s mission in Iraq until 

the end of October 2008, at which point it wants 

a troop withdrawal. 

“The government requests the extension of the 

mission of the Polish military contingent in Iraq 

to Oct. 31, 2008,” a government statement said. 

“Polish troops and other personnel will carry 

out tasks aimed at ending the mission,” it said. 

Bringing Poland’s 900 troops home from Iraq 

was a key manifesto pledge of Prime Minister 

Donald Tusk’s liberal Civic Platform party, which 

trounced the ruling Law and Justice party in parliamentary 

elections in October. 

The previous conservative government led by 

Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the president’s identical twin 

brother, was intent on maintaining the four-yearold 

Polish presence in Iraq despite widespread 

public opposition. 

Under Polish law, the president is the country’s 

commander-in-chief and is responsible for 

approving foreign operations. The current contingent’s 

deployment to Iraq is due to finish at the 

end of this month. (AFP) 

Ukraine parliament approves 

Tymoshenko as premier 

Ukraine’s parliament early this week narrowly 

approved Orange Revolution leader Yulia 

Tymoshenko as prime minister, in the ex-Soviet 

republic’s latest bid to escape months of political 

turmoil. Deputies in the single-chamber Rada 

voted 226-0 in favor of Tymoshenko, proposed by 

pro-Western President Viktor Yushchenko – the 

absolute minimum for a vote to pass in the 450- 

seat Rada. The opposition boycotted the vote. Tymoshenko 

supporters cheered following her victory, 

which came a week after a first parliament 

vote failed to pass by just a single deputy. 

On this occasion deputies voted one by one in 

a show of hands to avoid a repeat of the previous 

week when Tymoshenko’s coalition claimed that 

tampering with the electronic system had been 

responsible for her defeat. Dramatically underlining 

divisions in this country of 46 mln people, 

pro-Moscow opposition forces, who control just 

under half of parliament, did not take part in the 

vote. Tymoshenko rose to fame when she and 

Yushchenko led the 2004 Orange Revolution protests 

that forced a re-run of a rigged presidential 

election victory by Moscow-backed rival Viktor 

Yanukovych, who now heads the opposition. 

Yushchenko won the re-run and appointed 

Tymoshenko premier, but their alliance fell apart 

shortly after. Ahead of the vote, the fiery Tymoshenko 

accused the opposition of corruption and 

said “they are petrified that... I will put order into 

the state.” (AFP) 

Martin 

Pollack 

wins 

Angelus 

Central 

European 

Literature 

Award 

for 2007 

Urszula Ciolkiewicz 


Martin Pollack is the winner of the Angelus 

Central European Literature Award for 

2007. The winning book is titled “Smierc 

w Bunkrze – Opowiesc o Moim Ojcu” 

(“Death in the Bunker – the Story About 

My Father”). 

Angelus is the most important award in 

the field of creative prose translated into 

the Polish language. 

The award is presented on an annual basis 

to writers from Central Europe whose 

works undertake themes most relevant to 

the present day, encourage reflection and 

deepen the world’s knowledge of other 

cultures. 

It is directly connected with Wroclaw as 

a city of intercultural dialogue, as it is the 

place where people of various nations and 

cultures have always been coexisting. 

The members of the Angelus jury are: 

Natalia Gorbaniewska (Russian poet, journalist 

and translator of Polish literature), 

Stanislaw Beres ( a literary historian, poet, 

essayist and translator), Piotr Kepinski 

(poet and literary critic), Julian Kornhauser 

(poet, writer of prose and literary critic), 

Ryszard Krynicki (poet, translator and publisher), 

Tomasz Lubienski (playwright and 

writer), Krzysztof Maslon (publicist, literary 

critic) and Andrzej Zawada (literary 

historian, writer for radio and editor). 

This year’s laureate is an Austrian essayist, 

publicist and translator. Martin Pollack, 

born in 1944, who translated into the German 

language all the books of Ryszard Kapuscinski, 

the famous Polish reporter, journalist, 

publicist, poet and photographer. 

Pollack studied Slavic literature and 

Eastern European history in Vienna and 

Warsaw. 

The honored book was written in 2004. 

Pollack tells the story of his father, Dr. Gerhard 

Bast, whose body was found in 1947 

at the entrance to a bunker on the Austrian- 

Italian border. 

The investigation brings into light a terrifying 

truth: Pollack’s father was a war 

www.isaf.wp.mil 

Military contingent in 

Partnership for Peace 

international program 

Joanna Zabierek 


One of Poland’s top priorities after independence 

in 1989 was NATO membership. 

But being a member of the North Atlantic 

Treaty Organization is a two-edged sword. 

On the one hand, it gives Poland military 

security that it has never had before. NATO 

rules say that if one member is attacked, all 

members will go that country’s defense. 

But on the other hand, membership means 

that Polish troops must participate in NATO 

missions abroad. The alliance’s Partnership 

for Peace program sends troops overseas 

to deal with threats such as terrorism, proliferation 

of weapons of mass destruction 

and energy security. Polish troops have 

been deployed in Afghanistan, Kosovo, Iraq 

and in the Mediterranean. Afghanistan continues 

to be the country’s biggest mission. 

About 1,200 soldiers are there. The mission 

is complicated, requiring a mix of fighting 

and nation-building skills. NATO troops 

in Afghanistan must not only try to ensure 

security and stability but also help with reconstruction 

of the country. The Nangar 

Khel tragedy underscores how difficult it 

has been for NATO forces to handle all facets 

of their difficult mission in Afghanistan. 

Seven Polish soldiers attacked the village of 

Nangar Khel in August, killing six unarmed 

civilians. They face charges that could put 

them in prison for 12 years to life. 

Although Polish troops had been in Iraq, 

their experiences were not automatically 

transferable to Afghanistan because different 

Muslim countries have different rules of 

conduct. The Nangar Kher case showed that 

many soldiers don’t recognize that a knowledge 

of and appreciation for local culture 

and religion can be keys to the success of 

their mission, analysts say. They maintain 

that if the Polish soldiers at Nangar Kher 

had had good working relationships with the 

locals, the tragedy might not have occurred. 

The Defense Ministry now recognizes that 

troops not only need battlefield and militaryintelligence 

preparation for an overseas mission 

but also specialized knowledge about 

the country where they are being deployed 

and psychological preparation. 

NATO’s post-Cold War overseas missions 

are so-called “three-bloc” operations. 

Soldiers in Iraq or Afghanistan may have 

to perform combat tasks. They also may 

have to act as policemen. Plus, they become 

involved in humanitarian activities. 

They need to be proficient in all three 

tasks – and that requires special training. 

Lack of such training probably played a key 

role in what happened in Nangar Khel, analysts 

say. Although NATO has not offered 

precise information on its plans for staying 

in Afghanistan, indications are that the mission 

may last until at least 2020. The exact 

time frame is up in the air because it involves 

not only how much military success 

NATO is having but also winning the hearts 

and minds of the population. 

Peacekeepers are dependent to a large 

extent on the goodwill of locals for success 

in both their military and humanitarian missions. 

That goodwill also helps ensure their 

safety. A Nangar Khel-type breakdown can 

destroy that goodwill. 

The goodwill lesson applies not only to 

Iraq and Afghanistan, but other places as 

well. In January, Polish soldiers will be deployed 

to Chad. Becoming peacekeepers in 

that country’s civil war may be the most difficult 

overseas mission Poles have faced. 

About 150 Poles will be going to Darfur 

as part of a multinational force whose task is 

to try to stop four years of violence there. 

The start of the Chad mission will come 

a few months before Poland pulls its 897 

troops from Iraq, fulfilling a promise that 

Prime Minister Donald Tusk made in his 

election campaign this fall. 


Poles hope 

for a better 

future 


LUK Agency 

Apparently the approaching end of 

2007 brings out hope for the future 

among Polish people. 

According to a poll by the Public 

Opinion Research Center (Centrum 

Badania Opinii Spolecznej – CBOS), 

Poles are extremely optimistic and 

positive about ongoing changes in the 

country and their own financial situation. 

