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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2010-05-11 Daily Xml
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POLISH AIR TRAGEDY

The Hon. M.D. RANN (Ramsay—Premier, Minister for Economic Development, Minister for Social Inclusion, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Sustainability and Climate Change) (14:02): I move:

That the House of Assembly:

expresses its sadness at the tragic air crash on 10 April this year that took the lives of 96 people, including the president of Poland, Lech Kaczyński;

extends its deepest sympathies to the people of Poland, as well as to the Polish community and its supporters in South Australia; and

as a mark of respect to the memory of those who perished, the sitting of the house will be suspended until the ringing of the bells.

It was a month ago today that we woke to the terrible news that initially was almost impossible to comprehend. The people of Poland had once more been touched by the cold hand of fate. A nation that has endured so much pain and injustice faced another unfathomable loss, and one that was visited upon them in the most bitterly ironic of circumstances. A large contingent of people comprising Poland's political, social, business and religious leadership, along with a number of everyday Poles and veterans, had perished in the misty distant fields of Russia. Their Russian-built Tupolev aircraft had come down while trying to land in thick fog at an airport near the Russian city of Smolensk.

Even today, the roll call of the dead seems too overwhelming to be true in terms of the spectrum of a nation's leadership. In addition to president Kaczyński his wife Maria, the victims included the chief of Poland's National Security Office; the Governor of the National Bank of Poland; the Deputy Speaker of the lower house, and a number of other members of parliament and senators; the heads of Poland's military and foreign affairs department and other senior officers of the public service and of the armed forces; the nation's deputy foreign minister; and senior members of the Polish clergy.

The crash also claimed the life of Poland's last president in exile, who served in that role while based in England until the first democratically elected president, Lech Wałęsa, took office in 1990. Of course, people in this house and the Polish community would remember the Nobel Prize winner's visit to Adelaide just a few years ago and how he touched all of our hearts. Among the victims was one of modern Poland's true popular heroes, Anna Walentynowicz, the former crane driver and trade union activist whose sacking in 1980 sparked the strike that led to the creation of the Solidarity movement. In short, this most tragic accident robbed Poland of so many of its political, spiritual and cultural elite.

Compounding the world's shock and disbelief was the fact that the party was on its way to honour the memory of an earlier generation of Polish leaders and heroes that had been murderously cut down. The passengers were flying to Russia to take part in ceremonies marking the 70th anniversary of the notorious Katyn massacre of Poles during World War II. In a chillingly cruel reminder of that unspeakable episode in Polish history, the President's plane crashed near a forest where in 1940 Russian secret police shot some of the nearly 22,000 Poles murdered in that massacre.

I, like many members of this house, have had a long-held deep respect and admiration for Poland and friendship for its people, and that is why I feel enormous sympathy and empathy for them and for those of Polish heritage at this time of shock and sorrow. As the pain slowly heals, I hope they can find reassurance and comfort in the knowledge that Poland has been unfairly tested many times in the past, yet its spirit and faith have always prevailed.

Poles have, indeed, inspired the world with their refusal to yield to oppression and tyranny and to remain true to their values, their faith and their beliefs. It is a nation that has known oppression and tyranny more than just about any other nation. For so long it has felt the sting of the jackboot, whether it was under the Soviets or under the Nazis. It has seen its borders violated and redrawn time and time again.

Think about recent Polish history in the 20th century: the role of the Polish spitfire pilots in the Battle of Britain with the highest strike rate of any squadron during World War II; when they fought alongside Australian diggers at Tobruk and El Alamein or alongside commonwealth forces at Monte Cassino in Italy through the Italian campaign; and then of course the Warsaw ghetto, Auschwitz, and the heroism of the Warsaw uprising.

For centuries Poland was dominated and downtrodden save for the brief ray of sunshine that accompanied the rise of the Second Republic following World War I. Poland has emerged from the challenges of history as a stronger, braver and more resilient nation. In the wake of this latest tragedy, the people of Poland worldwide will doubtless draw strength from the example set by their passionately patriotic late president.

Lech Kaczyński assumed the office of president in December 2005, having served as mayor of Warsaw for three years. He and his twin brother, Jarosław, were born in June 1949, and they both starred in a celebrated 1962 Polish film called The Two Who Stole the Moon. Lech became involved in Poland's trade union anti-Communist movement of the 1970s and, like many others, was arrested for his activities and his beliefs. He then held a series of senior bureaucratic, civic, parliamentary and ministerial positions from the late 1980s and he jointly founded the Law and Justice Party. He and Jarosław formed a formidable political partnership, with the latter at one stage becoming prime minister.

