POLAND: Accusations fly as Polish Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski and popular ex-president Aleksander Kwasniewski meet in television debate

Accusations fly as Polish Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski and popular ex-president Aleksander Kwasniewski meet in television debate. Polish Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski and popular ex-president Aleksander Kwasniewski clashed in a television debate on Monday accusing each other of wasting the country's chances after the collapse of communism. The debate ahead of the country's snap elections is expected to set the tone of the election campaign and crystallize preferences of millions of undecided voters. Kwasniewski, a former communist said Kaczynski was ruining his achievements which included bringing the post-communist state into the European Union and NATO. Rightist and Eurosceptic Kaczynski said that under his rival's rule the country was too soft towards its international partners and compared the European Union to Poland's former overlord, the Soviet Union. "Mister President, there is a method called "jawohl" (Ger. "yes sir"). You have mastered it and Poles under your leadership were famous for this in the European Union. We have changed this method and we have definitely gained a lot, contrary to what you claim. Most of all we have gained respect, we have gained the position of a country which has to be reckoned with. You were unable to reach such a position, but, you have been taught this way: first Moscow, now Brussels," Kaczynski said referring to Kwasniewski's past during the communist rule, which was overthrown in 1989. Surveys show a fifth of the 30-million strong electorate are still not sure how to vote. Analysts said that even before the outcome of the debate is clear, it is set to be a boon for Kwasniewski, seeking to return to frontline politics as head of the Left and Centre (LiD) alliance. Kaczynski, who lacks Kwasniewski's easy-going, cosmopolitan manner has stayed calm throughout the debate but did not spare tempered attacks on his rival. He said that Kwasniewski's rule has deprived Poland of chances to develop. He also praised his government for the economic boom and falling unemployment but Kwasniewski pointed out that none of these could have been achieved if the country has not been in the EU. "If you say that I have achieved what anybody could achieve, then it is a harsh judgement and I don't agree. But I can also say that you will ruin whatever you can in this world," Kwasniewski retorted to Kaczynski's criticism of his time in power. "First of all, the European Union is a process; Poland entered it on very good terms. We are in the European Union among twenty seven members. Of course, we will have to continue discussing internal EU reforms and we should speak not as a scared country, not a country which will use loop-holes, which will be risking everything for an element or integral (EU vote counting methods proposed by the Kaczynski government) or anything else. We should be a country which proposes the best solutions for the future of the European Union in a constructive manner. You have nothing to say or propose for this," he added and promised that if in power he would rebuild the damaged relations with Germany and other EU countries. Analysts said that Kaczynski has agreed to the debate because he hoped it would steer the campaign into a battle between left and right, thereby sidelining his main rival, pro-business Civic Platform (PO) leader, Donald Tusk. According to co-host of the show and leading journalist of the private television channel TVN Monika Olejnik, the winner of the debate was clear. "I don't think you should criticise the ruling government abroad, but I can say that Jaroslaw Kaczynski won this debate. It's one to null for Jaroslaw Kaczynski, you can say he was brilliantly prepared, he had good answers and great questions. I think that Aleksander Kwasniewski underplayed this meeting," Olenik said after she left the studio. Kaczynski's Law and Justice (PiS) and the PO, both rooted in the Solidarity movement and holding conservative social values, are running neck-and-neck in surveys, with LiD in a distant third place. But LiD and PO appeal to the same urban, more affluent electorate so a strong showing by Kwasniewski may come at PO's expense. PiS is more popular in the countryside. The debate is also reinforcing Kaczynski's message that the party is the main bulwark against the post-communist left, which ruled Poland until 2005 but was hurt by corruption scandals. Kwasniewski stepped down as president in 2005 after two terms in office. Barred from running for a third term, he was replaced as president by Kaczynski's twin brother Lech. Kwasniewski remains popular among many Poles because of his staunchly pro-European, liberal views -- a stark contrast to the Eurosceptic and socially conservative Kaczynskis. His return to the limelight has already boosted support for the centre-left. Tusk, who is the favourite of Polish business and intellectual elites, has said he will challenge the winner of what he called a "preliminary" debate.

ITN Source | October 2, 2007

Tags:. .communist. .communism. .nato. .unable. .soviet