They have not been this enthusiastic 

since 1998. 

For the first time since the end of 

the 1990s, the number of people who 

consider the country’s situation to be 

positive has exceeded 50 percent. Only 

a fourth of those questioned expressed 

an opinion to the contrary. 

The judgment appeared to depend 

much on the age, education and residence 

of the respondents, with the 

younger, better-educated and betterpaid 

inhabitants of bigger cities generally 

much more satisfied with the 

direction the country is heading after 

the October election. Among those 

with the lowest income, a majority 

considered the country’s situation unsatisfactory. 

People’s opinions regarding their 

own financial status have also improved, 

with 36 percent of those questioned 

considering it good, 42 percent 

average and 22 percent bad. 

The most significant changes in the 

poll results, in comparison to the last 

three months, regard the political situation 

in Poland. Twenty-four percent 

of respondents believed it to be good, 

which is 8 points higher than a month 

ago. 

Even though more people were still 

displeased with the politics (27 percent), 

their number has significantly 

decreased during the last three months. 

The remaining 41 percent believe the 

political situation in the country to be 

average. 

As for the economic situation, a 

third of those questioned are satisfied 

and a fifth consider it unsatisfactory. 

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B U S I N E S S The Krakow Post 7 

Bestsellers for 2007 

Magdalena Lyko 


“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” 

by J.K. Rowling heads Empik’s bestsellers 

of 2007 English book list. 

The Harry Potter series has continued 

to dominate the market since its introduction, 

attracting a readership beyond its 

child-teenage audience, with many adult 

readers seduced by Rowling’s magical 

writing style. From the magical to the mystical, 

Dan Brown’s “The Da Vinci Code” 

continues to fair well with its enlivening 

of thoughts and questions surrounding the 

Christian world. A popular subject in an 

overtly Catholic country like Poland. Paulo 

Coelho’s “The Witch of Portobello” also 

fits into this mould, if somewhat more subliminally 

in his ongoing engagement over 

spirituality and the Catholic Church. 

Patric Suskind’s mystical realism work 

“Perfume,” recently presented in film, 

holds a continuing presence over 20 years 

after publication in 1985. Along with the 

“Devil wears Prada” by Lauren Weisberger 

and “Memoirs of a Geisha” by Arthur 

Golden, each of these publications have 

been buoyed by their respective film releases 

post-publication. 

From the non-fiction genre Britain’s 

Jeremy Clarkson makes the bestseller list 

with “The World According to Clarkson” 

and “I Know You Got Soul,” rounding off a 

varied selection of readings for the coming 

holidays. 

Ancora means “more” 

Fine cuisine 

for business & 

non-business 

Ancora was opened in July by Adam Chrzastowski, restaurant head chef and coowner 

with his associate, Robert Radzinski, a wine connoisseur. 


Ancora’s name translated from Italian 

means “more.” With its auteur cuisine by 

Adam Chrzastowski, Ancora restaurant is a 

culinary challenge for those who want to explore 

new tastes. 

Ancora was opened in July by Chrzastowski, 

restaurant head chef and co-owner with his associate, 

Robert Radzinski, a wine connoisseur, 

and is the fruit of many years of culinary exploration. 

Auteur cuisine are courses invented 

and prepared by the chef, based on individual 

compositions inspired by particular dishes or 

national cuisines. The rest is based on the chef’s 

culinary imagination. 

“To a major extent, matching tastes is like 

matching colors – you instinctively remember 

the taste and then invent new combinations,” 

said Chrzastowski. The whole composition of 

a meal is complemented by the rich content of 

the restaurant’s wine menu (ca. 400). 

To deter categorization, courses in Ancora’s 

CALL TO 

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Marketing Manager, 

+48 (0) 798-683-160 

Hotel Eden 

ul. Ciemna 15 

31-053 Krakow 

Tel. 012 430 65 65 

eden@hoteleden.pl 

www.hoteleden.pl 

menu avoid standard titles, they are more 

descriptive. What is more, tastes and dishes 

change for occasions, with the latest innovation 

being a Christmas menu. An open kitchen 

engages diners with the process of preparing 

dishes and provides the opportunity for a culinary 

chat with Chrzastowski. 

Ancora states its meticulous selection of 

quality ingredients puts it at an advantage over 

others. Chrzastowski personally oversees the 

process of course preparation. “I only purchase 

the highest quality seasonal products. 

Otherwise I simply don’t take it,” said Chrzastowski. 

The restaurant strives to debunk the belief 

that Polish cuisine is only pierogi and pork 

meat by promoting a new Polish cuisine experience 

through its fine dishes, hospitable 

atmosphere and the celebration of the meal as 

an event in itself. 

Ancora restaurant is located at ul. Dominikanska 

3, open from 12:00 to 23:00. 

www.ancora-restaurant.com 

German 

railway 

could invest 

in India, 

Poland and 

Romania 

Logo of Deutsche Bahn. 


The German railway Deutsche Bahn is 

mulling an expansion into Poland and Romania, 

and has also created a joint-venture 

with Indian steel company Jindal, a press 

report said early this week. 

Norbert Bensel, head of Deutsche Bahn’s 

logistics unit, told Financial Times Deutschland 

the company was closely following 

privatization in Romania where he expected 

state-owned logistic companies and cargo 

units of state-owned railways to be sold for 

below 100 mln euro ($144 mln). Deutsche 

Bahn is prepared to invest more than 100 

mln euro in Poland, the Financial Times 

Deutschland reported, possibly 

partnering with Russia’s 

state-owned railways. 

HOTEL EDEN 

announces our annual festive 

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NEW YEAR’S PARTIES. 

We also provide EXCEPTIONAL 

CATERING SERVICES for your 

own holiday parties or functions 

throughout the year. 

“We’re expecting an operating license 

for our subsidiary there by early 2008,” 

Bensel said. Deutsche Bahn wants to play 

an active role in the consolidation of Europe’s 

rail cargo industry as passenger traffic 

shows slower growth rates and is still 

heavily regulated. 

On the joint venture with Jindal, Bensel 

said Deutsche Bahn will hold the majority 

in the project, which in a first phase will 

handle Jindal’s cargo operations. He did not 

disclose the investment but said it is low as 

the German rail operator first seeks to gain 

experience in India. He said Deutsche Bahn 

in a second step would handle logistics for 

German automotive suppliers in India. 

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NOVEMBER 

2007 

EU’s top 

court 

rules 

against 

Swedish 

union 


Europe’s top court early this week 

ruled against a Swedish trade union 

that blockaded a work site used by a 

Latvian company to force the firm to 

pay its staff higher local rates. 

The European Court of Justice 

(ECJ) recognized the right of workers 

to take collective action but it 

said that the picketing in this widelywatched 

case had restricted the right 

of the Latvian company to provide 

services. 

“Such action in the form of a 

blockade of sites constitutes a restriction 

on the freedom to provide services, 

which, in this case, is not justified 

with regard to the public interest of 

protecting workers,” the court said. 

The case concerned Latvian company 

Laval un Partneri, which posted 

workers to Swedish building sites, 

mainly on extensions at a school in 

the town of Vaxholm in May 2004. 

The works were handled by a susidiary, 

L and P Baltic Bygg. 

Sweden’s Byggnads construction 

union accused Laval of paying 

rates far lower than permissable and 

blockaded three of its building sites 

to pressure the subsidiary into signing 

a collective wage agreement. 

The action forced L and P Baltic 

Bygg into bankruptcy. 

The rift has been followed closely 

in Sweden, where it was seen as a direct 

consequence of EU enlargement 

amid fears of an influx of cheap labor 

from Eastern European countries, 

such as Latvia, which joined the bloc 

in May 2004. 

The court, based in Luxembourg, 

noted “the right to take collective action 

for the protection of workers of 

the host state against possible social 

dumping may constitute an over-riding 

reason of public interest.” 

But it said that, in this case, that 

right was liable to make it more difficult 

for the Latvian firm “to carry 

out construction work in Sweden and 

therefore constitutes a restriction on 

the freedom to provide services.”


