Poland, civil rights, GLBT rights; test for the EU? (moral, tradition)

[Flappycat]

Poland's new president is a fascist, homophobic, fundacatholic, pseudo-moralistic piece of absolute slime and probably a closeted homosexual who's still angry because he wasn't popular at the alternative bars. That said, does the new European government yet have the muscle to deal properly with this filth, maybe toss him into a concentration camp to see how it feels, or are Polish GLBT looking at a future of repression and persecution under Poland's new christo-fascist government?

[Mike182]

i don't know much about polish politics, but i don't think throwing anyone into a concentration camp is the right solution

we shall see what happens, if he starts to implement policies that are unjust, we (in england at least) should pressure Tony Blair to put pressure on the EU to help resolve the issue

[michel]

Originally Posted by Flappycat

Poland's new president is a fascist, homophobic, fundacatholic, pseudo-moralistic piece of absolute slime and probably a closeted homosexual who's still angry because he wasn't popular at the alternative bars. That said, does the new European government yet have the muscle to deal properly with this filth, maybe toss him into a concentration camp to see how it feels, or are Polish GLBT looking at a future of repression and persecution under Poland's new christo-fascist government?

I must admit to knowing very little about him;

http://www.anarkismo.net/newswire.php?story_id=1568

There are two distinguishing aspects of Kaczynski’s politics; his social conservatism and his professed pro-social economics. (Not that we believe that it or any other form of capitalism is pro-social.) Despite insinuations made in the foreign press that people voted for Kaczynski because of some fondness for conservative values, it was really the public perception of the difference of degree of economic neoliberalism which gave Kaczynski the election. Really conservative parties, such as the League of Polish Families, actually lost a good portion of their support and places in Parliament. Likewise, the least popular of all the major political parties this year was the most economically liberal, the Democratic Party.

The above is admittedly a great oversimplification of the myriad of factors which swung the electorate. Conservativism played a role in that most people are conservative and the most popular parties only projected different degrees of such.

Many voters seem to have focused primarily on issues of culture rather than economics when making their choices. Conceptions and analyses of economic issues are either lacking or dull repetitions of market neoliberal dogma taught at business school and syphened to the public by experts. This phenomenon is nothing unique to Poland and has been described by many commentators around the world, including, amongst others, Thomas Frank. Frank has described how in the US, working class people can be swayed to vote for parties which do not at all represent their economic interests by focusing their attention on issues such as abortion; he labels these “cultural” issues.

It is clear that only a small portion of the electorate would actually benefit from the economic plans of Kaczynski’s rivals’ party, Civic Platform. For example, a proposed linear tax, combined with the liquidation of some of tax breaks most often used, would mean real tax savings of between 25 and 35% for the wealthiest Poles, and a maximum of 4% for the overwhelming majority of the working class. (Some studies have shown simulations where people in this tax bracket would actually pay more after the reduction of certain tax breaks.) This tax revolution would be accompanied, naturally, by privatization of most social services.

It is understandable that a certain portion of people either identify with the wealthiest or simply hate the poor; this segment of society generally supports the liquidation or minimalization of most social programs as they are convinced that the poor are poor because they are somehow morally inferior (ie. lazy or degenerate). What is more curious in this election is that a certain part of what in other circumstances might constitute a liberal or even left scene more closely identified with Mr. Tusk than Mr. Kaczynski.

Rather strict leftists or communists saw no choice between the two right-wing parties. However, many moderate leftists and liberals clearly saw Mr. Kaczynski as a greater threat. As Varsovians, we have already had many run-ins with Kaczynski and his crew. (Kaczynski was the President of Warsaw.) We completely understand what his party in power can mean for the state of our civil rights. First and foremost for the rights of sexual minorities. (Although on the other hand, for the last few years there have been mass waves of arrests and repression connected to anarchists and workers’ activists. For us, things are likely to remain more or less the same.) Nonetheless, it was disconcerting for us to see that a good portion of the liberals around us were unable to muster any critique of the economic program of Mr. Tusk’s party. Even more disconcerting was that it turned out that in this loose activist movement, which includes feminists, human rights activists, etc., some people argued for the introduction of paid higher education, the liquidation of public health care, etc., from the right-wing point of view.

