Question

Discuss any four achievements of Lech Walesa to justify why he was featured on the cover page of the Time Magazine in 1982.

Answer 1

1. Poland, a member of the Warsaw Pact, became the first country in the Soviet Bloc to reject communism.
2. This momentous development was followed by the collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe and the end of the Cold War.
3. The architect of this peaceful anti-communist revolution was Lech Walesa, a Polish statesman, activist and charismatic leader of millions of Polish workers.
4. He was a passionate champion of the rights of workers and democratic ideals.
5. The Solidarity trade union (whose membership rose to over 10 million) was co-founded by Walesa.
6. As a trade union and human rights activist, he was persecuted by the Polish Communist government and under constant surveillance by the Polish secret police.
7. Martial law was imposed in Poland by General Jaruzelski. Solidarity was banned and Walesa was imprisoned.
8. After his release, Walesa, undaunted and fearless, continued his activism highlighting the corruption and inefficiency of the Communist regime, through underground Solidarity- related activities.
9. He facilitated the Round Table Negotiations between the communist government and Solidarity.
10. Solidarity was legalised and recognised as a political party.
11. Semi free elections to the Parliament were held.
12. After the successful Parliamentary elections in 1989, a non-Communist government was formed in Poland.
13. In 1990, Walesa became the first democratically elected president of Poland in 63 years.
14. He served as the first non-communist president to be elected by popular vote from 1990-1995.
15. In 1983, Walesa was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his non-violent efforts to resolve the nation’s problems through negotiations.