B U S I N E S S 


Polish rail to 

get a major 

facelift 

within 

next four 

years 


The Polish Rail InterCity (PKP) will 

be restructured into a joint stock company 

with plans for the future to release its 

shares on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. 

The public transport carrier is promising 

that within four years passengers will be 

traveling in comfort and with greater efficiency. 

PKP InterCity wants to compete 

with the airlines in transporting commuters 

across the country. 

According to Gazeta Prawna, Czeslaw 

Warsewicz the CEO of PKP Inter- 

City assured ticket prices for rail travel 

will not increase with the onset of the new 

year. Despite inflation and an increase in 

petrol prices as well as employee wages, 

PKP stands firm not to increase its fares 

unless there is grave reason to do so. 

Currently the transport company is negotiating 

with PKP Cargo from which PKP 

InterCity leases its electric locomotives. 

PKP Cargo is demanding higher leasing 

fees. Warsewicz assures PKP InterCity 

has plans to become more self-reliant in 

order to minimize costs. It has purchased 

10 of its own electric locomotive engines, 

which will be in operation within two 

years time. The company is also taking 

into consideration leasing locomotives 

from other suppliers outside of Poland. 

Gazeta Prawna reports PKP InterCity 

is also preparing to make a public debut 

on the Warsaw Stock Exchane (WSE). 

Plans to float shares on other international 

exchanges are being taken into 

consideration for the following years. 

According to Warsewicz, entering the 

stock exchange is a priority for PKP InterCIty 

as it must make up for the time 

lost and modernize the rail company. The 

investment plan foresees 2.7 bln zloty 

spent within four years time. About 1.5 

bln zloty is to be spent on 20 new speed 

trains, with the tender for the purchase of 

them to be announced in the next three 

months. Some 300 train carriages are to 

be modernized with 250 already being 

renovated. The company has also issued 

a public tender for the purchase of 30 

new carriages. PKP InterCity will also 

either renovate completely or purchase 

50 new restaurant carts, spending around 

180 mln zloty. 

The bid to operate the restaurant has 

been won by Wars. The company has 

serviced trains in the previous years 

and was already once rejected by PKP 

InterCity, with Wars carriages being removed 

early this year. Warsewicz claims 

the company made the best offer in the 

tender and had to prove it is capable of 

offering a better service than it has in 

the past. The company has undergone 

restructuralization. 

To accommodate business travel, 

PKP Intercity is also looking to develop 

its “hot spot” wireless connections at the 

major train stations within Poland. Plans 

are also being considered for making 

internet connection available within the 

trains themselves. All new carriages are 

equipped with electrical sockets for laptops 

and mobiles. 

cc:sa:Stefan Bauer 

Czech to 

send home 

NKorean 

workers by 

January 


All North Koreans living and working in the Czech Republic 

under a controversial cheap labor program will have 

been sent home by the end of January 2008, the Czech Interior 

Ministry told AFP early this week. 

“By the end of January 2008, no citizen of the Democratic 

Peoples Republic of Korea with long-term residency 

for work purposes will be allowed to stay,” the ministry said 

in reply to written questions. 

The development will end the practice of allowing them 

to work in factories as a source of cheap labor, after some 

human rights groups said they were being used as breadwinners 

for the authoritarian regime in their home country. 

At the end of November, 134 North Koreans with visas 

were still working in the Czech Republic, the ministry added. 

Back in January, when Prague announced it would end 

the arrangement, there were 400. 

At the time it made the announcement, the Interior Ministry 

said the decision stemmed from a UN resolution condemning 

and imposing sanctions on Pyongyang following 

nuclear weapon tests. 

But the Foreign Ministry described it as “an administrative 

and not a political decision.” 

The practice of allowing local companies to use cheap 

North Korean labor with a large part of their meagre earnings 

being funneled to Kim Jong-Il’s regime was criticized 

by the U.S. State Department. Groups such as the U.S.- 

based Freedom House also attacked the arrangement. 

A Polish worker at a car accessories plant in the small 

town of Nachod, about 200 kilometers (130 miles) north of 

Prague, told AFP earlier this year that the 82 North Korean 

seamstresses working there received only half their wages 

– the rest was sent to the regime. 

People In Need, a Czech charity and human rights group, 

condemned the practice back in January. “Times have 

changed, yet these people are no different from modern day 

slaves,” it said. 

The number of North Koreans working abroad to payroll 

the Pyongyang regime climbed to around 70,000 worldwide, 

according to a report from Radio Free Asia earlier this year. 

Their earnings are vital to the government because of a 

foreign currency shortfall following UN sanctions, it said. 

ANNOUNCEMENT 

International Women’s 

Association of Krakow 

www.iwak.pl 

iwak_krakow@yahoo.com 

Monitoring employees at work 

Justyna Krzywicka 


Monitoring employees at their 

place of work by the use of video 

cameras or through conducting computer 

security checks, which includes 

email inboxes, is becoming commonplace. 

According to Gazeta Prawna 

and the research conducted by Hitachi 

Data Systems, some 67 percent 

of Polish employers monitor their 

workers’ emails. In France 71 percent 

of employers do the same, as do 62 

percent in the United Kingdom. 

Monitoring the levels of intoxication 

of their employees is no longer 

a random breath check, rather a daily 

occurrence for many workers. Within 

the building sector, many construction 

companies conduct breath checks 

each morning before builders can 

commence work. The Milka Council 

(in the Warmin-Mazurian region), 

carries out alcohol breath tests each 

morning, Gazeta Prawna reports. 

The very next day after the breathalyzer 

was put into practice, two workers 

were sent home after displaying a 

blood alcohol level of 2.7 and 3.4 mg 

respectively. 

According to Gazeta Prawna there 

is an increased market demand to 

implement such monitoring methods. 

This is reaffirmed by companies who 

specialize in offering monitoring services 

and equipment. Companies offering 

monitoring services such as A 

Plus C have up to 100 customers per 

month inquiring about their services. 

A major concern for implementing 

such monitoring services and devices 

is not so much the protection 

of trade secrets or confidential information 

within the workplace, but to 

increase the productivity levels of the 

employees. Such monitoring, according 

to Gazeta Prawna, may increase 

efficiency at work by 40 percent. 

No study was carried out to indicate 

whether stringent control over workers’ 

activities decreases morale within 

the workplace. Trade unions are being 

increasingly approached to negotiate 

such monitoring measures. According 

to Transport Workers Trade 

Union (ZZPRC), negotiations always 

concern email monitoring and the installation 

of cameras in office spaces 

and work related areas. 

Should an employer decide to 

carry out monitoring within the workplace, 

he/she must first notify the employees 

and describe the monitoring 

process involved. If this is not carried 

out, an employer may be sued by his/ 

her workers for a breach of privacy 

which is protected by Art. 24 of the 

Civil Code. 

Inflation hits hard 

at year’s end 


The annual inflation indicator shows 

an increase to 3.6 percent in November. 

Inflation stood at three percent in October. 

Analysts are predicting December 

will see a rise in prices as high as 3.7 to 

4.1 percent. 

According to the Inflation Report 

published in October 2007 by the National 

Bank of Poland and the Monetary 

Policy Council, the annual index 

of consumer goods and services prices 

has been steadily growing since 2006. 

In 2007 inflation was subject to considerable 

fluctuations – in August coming 

down to 1.5 percent, and rebounding to 

2.2 percent in September. 

The National Bureau of Statistics 

(GUS) indicated the prices were 3.6 

percent higher than the prices for the 

same time last year. 

Within the one month, foodstuff 

prices rose overall by 1.6 percent, compared 

to the previous month. 

Vegetables prices rose by 10 percent, 

rice by 3.4 percent and butter by 

3.3 percent. 

The overall rise in petrol prices also 

indicated the increase in public transport 

costs by 1.3 percent since October. 

According to economists, the current 

inflation continues to be affected by 

two opposing trends. 

A rise in demands on the domestic 

market, a tighter labor market and an 

increase in food prices all contribute to 

the overall price growth. The other factor 

is globalization and how it affects 

Poland’s economy, increasing competition 

within the local market and in the 

telecommunication sector. Along with 

food price and petrol price increases, 

housing costs have also risen within 

the last month, affecting the inflation 

index. 

