Antoni Macierewicz
Encyclopedia
Antoni Macierewicz is a Polish
Catholic politician, anti-communist activist, member of Sejm
, journalist and a former internal affairs minister, former vice-minister of national defence in Jarosław Kaczyński's government, and current parliamentary representative.
and a member of Labour Party (Poland), committed suicide under the pressure from the communist Secret Police soon after his youngest son had been born. After getting his master degree in history from Warsaw University Macierewicz had begun doctoral studies in history of South America at the Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw, but due to his involvement in the 1968 Polish political crisis he was arrested and his studies terminated. In the years 1968-1989 he was a prominent member of the democratic opposition to communist rule and one of the founders of the Workers' Defence Committee
(KOR), working together with Jacek Kuroń
and Adam Michnik
, and together they started publishing monthly Głos in 1977. He was one of the organizers of Solidarity (Polish trade union) in Warsaw. He was arrested and interned after the Wojciech Jaruzelski
's junta had imposed the martial law in Poland
on December 13, 1981. He escaped from the prison in Nowy Łupków and was in hiding until 1984. In 1988 he was a member of Solidarity Citizens' Committee
.
, and chairman of the Catholic-National Movement
party, lately merged with PiS.
He was Minister of Internal Affairs in the Jan Olszewski
's government (1991–1992). As a minister responsible for the police and security services, he was afforded full access to the former communist documentary archives including records of communist intelligence and secret service agents.On May 28, 1992 Polish Parliament passed law requiring the minister of Internal Affairs to provide Sejm with the list of then senators, representatives, ministers, voivodes, judges and prosecutors who had been secret communist agents between 1945-1990 (the military secret agents were excluded). On 4th June 1982, Macierewicz provided the list of 64 members of the government and parliament (but not voivodes) that had been listed as secret agents in the archives of the communist secret police to the Convent of Senior Parliamentarians(Konwent Seniorów), and also he provided the second list containing just 2 names of highest importance, of the president Lech Wałęsa
and then Marshall of Sejm Wiesław Chrzanowski.
As the crisis had been unfolding, prior to the lists presentation, on May 29, 1992 the opposition parties submitted Motion of no confidence
asking for the vote on the fate of Olszewski's government. On the night of June 4/5 1992 after the presentation of the lists, the motion of no confidence was granted and Olszewski's government was dismissed - the situation well depicted in the documentary Nocna zmiana
(Night Watch). Olszewski defending his minister named the actions of Macierewicz ‘itself a concerted conspiracy perpetrated by circles of former high ranking communist secret police officers’ aimed at dismembering his government and thwart plans to purge off former communists from public offices and services.
In 1992 Macierewicz founded his own party (Polish Action) which soon ceased to exist. Then he repaired his relations with Olszewski and joined his party (Movement for Reconstruction of Poland) and became his deputy in 1996. He ran to parliament on the Olszewski ‘s party ticket. Later he left Olszewski again in 1997 to set up his own National Catholic Movement. In 2001 he joined a different party of League of Polish Families
and was on their ticket re-elected to parliament in 2001 but left them due to differences. In 2002 he tried to run for the mayor of Warsaw coming 8th on the ballot with 1.09% of popular vote.
Following successful campaign of Lech Kaczyński
and his twin brother in 2005 (presidential and parliamentary election) Macierewicz was called upon by prime minister Jarosław Kaczyński to the post of deputy defense minister.
In July 2006, he was appointed to lead the liquidation of the Military Information Services
, an dupon finishing his task from October 2006 he was the chief of the newly restructured military counter-intelligence service until the fall of Kaczyński government. On 16 February 2007 the liquidation report was published in Polish Monitor and it is known as Raport Macierewicza. Also in 2007 he run for a seat of Sejm representative and was elected to the parliament.
Since July 20, 2010 Macierewicz, member of Sejm, is the head of the parliamentary committee ( "Zespół Parlamentarny Ds. Zbadania Przyczyn Katastrofy TU-154M z 10 kwietnia 2010 r.") set to investigate and to establish the causes of the 2010 Polish Air Force Tu-154 crash
. On June 29-30, 2011 the committee published "Biała Księga Smoleńskiej Tragedii" (White Book of Smolensk Tragedy), where some 170 thousands of documents were published on their websites and 19 causes of the crash presented, pointing to Polish and Russian causes of the crash. Also in 2011 "Gazeta Polska
" awarded Macierewicz a title of Man of the Year 2010." Macierewicz makes public speeches and regularly appears in Radio Maryja
and Telewizja Trwam
, as well as he writes for various publications.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
Catholic politician, anti-communist activist, member of Sejm
Sejm
The Sejm is the lower house of the Polish parliament. The Sejm is made up of 460 deputies, or Poseł in Polish . It is elected by universal ballot and is presided over by a speaker called the Marshal of the Sejm ....