I spoke with a number of supporters of and activists in the Democratic Party, which is headed by the extreme pro-business leader of a lobbying organization for private employees which has lead the attack on workers’ rights for years. Amazingly, people from this party have told me “I can’t stand the right”. When I pointed out that in economic terms they were the most right-wing of all the major parties, I even became the victim of xenophobic diatribes about how I don’t understand local politics. I should not be surprised that, for such people, the culture of the Democratic Party, which speaks of democracy, human rights in the Ukraine and Belarus (a smokescreen for pro-market policies they wish to spread) and tolerance of minorities, would attract them and would even obfuscate their economic programs. (Although after some longer discussions it just turns out that some of the “human rights” crowd are firm believers in the market economy and the miracles of capitalism.)

We have come up against the fact that not only society as a whole, but the local liberal scene and, unfortunately even some of the left and anarchist scene, are lacking a class analysis. Perceptions of lifestyle, personality, cultural habits and beliefs become a binding and mobilizing force. In accomplishing this, the capitalists (private and state) conquer the economy by managing to take it, as much as possible, outside the field of debate. We witnessed how in the last presidential debates, the candidates argued about whether diplomacy or hard-handedness is better with the Russians, about who had the dirtiest campaigns and so on. And, unfortunately, these were the issues that interested many voters.

The issue of class and economics however played a crucial part in the election, as perhaps did certain traditions; elections showed a clear east/west divide in the country. Populist, left and peasant parties received at least 1/3 of the vote. Ultimately, economic issues seemed to sway voters towards Kaczynski who promised a more social economic policy. While the farmers and populist parties like Self-Defence, as well as Solidarity, decided to back Kaczynski in the second round, left parties like the ruling SLD or the Social Democrats either backed Tusk or said that people could vote for the lesser of two evils, implying that was Tusk. This despite the fact that, economically, Civic Platform was miles away.

If the analysis of culture over class can be simplified to show working class people voting for the right because of cultural issues, we cannot say it is so simple in Poland. Some people did vote for their perceived class interests, even if this perception was clouded. In the US, the simplified (and perhaps incorrect) version is “right-wing economics, right-wing social issues”. In Poland, you have right-wing parties in economics divided into conservatives, ultra-conservatives, moderates and liberals, you have left-wing or left-of-center parties with liberal worldviews or moderate world views, you have populist parties which lean left or left of center in economics but are conservative or even fascistic, and you have parties which have incredibly eclectic programs, such as Self-Defence. (It recently declared itself as the only truly left party. It tends to favour many aspects of the welfare state, is against linear tax for individuals but has the most drastic tax proposal for corporations: a 10% flat tax. This, they are sure, will encourage investment in Poland and create jobs.)

[Mike182]

mich, did you read that before you posted it? if yes, could you give us a little summery of what it says? i realy cannot focus enough to read it today

[michel]

Originally Posted by Mike182

mich, did you read that before you posted it? if yes, could you give us a little summery of what it says? i realy cannot focus enough to read it today

Those parts I have highlighted in red; Conservative (no change) add that what he is known to stand for "(Kaczynski was the President of Warsaw.) We completely understand what his party in power can mean for the state of our civil rights. First and foremost for the rights of sexual minorities"

Ie not a very nice man....

Add to that:-http://www.advocate.com/news_detail_ektid23491.asp
12/17/05-12/19/05

Civil rights group challenges Poland's antigay policies in European court
A civil rights group said it filed a complaint Friday with the European Court of Human Rights over Polish authorities' decision to outlaw a gay pride parade earlier this year. Lech Kaczynski, then Warsaw mayor and now Poland's president-elect, opposed the June parade, saying it would promote "a homosexual lifestyle." "We want the court in Strasbourg to rule that the ban constituted an abuse of the European Convention on Human Rights," said Adam Bodnar of the Helsinki Human Rights Foundation, which prepared the complaint.