Events & Issues

New Delhi, 19 April 2010

Poland & Russia

WILL TRAGEDYBRING RECONCILIATION?

By Dr MalgorzataBonikowska

(ProfWarsaw University & President, India-EU Council)

 The recent tragedy in the Russian forest nearKatyn can ironically bring both the Poles and the Russians together aftercenturies of prejudice and hostility. Presidentof Poland Lech Kaczynski and his wife along with a 94-memberdelegation were killed on 10^th April in an airplane crash whilelanding near Smolensk, southwestern Russia, almost atthe same place where the Russian secret police on the orders of the Soviet dictatorJoseph Stalin killed 20,000 Polish officers and soldiers during World War II.

The Polish delegation comprising the most-renownedpolitical figures in the country (among others: the Army Chief of Staff, chiefsof the Navy and the Air Forces, head of the National Security Office, Deputy Speakerof Parliament, president of the National Bank, deputy foreign minister, head ofthe President's Chancellery, several members of Parliament representingdifferent political parties) was heading for an official ceremony marking the70th anniversary of the Katyn massacre.

An instant reaction after the unfortunateincident was to expect escalation of tension between the Poles and the Russians.This is so because for centuries Poland had suffered at the hands ofits powerful neighbour and was again deprived of its best people on Russian soil. Remember, the Russians had occupied Polishterritory many times in the past and millions of Poles had died inresurrections, battle fields and soviet camps. After World War II, Polandbecame a part of the Soviet bloc for almost half a century and most of thePoles were struggling against the communist system.

Lech Kaczynski was one of them. Once he becamePresident of Poland, he was in favour of a tough policy towards Russia and identified himself with various democraticmovements for independence, including the one to free Tibet underChinese domination. He was also a great admirer of India’s vibrant democracy.

Essentially, the Katyn massacre of 1940 has been a majorirritant between the two countries. Russia repeatedly refused to takeresponsibility for this genocide and instead passed on the blame on the German Nazis.Tragically, several passengers on board the presidential planewere relatives of those slain in Katyn and instead of paying tribute totheir late fathers, 70 years later they too died on the very same Russianground.

Confronted with the recent tragedy on such a massive scale andthat which has a symbolic meaning, both the nations, however, have started todemonstrate solidarity. Poles were deeply moved by the Russians help, sympathyand transparency in conducting investigation into the reasons of the crash(most likely dense fog and the pilot’s mistake). PresidentDmitry Medvedev imposed a state of emergency and addressed the people of Poland ontelevision, expressing his compassion and goodwill. In Russia, PrimeMinister Vladimir Putin took personal charge of the investigation, visited thecrash site to console his Polish counterpart and expressed his sadness to thePoles in a special live telecast. In fact, the Russian television channelsimmediately broadcast a film on the Katyn tragedy, which was forbidden in Russia forseveral years. Importantly, for the Poles the Russian government, led by an ex-KGBofficer admitted the guilt of the Soviet regime for the Katyn massacre. Finally!

Today, in Poland,there is a feeling of gratitude towards the Russians and nobody is accusing Russia for the planeaccident contrary to some instant speculation on the basis of the high-levelmistrust towards this country.

Consequently, a better atmosphere in Polish-Russianrelations can influence the European Union’s approach towards Russia. Being anEU member State, Poland is playing a more important role in the EU foreignpolicy, especially towards the East. For example, Poland’sinitiative of “Eastern Partnership”, directed at four ex-Soviet countries (Belorussia, Moldova,Georgia and Azerbaijan, was received in Russia with anger. It was seenas being against Russian political interests. Perhaps, following the tragedy,it will change into an effective tool for bringing stability in the region,with Russian participation.

The accident has also triggered a globaldimension. Until now, the history of Katyn was known only to the Poles. Today, itis publicized all over the world, becoming a part of a world history, on asimilar scale as the genocide committed during the war in ex-Yugoslavia in the90s. The Polish President’s unexpected death has gained attention of worldleaders. The funeral which took place in Cracowwas attended by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, and several other political leaders of the region. Unfortunately for Poles,weather conditions (Iceland’svolcanic cloud over Europe) prevented USPresident Barack Obama, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French PresidentNicolas Sarkozy and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown from attending.  

Kaczynski and his wife Mary were buried in Cracow, Wawel castle, the resting place of Poland’s kings.Several countries announced a state of mourning, including Russia.“President Kaczynski was personally committed tostrengthening bilateral relations between our two countries” wrote IndianPresident Pratibha Patil in her condolence message. Last April, she had beenwarmly received by Kaczynski during her official visit to Poland.

The fact that Polish democracy exists and worksis demonstrated by the fact that it was being run by so many eminent people,who unfortunately died in the crash.  Fortunately,the accident did not affect the functioning of the government nor destabilizedthe political system. The funeral, which turned out to be an internationalevent, was organized perfectly. The rate of the Zloty, Polish currency, did notfluctuate or drop after the crash. The country is supposed to enter the Eurozone in the next few years and its currency proved to be stable.

The recent tragedy will, however, have importantpolitical consequences for the country. In October, Poland was expected to havepresidential elections. Kaczynski had planned to seek a second term. He is nomore today. The presidential candidate of the Left died in the crash as well.The elections have now been advanced to June and no one expects a fierce campaign.For the moment the Polish people are united around the graves of their leaderswho “had died on duty”. Every party lost a member or two in the accident.

Indeed, the “romantic patriotism” of most of thePoles will grow, fed again by a new loss, which fits well with the old myth of Poland – a countrydestined to sacrifice its best sons and daughters for the sake of the others.---INFA

(Copyright,India News and Feature Alliance)