The November statistics show that 

inflation has risen for the first time 

since 2005 above the average indicator 

that is accepted by the Monetary Policy 

Council. The acceptable average in the 

inflation cap goal is 2.5 percent. The 

Council accepts sways in the indicator 

up to 3.5 percent. 

Inflation is predicted to be stablize 

from April and drop down to 3.4 percent 

by the end of the year.

DECEMBER 20-JANUARY 9, 2008 B U S I N E S S 

The Krakow Post 9 

Two local banks merge 

GDFL 1.2.:Piotr Brichacek 

Russia, Ukraine 

selling cheaper 

coal in Poland 

Grazyna Zawada 


Two major Polish banks, Pekao S.A. and 

BPH S.A., have merged to form the biggest 

bank in Poland and in this part of Europe. 

The new bank, also called Pekao S.A. 

and formally created on Dec. 1, has assets 

of about 120 bln zloty. 

The value of the whole transaction is put 

at 625.5 mln euro. 

The entire merger process is to be completed 

in the first quarter of 2008. Prior to 

the merger, BPH S.A. was divided into two 

parts. The larger portion – consisting of 1.5 

mln bank accounts, 285 banking branches, 

more than 300 partner agencies and more 

than 600 cash machines – was acquired by 

Pekao S.A. 

The remaining part of BPH S.A – namely 

650,000 customers, 200 branches, a 

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brand, and investment funds outside Pekao 

S.A. – exists now as a minor bank and is 

scheduled to merge with American GE 

Money group next year. The new, larger 

Pekao S.A is now governed from Vienna, 

as it belongs to HVB and UniCredit group, 

an Austrian-Italian banking group, but it 

seems that BPH S.A. is the bank with better 

results in acquiring clients, sales dynamics 

and overall financial results. 

According to data from the last three 

weeks, only 3,000 customers decided to 

close their accounts in BPH S.A. because 

they were unhappy with the merger. Employees 

of BPH were neither to encourage 

nor to discourage clients from changing 

banks, and all of the employees were 

trained to introduce the Pekao proposal to 

customers even before the merger. 

Jan Bielecki, the president of Pekao 

S.A., said that under one common emblem, 

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Pekao S.A. now operates a bank that has 

more than 5 mln retail clients, more than 

300,000 business clients and more than 

15,500 corporate clients. 

The process of transferring all these customers 

into a new information technology 

system will begin in January. 

Vice President of Pekao S.A, Luigi 

Lovaglio, pointed out that UniCredit is 

one of the three biggest banking groups in 

Europe. The new Pekao S.A. has the biggest 

market capitalization in the region, 

17.8 mln euro; the biggest fund value, 

120.5 bln zloty, and a total of 68 bln zloty 

in loans. Lovaglio added that the new 

Pekao S.A. is preparing marketing plans 

for clients, tailoring them to particular regions. 

It is planned that new mortgage and retail 

loan offers will be presented in the first 

quarter of the new year. 

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Although coal mining is one of 

Poland’s major industries, Russia and 

Ukraine have begun selling coal in this 

country. 

Coal from those countries is cheaper, 

and it also has lower sulfur content, so it 

burns cleaner. The price break that Polish 

coal consumers are getting now is 

likely to dry up, however, some Polish 

coal operators predict. 

The Russians and Ukrainians plan 

to make an all-out marketing assault 

on Poland’s coal-burning power plants 

soon. 

Russian and Ukrainian coal is extracted 

at a lower depth than in Poland, 

making it less expensive. 

The daily newspaper Rzeczpospolita 

said many Polish clients are signing up 

for coal from the east because of the 

lower price. 

“For me, price is the most important 

thing, so I would prefer Russian coal,” 

said Janina Garbowska, who uses coal 

to heat her house in Podkarpacie in 

southeast Poland. “However, in the area 

where I live, we have access only to 

Polish coal.” 

Andrzej Pawlaszek, director of the 

government-owned coal mining operation 

in Silesia, said he doesn’t believe 

Polish power plants will use Russian 

coal. With 16 mines, the Silesia operation 

is Europe’s largest. 

Although Russian coal companies’ 

extraction costs are lower than Polish 

companies, the Russians will have 

to add transportation and safety costs, 

Pawleszek said. That means that “soon 

their costs will rise,” he said. 

But the Russians are sure to try to 

grab the lucrative power-plant business. 

In September, the Siberian Coal Energy 

Company set up a subsidiary in Poland. 

It is Russia’s largest producer and one 

of the 10 biggest in the world. 

The company plans to deliver about 

one million tons of coal in Poland over 

the next year. 

So far, it has used Polish agents for 

its sales. But in the beginning of 2008, 

it plans to sell the coal directly. 

The company has affiliates or subsidiaries 

in Krasnoyarsk, Primorsky, 

Khabarovsk, Irkutsk, Chita, Kemerovo, 

Buryatia and Khakassia. 

In 2005, its stock value made the 

company worth $1.9 bln.


W A R S A W 


Photos of 

Maurycy 

Gomulicki 

Warsaw employers need workers 

At the height of the Christmas shopping season, many of them are in need of temporary workers. 

Warsaw as seen from the side of the street can be observed in the pages of Maurycy 

Gomulicki’s new photo album “W-WA.” 


Warsaw as seen from the side of the street 

can be observed in the pages of Maurycy 

Gomulicki’s new photo album “W-WA.” 

Gomulicki, born in 1969 in Warsaw, is a 

graphic artist and photographer as well as 

the author of artistic installations and short 

film forms. 

He graduated from the Academy of Fine 

Arts in Warsaw and continued his education 

in Barcelona and Milan. 

Gomulicki has presented his works at 

numerous exhibitions in Warsaw and Lodz, 

Poland; Grenoble, Switzerland; Budapest, 

Hungary; Osaka, Japan and Bratislava, 

Slovakia. 

In Mexico, he designed a network of 

pink sex shops in the frames of the project 

“MEXXXICO Erotica Shops.” The controversial 

artist is a grandson of Juliusz Wiktor 

Gomulicki, the Polish essayist and editor. 

In the album “W-WA” Gomulicki presents 

photos taken between 2000 and 2005. 

He captures the details of the Warsaw 

landscape: old neons, the configuration of 

gray flagstones, the color of an old mosaic 

or characteristic forms of the modernistic 

architecture from the times of the Polish 

People’s Republic. 

Gomulicki focuses on the gray of the concrete 

neighborhood with the green of urban 

lots and the metal of playground ladders. 

By photographing geometrical and minimalistic 

shapes, Gomulicki skillfully depicts 

the lyrical climate of the city, which 

– after being 85 percent destroyed during 

World War II – was rebuilt in an eclectic 

and rather poor architectural style. 

The artist says that, for him, the most 

important features in Warsaw are the “inbetweens” 

and “the power of details that 

count more in the formally reduced/limited 

reality.” 

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At the height of the Christmas shopping 

season, many of them are in need of temporary 

workers. Job offers and “wanted” 

notices are visible in shop windows all 

over Warsaw, as employers desperately 

search for bakers, waiters, shop assistants 

and cooks. 

But such employees are hard to find 

– for many reasons. 

“We have been short of staff since the 

summer holidays,” Barbara Olejarczyk, 

manager of Gobi delicatessen, told Gazeta 

Wyborcza Stoleczna. “People prefer to go 

and work abroad.” 

Low wages paid in the Polish capital 

are often cited for this exodus. Warsaw 

workers know their worth and are no longer 

willing to accept the pay offered, some 

say. 

“Warsaw depraves and spoils people,” 

said Piotr Malecki, co-owner of Tomiteks, 

a chain of second-hand clothes shops. “Instead 

of hiring Warsaw citizens, we have 

to provide transport for our workers from 

outside of the city.” 

The problem is by no means restricted 

to the capital. The situation is similar 

throughout the country. Redundancy no 

longer seems to be an issue, because since 

joining the EU, Poland’s jobless rate has 

declined significantly. 