, journalist and a former internal affairs minister, former vice-minister of national defence in Jarosław Kaczyński's government, and current parliamentary representative.
Early years and activity during the Communist Poland
Youngest son of Zdzisław and Maria Macierewicz, one of their three children. His father, a scientist and noted researcher in chemistry, was a soldier of Home Army during World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and a member of Labour Party (Poland), committed suicide under the pressure from the communist Secret Police soon after his youngest son had been born. After getting his master degree in history from Warsaw University Macierewicz had begun doctoral studies in history of South America at the Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw, but due to his involvement in the 1968 Polish political crisis he was arrested and his studies terminated. In the years 1968-1989 he was a prominent member of the democratic opposition to communist rule and one of the founders of the Workers' Defence Committee
Workers' Defence Committee
The Workers’ Defense Committee was a Polish civil society group that emerged under communist rule to give aid to prisoners & their families after the June 1976 protests & government crackdown...
(KOR), working together with Jacek Kuroń
Jacek Kuron
Jacek Jan Kuroń was one of the democratic leaders of opposition in the People's Republic of Poland. Kuroń was a prominent Polish social and political figure; educator and historian; an activist of the Polish Scouting Association; co-founder of the Workers' Defence Committee; twice a Minister of...
and Adam Michnik
Adam Michnik
Adam Michnik is the editor-in-chief of Gazeta Wyborcza, where he sometimes writes under the pen-names of Andrzej Zagozda or Andrzej Jagodziński. In 1966–1989 he was one of the leading organizers of the illegal, democratic opposition in Poland...
, and together they started publishing monthly Głos in 1977. He was one of the organizers of Solidarity (Polish trade union) in Warsaw. He was arrested and interned after the Wojciech Jaruzelski
Wojciech Jaruzelski
Wojciech Witold Jaruzelski is a retired Polish military officer and Communist politician. He was the last Communist leader of Poland from 1981 to 1989, Prime Minister from 1981 to 1985 and the country's head of state from 1985 to 1990. He was also the last commander-in-chief of the Polish People's...
's junta had imposed the martial law in Poland
Martial law in Poland
Martial law in Poland refers to the period of time from December 13, 1981 to July 22, 1983, when the authoritarian government of the People's Republic of Poland drastically restricted normal life by introducing martial law in an attempt to crush political opposition to it. Thousands of opposition...
on December 13, 1981. He escaped from the prison in Nowy Łupków and was in hiding until 1984. In 1988 he was a member of Solidarity Citizens' Committee
Solidarity Citizens' Committee
The Solidarity Citizens' Committee , also known as "Citizens' Electoral Committee" , previously named "Citizens' Committee with Lech Wałęsa" was an legal political organisation of the democratic opposition in communist Poland...
.
III Republic of Poland 1990 to present
He has been and still is a representative at the SejmSejm
The Sejm is the lower house of the Polish parliament. The Sejm is made up of 460 deputies, or Poseł in Polish . It is elected by universal ballot and is presided over by a speaker called the Marshal of the Sejm ....
, and chairman of the Catholic-National Movement
Catholic-National Movement
Ruch Katolicko-Narodowy is a small political group in Polish parliament, MPs elected from the Liga Polskich Rodzin electoral committee.- Members of Polish Parliament :MP, constituency*Jerzy Czerwiński, Opole...
party, lately merged with PiS.
He was Minister of Internal Affairs in the Jan Olszewski
Jan Olszewski
Jan Ferdynand Olszewski is a Polish lawyer and political figure. He is best known for serving as Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland from 1991 to 1992....
's government (1991–1992). As a minister responsible for the police and security services, he was afforded full access to the former communist documentary archives including records of communist intelligence and secret service agents.On May 28, 1992 Polish Parliament passed law requiring the minister of Internal Affairs to provide Sejm with the list of then senators, representatives, ministers, voivodes, judges and prosecutors who had been secret communist agents between 1945-1990 (the military secret agents were excluded). On 4th June 1982, Macierewicz provided the list of 64 members of the government and parliament (but not voivodes) that had been listed as secret agents in the archives of the communist secret police to the Convent of Senior Parliamentarians(Konwent Seniorów), and also he provided the second list containing just 2 names of highest importance, of the president Lech Wałęsa
Lech Wałęsa
Lech Wałęsa is a Polish politician, trade-union organizer, and human-rights activist. A charismatic leader, he co-founded Solidarity , the Soviet bloc's first independent trade union, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1983, and served as President of Poland between 1990 and 95.Wałęsa was an electrician...
and then Marshall of Sejm Wiesław Chrzanowski.