By all reports, the president was a strong-willed and pugnacious man. He was not afraid to speak his mind and he was capable of badly falling out with old friends, including Lech Wałęsa. Nevertheless, he was widely respected for standing up for what he saw as the best interests of Poland. He also had a thorough understanding of history, of its uses and abuses, and of its power to help ultimately liberate people from the ghosts of the past and to help them start afresh. That was why the event to mark the 70th anniversary of the Katyn massacre held such significance for both the president and the Polish people.

There is no better insight into the president's philosophy than the speech he personally wrote for the Katyn commemoration that he was planning to deliver in Russia. The Polish government publicly released that speech the day after his funeral, and it is, indeed, a powerful and poignant document. In an eloquently haunting speech that was, tragically, never delivered, he wrote:

Lasting relationships cannot be built on lies. Lies divide people and nations. Lies bring with them hatred and anger. Truth, however painful it might be, sets us free. It connects us. It brings justice with it. Truth guides us on the road to reconciliation. Let the wound of Katyn heal at last.

On 18 April, at the funeral of Lech and Maria Kaczyński, the word rang out across Poland and around the world: the word that the latest in a long line of Polish heroes whose lives had been cut tragically short, was being laid to rest. It rang out from St Mary's Basilica, across Cracow's Market Square, and along the royal route to Wawel Castle. It echoed around nearby parks and gardens, down streets and laneways, across thawing forests and forgotten battlefields, through the capitals of Europe and beyond.

Here in Australia we are, in geographic terms, a long way away from Poland, but we understand that nation's enormous loss and, therefore, share its pain, and wish it God speed as it slowly recovers. In particular, on behalf of my parliamentary colleagues and all South Australians, I extend our sympathies to our state's Polish communities, some of whose leaders have joined us today in the public gallery.

The South Australian government, this parliament and our people, have enjoyed a long, enriching and warm relationship with the people of Poland since the first Polish settlers arrived here more than 150 years ago. In the wake of the accident, I wrote to the President of the Federation of Polish Organisations, Mr Balcerak, who is here with us today, and to the Ambassador for the Republic of Poland in Australia, His Excellency Andrzej Jaroszynski.

I offered, on behalf of all South Australians, our deepest condolences to the Polish communities here, throughout Australia and around the world. This tragedy will be remembered with reverential sadness for years and for generations to come. If it is possible for such a dark cloud to yield a glimpse of a silver lining, perhaps it is the fact that the tragedy of Katyn has again been reinforced in the world's collective consciousness. Now we have another reason never to forget Katyn.

Both of these sad events will be mourned in our state, in private homes, churches, social clubs, at concerts, Polish festivals and on suburban soccer grounds. At the Katyn Memorial outside the Dom Polski Centre in Angas Street and at the historic Polish Hill River settlement in the Clare Valley the 96 lives that were lost will be remembered and honoured. May they rest in peace, may they never be forgotten and long live Poland.

Honourable members: Hear, hear!

Mrs REDMOND (Heysen—Leader of the Opposition) (14:14): I rise to second the motion. I apologise in advance to the members of the Polish community who are with us if I fail to pronounce all the Polish names correctly. It is with great sadness that I, too, record this tragic day. On Saturday 10 April 2010, Poland lost its president, Lech Kaczyński, a man who had played a major role in post-communist Poland. We also lost his wife and many serving members of the country's political elite and other members of Poland's community.

Mr Kaczyński was only 60 years old. He and his wife, as the Premier has said, were killed when their plane crashed on approach to a Russian airport. They were part of an official party, a delegation travelling to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Katyn massacre in which 22,000 Polish soldiers were killed by Soviet troops during the Second World War. Also on board were leading members of Poland's political elite, including the chief of Poland's armed forces, the head of its navy, the central bank governor and opposition lawmakers. For obvious reasons the incident prompted a period of national mourning in Poland, and a number of countries also declared periods of national mourning.

Lech Kaczyński and his identical twin brother, Jarosław, were born on 18 June 1949. Although both brothers would become part of Poland's political elite, they started on a rather different path, at the age of 13, in what was apparently quite a hit movie, The Two Who Stole the Moon, in 1962. They were playing a town's troublemakers.

Lech Kaczyński went on to study at the Faculty of Law and Administration at the University of Warsaw. He was then interned under martial law from December 1981 until October 1982 for his involvement in the Solidarity movement, the pro-democratic anti-Communist movement in Poland, Workers Defence Committee, as well as the independent trade union movement.

After the fall of communism the twins became powerbrokers in Polish politics, and Mr Kaczyński was head of Poland's national security office under president Lech Wałęsa's victory in the country's first free presidential elections in 1990. Mr Kaczyński and his twin brother Jarosław were instrumental in Wałęsa's victory. Mr Kaczyński then became justice minister in the subsequent government. He was active in all levels of politics, and in 2001 he founded the Conservative political party with his brother. Lech Kaczyński was the president of the party between 2001 and 2003.