According to Gazeta Prawna, the economic 

situation in Poland is favorable but 

what might be a threat to it is the shortage 

of workers and their unwillingness to accept 

just any job. 

Aleksander Kornatowski, deputy director 

of the Voivodship Employment Office, 

said the time when employers could dominate 

the job market is over. 

Employers still offer the same wages as 

two years ago, but the situation is different 

now, he told Gazeta Wyborcza Stoleczna. 

Today Poles simply refuse to work for 

wages that do not allow them to provide 

for their families. 

Thus, apparently the only thing employers 

can do to attract workers is increase 

wages. 

According to the magazine “Puls Biznesu,” 

they already do, although reluctantly, 

as they fear increasing inflation. 

But experts agree the employers’ flexibility 

and appropriate wages seem the 

only way out of the situation. 

Warsaw University friendly for disabled 


Nearly 1000 students with a disability now 

study at Warsaw University (300 kilometers 

north of Krakow), making it the most disability 

friendly university in Poland. 

The university provides learning support for 

visually impaired students through audio recordings, 

sign language translators for hearing and 

speaking impaired students and physical access 

for wheel chairs. 

“Initially my professors and fellow students 

wondered how I would cope,” said Filip Zagonczk 

a visually impaired student at Warsaw University 

according to Gazeta.pl. “I don’t get preferential 

treatment and I take the same exams as 

my friends. This is all thanks to the university’s 

support for people with disabilities.” 

The university has an office dedicated to students 

with a disability and continues to reduce 

physical barriers from faculty buildings and student 

accommodation facilities. Wheel chair access 

has now become available to the old library 

since its renovation. 

Lecture halls are numbered with braille 

doorplates to assist visually impaired students’ 

independent movement around the campus. 

There is also specialized transport available to 

students requesting assistance to move between 

lectures. 

These measures make education available to 

more Polish students based on their intellectual 

merits irrespective of their physical abilities. 

Warsaw.

DECEMBER 20-JANUARY 9, 2008 K R A K O W 

The Krakow Post 11 

International women throw 

ball, raise money for orphanage 


The International Women’s Association 

of Krakow (IWAK) held their annual 

Christmas Charity Ball at the Stary Hotel 

last Saturday. Over 80 guests attended the 

lavish, black-tie gala dinner and dance that 

brought together people from international 

business and politics, with a connection to 

Krakow. As every year, the members of the 

organization and their guests gathered to 

support the association’s charity initiatives 

by bidding in live and silent auctions and 

trying their luck in a raffle. 

The guests enjoyed an excellent dinner, 

interrupted by the arrival of unexpected but 

always welcome guest – Santa Claus – who 

kindly agreed to lead the auction. Santa 

skillfully encouraged guests to part with 

their money and bid on the various items 

IWAK members put up for auction. The list 

included a reflexology and hot stone therapy, 

brunch voucher, henna painting session, 

Indian cooking lesson, and Ashanga Yoga 

Anglo- 

Dutch 

Xmas 

Ball in 

Krakow 


Break-dancing Santas, bewigged 70s 

disco dancers, bekilted bagpipers, chocolate 

fountains and fireworks. These were 

just some of the treats served up at the Anglo-Dutch 

Christmas Ball in Krakow. 

On Dec. 8, within the wonderful setting 

of the Tomaszowice Manor House, 

British, Dutch and Polish business communities 

danced the night away in a wild 

evening of extravagance, which mixed 

dance styles and Christmas traditions from 

around the world. 

On arrival, guests were greeted by sparkling 

snow angels, English mince pies and 

mulled wine; at midnight, as fireworks 

filled the sky, Dutch oliebollen. In between, 

a gourmet meal was accompanied by a fine 

selection of wines, bourbons and speciality 

vodkas, a spectacular chocolate fountain 

and a mountain of Dutch cheeses. 

A charity raffle raised almost 5,000 zloty 

for Krakow’s Community Youth Clubs, 

which will send over 200 children on a 

variety of much-deserved trips – an excursion 

to the Tatras, to the cinema, to the theatre 

and to an adventure playground. 

The ball was organized by South Poland 

Business Link on behalf of the British 

Polish Chamber of Commerce and The 

Netherlands Business Support Office. 

training. The top item of the night was a flat 

screen television donated by Tesco. Other 

high bids were made for a commissioned 

abstract painting by Andrenus O’Hara and 

a guided tour by Konrad Oswiecimski. 

The guests then hit the dance floor after 

the auction and raffles closed and partied 

into the early hours of Sunday morning. 

This year’s IWAK’s Annual Ball raised 

19,760 zloty which is a great success. The 

association awards the proceeds to different 

recipients each year. This year IWAK 

has chosen the Jana Brzechwy Children’s 

Home to be the beneficiary of the ball. 

IWAK is a non-profit, multicultural, 

social and family oriented organization, 

gathering women from the international 

community in Krakow. The association 

provides a wide range of interest groups, 

social events and activities for expatriates 

and their families. Charity is another important 

part of the organization’s mission. 

“There is a lot of need in Krakow. It is 

a human tradition to help others. A lot of 

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women in our organization have worked 

for charity since they were teenagers and 

they want to continue it here,” explains 

Gosia Lalanne, the president of the association. 

However, Lalanne says foreigners 

dedicated to helping charities often 

face disbelief and mistrust from a skeptical 

community. 

“Many people find it suspicious that a 

foreigner wants to work hard for no money. 

This is something new in Polish society,” 

she adds. Yet, most institutions gladly accept 

financial help. 

The members of the Association are 

aware of the fact that, as expatriates, they 

enjoy a privileged lifestyle in Krakow and 

they feel it’s their responsibility to use 

their time, talents and resources to help 

others. 

“It’s important that people understand 

that immigrants actually do something 

good. We don’t come here to steal people’s 

jobs or live ‘better lives’. We are here also 

to help,” said Lalanne. 

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Waiting for 

the slopes 

Monika Stumpo 


Krakow is obsessed with skiing. After the 

first snow, trains and busses become crowded 

with skiers and snowboarders and their equipment. 

The entire city is on pins and needles 

every fall waiting for the slopes to open. 

The most popular ski-slope in Poland is 

Kasprowy Wierch, the only slope that can 

compete with Alpine skiing. Kasprowy is in 

Zakopane, a thriving tourist town, located 

105 kilometers south of Krakow in the Tatar 

Mountains. The visitor may take ul. Zakopiasnka 

from Podgorze in Krakow to Zakopane. 

The traffic backed up on “Zakopianka” 

is infamous, especially during peak season. 

The road is heavily traveled and often under 

construction since it is the only one to Zakopane 

from Krakow. Trains for Zakopane depart 

regularly several times a day. The trip, 

however, can take up to four hours. 

Once in town, the visitor needs to go to 

Kuznice, the base station, in order to take the 

remarkable 70-year-old suspended railway 

cabin to the upper ski station that sits 1,959 

meters above sea level. 

The railway cabin was built in 1937 by the 

locals of Zakopane and until this year’s modernization 

project had remained unchanged. 

This is a wonderful way to see the breathtaking 

views of the Tatar Mountains. Unfortunately, 

the line for the ride can take anywhere 

from forty minutes to several hours. 

“The line is nothing compared to what it 

was 20 years ago when Kasprowy was the 

only slope in Poland,” remembers Wojciech 

Szerszen. “The ticket office would open at 

07:00 and by 07:30 all the tickets would be 

sold. After you hiked up the mountain, there 

was another two-hour wait in line for the lift. 

You would be lucky if you got to ski down 

twice.” 

The ride now costs 38 zloty and the wait 

is still quite long. The hike is about two and 

a half hours. “If I have to wait in line for an 

hour or longer and pay 40 zloty to go up, I’d 

rather hike it,” says Pawel Hydzik, a student 

of Krakow’s Economics University. He tries 

to get out on the slopes every free weekend 

and used to ski competitively before he came 

to Krakow. When asked if it’s worth all of the 

trouble, Pawel simply answers: “Kasprowy 

is amazing.” 