As the crisis had been unfolding, prior to the lists presentation, on May 29, 1992 the opposition parties submitted Motion of no confidence
Motion of no confidence
A motion of no confidence is a parliamentary motion whose passing would demonstrate to the head of state that the elected parliament no longer has confidence in the appointed government.-Overview:Typically, when a parliament passes a vote of no...
asking for the vote on the fate of Olszewski's government. On the night of June 4/5 1992 after the presentation of the lists, the motion of no confidence was granted and Olszewski's government was dismissed - the situation well depicted in the documentary Nocna zmiana
Nocna zmiana
Nocna zmiana is a 1995 Polish documentary film about dismissal of Olszewski's government. It was directed by Michał Balcerzak.- Featuring :*Maciej Jankowski*Piotr Semka*Jacek Kurski*Marian Krzaklewski*Krzysztof Wyszkowski*Mieczysław Wachowski...
(Night Watch). Olszewski defending his minister named the actions of Macierewicz ‘itself a concerted conspiracy perpetrated by circles of former high ranking communist secret police officers’ aimed at dismembering his government and thwart plans to purge off former communists from public offices and services.
In 1992 Macierewicz founded his own party (Polish Action) which soon ceased to exist. Then he repaired his relations with Olszewski and joined his party (Movement for Reconstruction of Poland) and became his deputy in 1996. He ran to parliament on the Olszewski ‘s party ticket. Later he left Olszewski again in 1997 to set up his own National Catholic Movement. In 2001 he joined a different party of League of Polish Families
League of Polish Families
The League of Polish Families is a right-wing political party in Poland. It was represented in the Polish parliament, forming part of the cabinet of Jarosław Kaczyński, until the latter dissolved in September 2007....
and was on their ticket re-elected to parliament in 2001 but left them due to differences. In 2002 he tried to run for the mayor of Warsaw coming 8th on the ballot with 1.09% of popular vote.
Following successful campaign of Lech Kaczyński
Lech Kaczynski
Lech Aleksander Kaczyński was Polish lawyer and politician who served as the President of Poland from 2005 until 2010 and as Mayor of Warsaw from 2002 until 22 December 2005. Before he became a president, he was also a member of the party Prawo i Sprawiedliwość...
and his twin brother in 2005 (presidential and parliamentary election) Macierewicz was called upon by prime minister Jarosław Kaczyński to the post of deputy defense minister.
In July 2006, he was appointed to lead the liquidation of the Military Information Services
Military Information Services
Military Information Services was a common name for the Polish military intelligence and counter-intelligence agency. The agency was created in 1990 after the Revolutions of 1989 ended the Communist regime as a merger between the former Communist agencies Internal Military Service and the Second...
, an dupon finishing his task from October 2006 he was the chief of the newly restructured military counter-intelligence service until the fall of Kaczyński government. On 16 February 2007 the liquidation report was published in Polish Monitor and it is known as Raport Macierewicza. Also in 2007 he run for a seat of Sejm representative and was elected to the parliament.
Since July 20, 2010 Macierewicz, member of Sejm, is the head of the parliamentary committee ( "Zespół Parlamentarny Ds. Zbadania Przyczyn Katastrofy TU-154M z 10 kwietnia 2010 r.") set to investigate and to establish the causes of the 2010 Polish Air Force Tu-154 crash
2010 Polish Air Force Tu-154 crash
The 2010 Polish Air Force Tu-154 crash occurred on 10 April 2010, when a Tupolev Tu-154M aircraft of the Polish Air Force crashed near the city of Smolensk, Russia, killing all 96 people on board...
. On June 29-30, 2011 the committee published "Biała Księga Smoleńskiej Tragedii" (White Book of Smolensk Tragedy), where some 170 thousands of documents were published on their websites and 19 causes of the crash presented, pointing to Polish and Russian causes of the crash. Also in 2011 "Gazeta Polska
Gazeta Polska
Gazeta Polska is a Polish right-wing/conservative weekly, founded in 1993. Its current editor-in-chief is Tomasz Sakiewicz. Its most known contributors include: Piotr Lisiewicz, Jacek Kwieciński, Eliza Michalik, Robert Tekieli, Krystyna Grzybowska, Maciej Rybiński, Jacek Łęski, Piotr Semka, Jerzy...
" awarded Macierewicz a title of Man of the Year 2010." Macierewicz makes public speeches and regularly appears in Radio Maryja
Radio Maryja
Radio Maryja is a Polish religious, conservative, anti-post-Communist and pro-life Roman Catholic radio station and media group, describing itself as patriotic. It was founded in Toruń, Poland, on December 9, 1991 and has been run since its inception by the Redemptorist rector doctor Tadeusz...
and Telewizja Trwam
Telewizja Trwam
TV Trwam is a Polish TV channel located in Toruń, Poland, belongs to the Lux Veritatis Foundation. The station is owned by the Warsaw Province of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, and is financed through donations from its audience - "The Radio Maryja Family"; this is unlike most Polish...
, as well as he writes for various publications.