In 2002, in the midst of that, he was elected the Mayor of Warsaw. He started his term in office by declaring a war on corruption. He also strongly supported the construction of the Museum of the Warsaw Uprising. He also promoted the construction of the Museum of Polish Jews in Warsaw by donating city land to the project. Further illustrating his support for Polish Jews, on 21 December 2008 Lech Kaczyński became the first Polish head of state to visit a Polish synagogue and attend religious services held there. In public office, both the Kaczyński brothers campaigned to expose those who had collaborated with the communists and promised a 'moral revolution' against corruption.

Lech Kaczyński's appeal was based on his image as an incorruptible politician who, unlike some post-Communist leaders, never personally benefited from politics. He was elected president in 2005 and named his brother as Prime Minister in 2006. The win followed a general election victory by the Law and Justice Party, led by his brother, and made the Kaczyński duo the undisputed first family in the new European Union member state.

While Lech Kaczyński was a sometimes controversial politician with far right and populist views on many issues, he will be remembered for the instrumental role he played in post-communist Polish politics. The loss of such a strong and inspirational leader, along with his wife and the many others who perished with them, will leave a great void in Polish politics and Polish society as a whole.

On 15 April I was privileged to attend a special mass for the late president at St Francis Xavier's Cathedral, and the sadness at Mr Kaczyński's passing was evident among the members of the Polish community who attended that mass. On behalf of the Liberal opposition I express my heartfelt sympathy to the Polish community of South Australia, and I want to make that known especially to those of that community who are present with us today. I commend the motion to the house.

The Hon. G. PORTOLESI (Hartley—Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation, Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Minister for Youth, Minister for Volunteers) (14:19): I join the Premier, the Leader of the Opposition and my parliamentary colleagues today in honouring the president of Poland, Lech Kaczyński, his wife Maria and the 94 others killed last month.

The atmosphere surrounding the mourning of the president was best summed up by a Polish parliamentarian who said on the day of the crash, 'There is no right or left today; there is no separation, no difference.' When we read through the list of those who perished, we understand why the former president of Poland, Lech Wałęsa, did indeed describe them as the elite of the nation.

The victims also included relatives of those killed in the 1940 Katyn massacre, who were flying to Russia to take part in the remembrance ceremonies for that event—such a horrific irony. Try as we might here in Australia, it is difficult for us to fully comprehend the scale of loss that Poland has suffered. Today, I would like particularly to acknowledge the significant response by members of our local Polish community, who have remained close to their homeland's culture, politics and public affairs.

The recent history of Poland, especially since 1980, has been tumultuous, and I think the local community sees itself as being part of that difficult, yet ultimately triumphant journey to freedom and true self-determination. In this regard, I join the Premier in acknowledging the presence in the public gallery here today of members of the local Polish community and in extending my personal sympathies to them.

The manner in which South Australia's Poles came together and comforted one another reflects great credit on them as a people and as valued members of our own multicultural community here in South Australia. This was particularly evident a few days after the tragedy when the community came together for a memorial service as celebrated by Monsignor David Cappo and attended by a crowd of about 900 people. I was not able to attend that event, but I was honoured to attend further memorial events held here in Adelaide on Sunday 18 April. This included a memorial mass at the Church of the Resurrection at Unley, where the church was overflowing.

Immediately after the mass, about 70 people attended the Dom Polski Centre in Angus Street, Adelaide's most well-known meeting place for the Polish community. Here, we were clearly reminded of the Polish community's strong connection with the history of their homeland and, in particular, the Katyn massacre in 1940.

The courtyard of the Dom Polski Centre was the site of an extremely moving ceremony, where I was honoured to lay a wreath with my colleague, the former minister, Michael Atkinson, who was very close to the Polish community. Although it saddened me that these remembrance ceremonies were some of the first public events I attended in my capacity as the new minister, I was honoured to be given the opportunity to acknowledge the Polish community's loss and share in their community spirit.

When terrible events strike nations, we struggle adequately to express our sympathy. So, in closing today, I wish to quote a few lines from a sonnet by a famous Polish poet, Adam Mickiewicz, called Goodnight:

Goodnight! No more merriment for us today,

May angels enfold you in blue wings of cheer,

Goodnight! May your eyes ease after bitter tears,

Goodnight! May your heart's passion slumber away.

The SPEAKER (14:23): I join with members in expressing my condolences to the Polish community, both here and abroad. I ask that the motion be carried in the usual manner, in silence, following which the house will be suspended until the ringing of the bells.

Motion carried by members standing in their places in silence.


[Sitting suspended from 14:23 to 14:35]


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