Once the visitor has reached the top, one 

way or another, there are two trails, Gasienicowa 

and Goryczykowa. Gasienicowa is a 

352-meter run, while Goryczykowa is almost 

twice as long. A day pass costs 80 zloty but 

thankfully both are equipped with lifts and 

the wait isn’t two hours long anymore. 

Although Kasprowy is still the most popular 

and is regarded by many as the only real 

ski slope in Poland, it doesn’t rank as the best 

in a recent study by the Katowice School of 

Economics. Korbielow, Krynica and Bialka 

Tatrzanska are ranked as the top three ski 

resorts. The study took into account, among 

other aspects, the length of the slopes, the 

number of ski lifts, whether the slopes were 

lighted and general comfort. 

Korbielow is only 75 kilometers southwest 

of Krakow, Bialka Tatrzanska is 90 kilometers 

south of Krakow and Krynica is a little 

over 113 kilometers southeast. A day pass in 

Koribelow costs 65 zloty. In Bialka Tatrzanska 

the visitor can buy a day pass for 60 zloty 

or a day and night pass for 70 zloty. Krynica, 

which is the biggest resort, offers a day pass 

for 85 zloty, which can also be split into 

morning and afternoon passes. These slopes 

are especially appealing for snowboarders 

because each has its own snow park equipped 

with half pipes, which Kasprowy lacks. 

Zakopane-life is a Krakow based English 

language company that acts as a guide around 

Zakopane. Their web site (Zakopane-life. 

com) has a wide range of information from 

booking hotels to where to go eat or have a 

drink. It also has information about the ski 

conditions and other attractions in Zakopane. 

If the visitor wishes to spend New Year’s Eve 

in Zakopane, reservations need to be made 

months ahead. At this point in the season, 

finding a hotel is almost impossible. 

There are many other resorts in the area 

which have a lot to offer. 

A great source of all available resorts in 

Poland as well as in the Czech Republic and 

Slovakia is the annual Ski Atlas (“Atlas narciarski-Czechy, 

Polska, Slowacja.”) 

Each resort is described in detail. The atlas 

is available at all major book stores. 

What about equipment? All the larger 

resorts offer rentals both for skis and snowboards. 

If the visitor doesn’t want to rent 

equipment at the slopes, buying equipment in 

Krakow is relatively easy. 

If the visitor’s relationship with skis/snowboard 

is so strong that he/she brought them to 

Krakow, it may be worthwhile to give them a 

check-up before hitting the slopes. 

There are a lot of shops where the visito 

can buy equipment or prepare for the season. 

The people who work there are fanatics and 

know what they’re talking about. 

The gigantic “SNOWBOARD” sign on 

Plac Inwalidow, although not subtle, does 

make its point. 

There is a decent snowboard shop in the 

building which also does surface renovation. 

The guys at “3 Style Sport” will repair skis 

but not without a little teasing about one’s 

choice of winter sport. Without a doubt, these 

guys will put the visitor in the right frame of 

mind for a good road trip. 

If casual last year’s scene, then “Windsport” 

on ul. Zakopianska and “Sport Service” 

on ul. Grunwaldzka are also great places and 

a little more professional. These are of course 

not the only places that sell equipment. Many 

other small shops around town as well as the 

chains Decathlon and Intersport are more 

than happy to fix visitors up. 

The equipment sold in these ski shops can 

cost a small fortune. This is why so many rely 

on the ski swap. There is a ski swap in Rotunda 

Cultural Center every Saturday and Sunday 

from mid-November to March. The swap 

takes place in a 2,500-square-meter area and 

the visitor can buy anything and everything 

needed to enjoy the Polish ski season. 

krakowpost.com


K R A K O W 


Krakow to build Guggenheim Museum 

Barbara Bajak 


Krakow to build Guggenheim Museum? 

Guggenheim is a name known worldwide 

for its art museums. Now a resident of Krakow 

would like to build a Guggenheim in 

his city. In 1937, American philanthropist 

Solomon R. Guggenheim founded the Museum 

of Non-Objective Art (a type of abstract 

art) in New York City. 

Four years later, he commissioned renowned 

architect Frank Lloyd Wright to 

design a new exhibition hall for modern art. 

The design originally was viewed as so 

audacious that it was ridiculed by both the 

art world and the general public. 

In 1951, Guggenheim Museum in Manhattan 

was finally completed, and today it is 

one of the most famous such institutions in 

the world with its building being one of the 

most admired and recognizable. 

The bold architectural tradition continues 

to this day with other Guggenheim museums 

in the world being designed by topclass 

architects. 

The Guggenheim Museum Foundation 

boasts a body of wealthy trustees that responds 

enthusiastically to the concepts of 

its director, Thomas Krens. 

His commercial success results from a 

business-wise approach. 

Krens is creating an international network 

of museums with sizable amounts of money 

being spent on promotion. His pioneering 

ideas have transformed the Guggenheim institution 

into something closer to a prosperous 

and rapidly expanding company. 

Kerns is not without his critics. They accuse 

him of “McDonaldizing” the art culture. 

Displays of BMW motorcycles and 

Armani suits have been condemned as serving 

solely commercial purposes. The showy 

architecture of the Guggenheim museums is 

said to overshadow the exhibitions. 

Five Guggenheim museums have been 

built: in New York, Venice, Berlin, Las 

Vegas and Bilbao. In 2006 the foundation 

signed an agreement to build a museum in 

Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab 

Emirates. The idea to build a Guggenheim 

museum in Krakow is the brainchild of 

Zbigniew Kwiatkowski, a Krakow resident 

and a fervent traveler. 

“I studied the foundation strategy and 

thought Krakow would be a perfect place 

for a Guggenheim museum,” Kwiatkowski 

said. “It would add some modernity to the 

city’s historical value.” 

Kwiatkowski has prepared arguments 

and a plan of actions. First, he enlisted the 

help of attorney Tomasz Bobrowski, who 

now officially manages the project. They 

succeeded in gaining support of the city officials. 

The city’s mayor, Jacek Majchrowski, 

was at first skeptical about the proposal but 

now has a positive attitude. 

Krakow could benefit enormously from a 

museum. The economical advantages from 

such a major cultural investment have been 

called the “Bilbao Effect.” 

The building of the Bilbao Guggenheim 

in Spain transformed a shabby industrial 

Basque city into a thriving world-famous 

landmark filled with luxury restaurants and 

designer shops. 

The Guggenheim concept has had some 

failures, however. 

Financial problems became insurmountable 

obstacles to building museums in 

Taiwan, Rio de Janeiro, and Guadalajara, 

Mexico. Kwiatkowski stresses that despite 

stiff competition for a museum (more than 

100 candidates globally), Krakow has many 

assets. It is a culturally prestigious location 

and an attractive site, already one of the rapidly 

developing cities of Europe. 

As in Bilbao, Krakow authorities would 

be responsible for a building and its operation 

while the foundation would supply 

showpieces. 

With Poland being a new EU member, 

there is also a possibility that a large part 

of the construction costs could come from 

EU resources. 

However, the opportunity may be lost 

unless action is taken quickly, as the EU 

budget is being planned for coming years 

and the potential money will continue to 

dwindle. 

A partnership proposal for Guggenheim 

was signed by Mayor Majchrowski and sent 

out in June 2007. But it was addressed to the 

wrong organization. 

It was received by Edward Hirsch, chairman 

of the Simon Guggenheim Foundation 

that grants fellowships to advanced professionals 

in different fields. Hirsch did express 

his fondness towards Krakow, explained the 

mistake and promised to deliver the message 

to appropriate address. 

GDFL-1:MykReeve 

Krakow to have new 

marketing strategy 

Agata Kolomyjska 


After years of promoting Krakow as a 

city of wild parties, authorities have decided 

to switch the focus to cultural events 

and high-tech advancement. 

The new marketing strategy aims at attracting 

more refined and sophisticated 

visitors. 

The creators of the new promotional 

strategy – Eskadra PR group and the Promotion 

Department of Krakow City Council 

– based their approach on experiences 

of other Polish and European cities, especially 

Barcelona but also Prague, Vienna, 

Wroclaw and Warsaw. 

Guidelines for the new strategy have 

been discussed with representatives of cultural 

institutions, catering businesses, tourism 

organizations and local media. 

The new strategy will promote festivals 

and cultural events. According to Mateusz 

Zmyslony of the Eskadra PR group, Krakow 

needs one, widely recognizable event, 

which it now lacks. 

Also, he says, Krakow should encourage 

bold projects and young, talented, independent 

(underground) artists. 

Izabela Helbin of the Promotion Bureau 

says her organization will sponsor fewer 

projects, but the chosen ones will get much 

more money. 

“We can’t split the funds and support 

every project because they will never turn 

into anything spectacular,” Helbin said. “It 

is necessary that we choose several events 

and focus on them.” 

The authors of the new marketing strategy 

hope that promoting Krakow as a city of 

advanced technologies will help attract clients 

from upper-income brackets and catch 

the attention of business people to boost 

conferences and encourage investments, 

especially in information technology and 

outsourcing sectors. 

“Krakow is not exactly what we call an 

economic tiger,” Zmyslony said. “It would 

be good to show it as a city with economic 

potential.” 

A new promotional slogan for Krakow 

will be chosen to be advertised worldwide. 

Some of the possibilities are “Krakow. 

Genius Loci,” “Krakow. The City,” “Krakow. 

Form and Content” and “Krakow. Big 

Idea.” 

“The main idea is to attract intelligent 

people,” Zmyslony said. “Even if they 

won’t understand ‘genius loci‘ immediately, 

they’ll quickly look it up in a dictionary.” 

Helbin tried to dispel any doubts about 

the feasibility of the plan by noting that the 

city has boosted the marketing budget by 

30 percent next year. “Everything can be 

done,” Helbin said. 

Peter Greenway in Krakow.


A R T S & I D E A S The Krakow Post 13 

Idea behind window of 

life for orphans debated 


Another infant has been left at Krakow’s 

“Window of Life.” Brought to the “Window” 

on Dec. 4, the baby was immediately taken 

to the Neonatology Clinic of the College of 

Medicine at Jagiellonian University. 

“The baby is in good condition,” said Dr. 

Dorota Pawlik of the Neonatology Clinic. “It 

is a nice boy. Now he is undergoing an examination.” 

The boy is the fourth baby to be left at the 

“Window of Life,” established almost two 

years ago at the Sisters of the Nazarene convent. 

The other three children – two girls and 

a boy – are already adopted. 

The boy found on Dec. 4 was wrapped in a 

blanket containing a picture of Saint Michael 

the Archangel and a piece of paper with the 

words “Gaspar, I am sorry. I love you. Mom. 

The “Window of Life” is a place where 

new parents can anonymously and safely 

bring newborns. 

Located on ul. Przybyszewskiego 39, the 

heated, ventilated baby room has a window 

which can be opened from the outside. 

After the window is opened to deposit an 

infant, an alarm sounds to alert the nuns at 

the convent. 

“The Window of Life” is an initiative of 

the Family Department of Metropolitan Curia 

and Caritas of Krakow’s Archdiocese. 

The idea is not a new one. 

In the 18th Century in Warsaw, “the home 

of foundlings” was established by a Frenchborn 

priest, Gabriel Peter Baudouin. 

The home’s gate had a hole containing a 

trough. The baby was placed in the container, 

a string was pulled to move the container insider 

and a bell rang to summon someone to 

retrieve the infant. 

The home existed until the end of World 

War II. Currently Warsaw has a Little Child 

Home on ul. Nowogrodzka 75. 

“‘The Window of Life’ was established 

to take note of a problem of babies thrown 

on the scrap heap,” said Bogdan Kordula, a 

priest. 

Mothers who hide their pregnancy and do 

not want to give birth at hospital can leave 

the baby in “The Window of Life” without 

any legal consequences. 

“Unfortunately, giving up an infant without 

resigning parents’ rights lengthens the 

adoption procedure. However, we must remember 

that there is a child’s life at stake. 

It is better for the infant to find a new family 

than die.” 

Beata Stawiarska, chairman of the Public 

Adoption Protection Center in Krakow, says 

the idea of “The Window of Life” is wrong. 

She says it should not be made easier for a 

mother to abandon her baby. 

Giving up a baby anonymously is not a 

crime in Poland. Before a woman decides to 

take such a step, she can get professional psychological 

care at the Adoption Center. 

A baby left in “The Window of Life” has 

no birth certificate and no identity. 

Not all mothers know that after giving 

birth to a baby in a hospital, they may leave it 

there without any legal consequences. 

After leaving the baby, a mother has up to 

six weeks to make a final decision. 

If she decides to give up the baby, it will be 

put up for adoption. 

But the main goal of the Nazaretanki nuns, 

and the reason for “The Window of Life,” is 

to save a child from a terrible death. And for 

some desperate women, the cloak of anonymity 

is important. 

The convent is not visually monitored, 

and it is located on a quiet street. It is more 

LUK Agency 

difficult for a hospital to provide the same 

privacy. 

Still, leaving a baby in “The Window” is 

an extreme situation, the last hope for unwanted 

children who were not left at a hospital. 

And so the Nazaretanki nuns make their 

appeal: “All the mothers who cannot bring 

up your children– do not kill them, do no 

not throw them on the scrap heaps, please. 

Leave them here in ‘The Window of Life.’ 

Let them be adopted. Give them a chance for 

life and love.” 

Xmas traditions 

thrive in Poland 


Christmas is a major event on the Christian 

calendar especially in Poland where the Catholic 

Church’s presence stems back to the 10th Century. 

Christmas traditions in Poland are often thought 

to be timeless, though some are more recent than 

expected. Four weeks before Christmas, the process 

of the celebration called advent begins. The 

name derives from the Latin for “coming,” and 

denotes the period in which Christians prepare for 

the Nativity of Christ. It is a very old tradition 

practiced in Poland since its conversion. 

It is popular among Poles during this period 

to attend a dawn mass called “roraty.” People attend 

the mass with candles or lampoons – especially 

children. The Christmas Eve meal is a cherished 

tradition in Poland with its roots in ancient 

Rome’s Saturnalia celebration. Begun in the 18th 

Century and adopted throughout Poland in the 

20th Century, families fast all day before coming 

together in the evening to eat a 12-course meal. 

Dishes served in Poland on this day include 

borsht with “uszka” and carp. 

Borsht is a vegetable soup from Eastern Europe, 

with beetroot as its main ingredient and 

“uszka” meaning “little ears” in Polish, which are 

small dumplings usually filled with mushrooms. 

Carp is a traditional fish which Polish people eat 

almost exclusively on Christmas evening. 

Following the supper, Polish families migrate 

to their local church for midnight mass, Pasterka. 

The first occurrence of “Pasterka” is recorded in 

the time of Pope Gregory I in the 6th Century. 

Over the next two days, Poles flock to build and 

view nativity scenes, believed to have been initiated 

by Saint Francis of Assisi in the 5th Century. 

The most popular living nativity scene in Krakow 

can be found on Christmas Day at the Franciscan 

Church. 

And of course what is Christmas without singing 

Christmas carols? The first Polish Christmas 

carol comes from 1424. Today, there are over 500 

Polish carols. 

New Year’s Eve in Krakow 


Krakow is getting ready to say goodbye to 

2007 with its annual New Year’s Eve party on 

Rynek Glowny. But this is not the only way to 

spend this magic night in Krakow. 

Last year’s Krakow Council New Year’s 

party expenses reached 1.5 bln zloty. This year’s 

sum has not been released due to commercial 

confidentiality, but it is expected to be higher 

still. Krakow Council in association with Polsat 

television is holding a party for an estimated 

140,000 people in the town square. Musical entertainment 

will vary from the hits of the 60s to 

present ones performed by popular Polish artists 

such as Budka Suflera and Bajm. 

“Some people seem puzzled when they see 

the diversity of artists billed to perform at this 

year’s party. We want people of all generations 

to have fun, that’s why it’s rather a multigenerational 

event,” said Maja Drexler from Krakow’s 

Festival Bureau. “People from all over Poland 

look forward to the event.” 

The party begins at 20:00 and continues 

through until 01:30. People with disabilities and 

their caregivers are catered to, with a special area 

set aside near the stage. For safety reasons, there 

are over 800 private security personnel on hand, 

along with police and city security staff. 

At midnight, Mayor Majchrowski will welcome 

in the New Year with fellow Krakowians 

followed by an enlightening show of fireworks. 

Special buses and trams have been made available 

to deliver revelers home after the event. 

For those who prefer to stay indoors and 

enjoy the festivities from the comfort of their 

armchair, Polsat television will be providing 

live coverage throughout the night. The full list 

of artists performing on the night is available at: 

www.biurofestiwalowe.pl. 

All around Krakow, the city comes alive on 

the big night with restaurants, pubs and hotels 

holding parties. 

In hotels and restaurants, guests can have 

classy balls with elaborate menus and live music 

with prices averaging between 200 to 300 

zloty per couple, up to 500 zloty or more at the 

higher end of the market. It is recommended to 

reserve early, with many events booked a year 

in advance. 

If revellers miss out on getting tickets to a private 

function, there are always boundless clubs 

and pubs offering simple fare and entertainment 

on the night. Yet, there is no guarantee of entry 

with Krakowian’s overflowing passion for the 

night, as the Forum hotel student’s party for 

1,000 being booked out within weeks bearings 

testimony. 

“Right before New Year’s Eve, we start getting 

information from the clubs who want to 

advertise their parties with our web site,” said 

Maciej Ochalek from www.knajpy.krakow.pl, a 

pub and clubbing portal. “Some clubs even call 

us to cancel their ads before the reservation rush 

starts, as they’re already booked out.” 

For those looking for something different this 

year, there is the underground ball at Wieliczka 

Salt Mine’s ball room. The venue is 125 meters 

underground with dinner, music and entertainment 

provided by Piwnica pod Baranami cabaret 

artists. Then again, revellers can enter the New 

Year with a splash at Park Wodny aqua park in 

a Jacuzzi. 

Outside of Krakow, revellers can begin the 

New Year with a high in Zakopane with a fireworks 

show on Gubalowka Mountain. Hotels, 

pensions or karcma (folklore inns) will have 

food and folk music on hand before their sleigh 

ride through the mountains to share the moment 

with someone special. 

“We expect around 200,000 people in Zakopane 

during that time,” said Regina Watycka 

from Zakopane’s Promotion Bureau. 

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krakowpost.com


K A T O W I C E 


Silesian Border Guards learn sign language 

Kinga Rodkiewicz 


Fifty border guards from 

Silesia will learn sign language 

during a 60-hour course. 

With that knowledge they 

will be able to recognize the 

difference between people who 

are deaf or hearing impaired and 

smugglers and others who try to 

deceive the guards. 

According to the daily newspaper 

Dziennik Zachodni, the 

guards often encounter travelers 

who have illegal passports and 

who pretend to be foreigners 

who are unable to answer questions. 

Often, Polish smugglers 

use the same method. 

“During the course, we have 

learned how to recognize the 

imposters,” said Anna Dolecka, 

a participant in the course. “A 

person who is truly deaf doesn’t 

look around. He only looks at 

the questioner’s face, because 

he tries to read the lip movements.” 

Sign language uses manual 

communication, body language 

and lip patterns instead of sound 

to convey meaning — simultaneously 

combining hand shapes, 

orientation and movement of the 

hands, arms or body, and facial 

expressions to express fluidly a 

speaker’s thoughts. 

“To say ‘please,’ we place 

our hands as if to pray and twice 

shake them quickly. And when 

we ask for the documents, we 

put our hands in a way similar 

to an open book and then 

we imitate stamping it,” Agata 

Tanska, director of the Special 

Center for the Deaf in Raciborz, 

told the newspaper Dziennik Zachodni. 

Guards who have taken the 

course are enthusiastic. 

“We have received the sign 

alphabet on special boards. It 

isn’t very difficult, and for sure 

it will be useful in our work,” 

said Magdalena Rachuba, a 

course participant. 

Knowledge of sign language 

will continue to be useful even 

when Poland joins the Schengen 

Zone with the Czech Republic, 

Slovakia, Hungary, Estonia, 

Latvia and Lithuania. 

The Schengen agreement 

means that Poles will no longer 

have to present identity documents 

at the borders of all the 

“old” EU member states, except 

for the UK and Ireland. 

However, even if the border 

checks disappear, border guards 

will continue to patrol the nearby 

roads. 

“In this work, we will also 

meet with deaf people,” Maj. 

Cezary Zaborski told Dziennik 

Zachodni. “That’s why the 

guards should know how to behave 

to avoid needless misunderstandings 

and conflicts.” 

MUSIC TRAIN 

Elektrowoz music train 


Taking the music to the masses 

Elektrowoz Festival toured 

through Katowice to Krakow in 

December with the entertainment 

never leaving the tracks. 

Elektrowoz Festival is a multiplatform 

event taking place in Tychy, 

Katowice and Krakow with 

a program of performing and visual 

arts targeted at young people. 

Rather than young people going 

to cultural venues, the organizers 

have decided to bring the cultural 

event to them via rail. 

The line-up included RG Boys, 

Me Myself and BTR, Clapham, 

South and Tropain from the alternate 

music scene. Jon Kennedy 

from the UK headlined the event 

with his fusion of funk, soul and 

hip-hop sounds. “It’s all about the 

feel of each track. I’m not really 

trying to create a specific sound 

of my own or break new boundaries. 

It’s still a learning process for 

me. I try to interpret what’s in my 

head through sounds. Ultimately, I 

suppose, the drum patterns shape 

the feel of each track, what ever 

happens from then on in is a pretty 

organic process,” said Kennedy. 

Kennedy was joined by local 

rising star Wojciech Kucharczyk 

promoting his current psychofunk 

project “The Complainer.” 

Photographer Anna Rozmus from 

the Polish daily Polska also participated 

in the event with her “From 

Light to Shadow” exhibition. 

ARKA NOEGO 

Our restaurant is located 

in one of the oldest 

buildings in Kazimierz. 

We serve all kinds of Jewish 

cuisine, based mostly 

on local recipes. 

Come to enjoy delicious 

Jewish dishes. 

Live klezmer music 

every night at 20:00. 

Open daily: 09:00-02:00 

ul. Szeroka 2 

+48 (12) 4291528 

arkaszerok2@op.pl 

www.arka-noego.pl 

www. 

All your favorite 

articles online! 

krakowpost 

.com


C L A S S I F I E D S 


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ANGLO-POLISH EXPERT BUILDERS 

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Efficiency and Reliability. In Poland and 

Across Europe. References Available. 

Please Call: +48 608-849-189 

WOODEN HOMES 

Companies wanted who can built wooden 

houses in Western Europe. pas@fruitier.nl 

MEDICAL SERVICES 

APARTMENT FOR RENT 

Medical Service for Foreigners 

+48 609-201-372. Since 1990. 

GUITAR CATERING 

Are you looking for classical guitar music 

for your restaurant or gathering. Spanish, 

Argentinian and Italian classical music. 

guitarcatering@gmail.com 

EDITING SERVICES 

Need help editing your English-language 

texts? Write: media.editing@gmail.com 

PRIVATE LESSONS 

Lessons in English with native speakers 

– journalists. Improve your conversation 

skills and grammar through reading, analyzing 

and discussing interesting articles. 

Decent rates. jerrybarrows@yahoo.com 

Learn Russian from native speaker in Krakow. 

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NETWORKING 

A Dutch businessman is looking to meet 

fellow countrymen based in Krakow and 

the region for networking, chatting and 

generally being cheap together. Write: 

namhctud.gniylf.eht@gmail.com 

Looking for Russian speakers to hang out, 

talk, have a good time. Please write me at: 

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Searching for lonely depressed people 

who are questioning the meaning of life. 

yourfavoriteunclebob@gmail.com 

Taxis 

Car Rental 

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individuals 

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