Alliance of Democrats (Poland)

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Alliance of Democrats
Stronnictwo Demokratyczne
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Website
www.sd.pl

The Alliance of Democrats (Polish: Stronnictwo Demokratyczne, SD) is a Polish centre-left party. Initially formed in 1937, the party underwent a revival in 2009, when it was joined by liberal politician Paweł Piskorski, formerly a member of the Civic Platform.

History

Formation (1937–1939)

The Alliance of Democrats has its origins in the Democratic Clubs, which were opposed to authoritarian and nationalistic tendencies in the Second Republic of Poland between the two World Wars (1919–1939). The first club was founded in Warsaw in September 1937, and by 1938 there were clubs in all major urban centres, with active participation of the co-founders of Polish independence, whose primary objective was ensuring a fully democratic political system in Poland. The group's founders came from the democratic circles of former legionaries, peasant activists, left-wing

Senate
, was appointed as the first party leader of the Alliance.

The Party was officially established in April 1939 at the All-Polish Founding Assembly (1st Congress) in Warsaw. The political line of the new grouping was determined by the political metrics of its leading activists and disagreement with the evolution of the "May Revolution" system limiting civil liberties. Hence, specific postulates did not at first aim at overthrow, but at a significant reform of the system towards the restitution of democratic values. Among the classic postulates were: the reform of electoral law to the Sejm and Senate, as well as a broad programme of social and economic transformations, which was characterised by a return to democratic models shaped on the basis of the actual application of the provisions of the March Constitution (inter alia, fully democratic electoral law, respect for the law and civic freedoms, radical defence of the rule of law and independence of the judiciary, criticism of nationalist and totalitarian tendencies likely to destabilise the state). The personification of the party's values and political programme thus became a citizen enjoying freedom and the achievements of the democratic system, honouring the basic communal value of labour, the creator of state power.[3]

Despite the democratic vision of the party, the party itself was governed in an authoritarian manner and principally agreed with the guided democracy system of Sanacja and Józef Piłsudski. Thus the party was regarded as a representative of "progressive Piłsudskism", a notable expression of which was the acceptance of a presidential republic where the head of state was the most important element, harmonising the so-called excesses of parliamentarism and bureaucracy. It is impossible not to notice internal contradictions in such a construction. However, given the nature of the Polish political scene at the time and the measure of the opposition's actual influence on the activities of the post-May camp, such inconsistencies should be seen as an attempt to reconcile with the realities of the political system the elements of its own tradition of democratic overtones related to its political roots.[3]

World War II years (1939–1945)

After the outbreak of the Second World War, the Alliance of Democrats, like other political groupings, was subject to a process of temporary disintegration. After its reactivation in autumn 1940 and the adoption of the clandestine code name 'Rectangle', the party gave unequivocal support to the legal government of the Republic of Poland in exile. The ideological declaration, published in September of that year, defined Poland as a country torn between two aggressors; hence the totalitarian Soviet ideology was considered equivalent to Nazism and characterised as criminal and alien to the Polish mentality. The majority of SD members found a place in the structures of the Polish Underground State, such as the Union for Armed Struggle (ZWZ) and later the Home Army (AK), also holding positions of responsibility there.

During World War II, a significant number of Alliance members were involved in the anti-Nazi Polish underground. One of its major leader was active in the Vila Ghetto. It was partly due to their initiative that Żegota, the Council for Aid to Jews, was founded in 1942 as well as the Social Organisation for Self-Defence. The Alliance of Democrats and other political and social organisations set up the Association of Democrats, which then entered the Council of National Unity, the Polish Underground State Parliament. In 1943 SD split into two factions, one of which supported the Polish Government-in-Exile in London, and the second co-operated with the communist Polish Workers' Party and recognized the State Country Council as the actual parliament and the Provisional Government of National Unity as the actual government of Poland. In 1945, following the Red Army seizure of Poland, two members of the Association, Eugeniusz Czarnowski and Stanisław Michałowski, were arrested by the NKVD and tried in the Stalinist-orchestrated Trial of the Sixteen, aimed at eliminating non-communist Polish political leadership.

The political programme promulgated during the occupation had the unmistakable mark of synthesising pre-war experience and taking into account the geopolitical conditions changed by the outbreak of war. Thus, in April 1943, the SD proclaimed a vision of so-called integral democracy intended to be a combination of a pluralistic state formula and democratic socio-economic relations. Postulates such as economic equality and social justice were to become the driving forces behind the proposed form of political and social itre. The Republic of Poland was perceived as an entity existing between western neo-democracies and itotalisms, hence the necessity to create a new order became the content facing the imperative of defending sovereignty. Thus, through the ideology of social egalitarianism, welfare and respect for the fundamental rights of the individual realised in a democratic republic, based on a five-part electoral law, the independence of the judiciary and the presidential system (the head of state, characterised by a superior role, appeared as a systemic bond), the realisation of a kind of third way was proposed as a developmental option for peacetime.[3]

The London faction ceased to exist in 1945.

During Communism (1946–1988)

In the

East Germany and Czechoslovakia). Even so, the party managed to sustain its non-Marxist orientation. Nevertheless, the party did adopt socialism in its programmatic declaration, stating: "The Alliance of Democrats, seeing in the perspective of socialist Poland the foundations of its full state sovereignty and the conditions for its economic, social and cultural progress, would accompany the working masses on their march towards socialism." The theses of Marxian dialectics were also introduced into the party decalogue, raising the view of the final end of capitalism and the beginning of the era of socialism.[3]

After the end of World War II, the leadership of the party was infiltrated by ideological communists, and included former activists supportive of the Soviet Union - the party was used as a tool of legitimacy of the newly established Communist Poland. Soviet-aligned officials started enforcing strict party discipline and uniformity, ensuring that the party, despite its name and pre-war alignment, would be a loyal part of the communist government, as a "token" liberal faction. Despite the marked predominance of crypto-communist members, there was also a liberal-democratic wing active in the SD, represented among others by Kraków activists such as Adam Krzyżanowski and Jerzy Langrod. They criticised the industrialisation carried out according to Soviet models, expressed a friendly attitude to the PSL, and attacked the new, pseudo-democratic electoral law. The Katowice SD organisation took a similar stance, verbalising its position on, among other things, an autonomous electoral list before the 1947 election to the Legislative Sejm, and officially defending the honour of Home Army soldiers, many of whom were incorporated into the Party's work in Silesia.[3]

In January 1946, the SD announced its official, post-war program. It expressed the will to base political self-identification on the communist PWKN manifesto, but by making direct reference to the reformist tradition of the Great Sejm, the Kościuszko Uprising or the activities of the Polish Democratic Society, the party also indicated a broader than class-based basis for activity. The document's provisions postulated a system ensuring democracy in politics, socio-economic affairs and culture. The party system was to be characterised by such values as pluralism, egalitarianism and mutual recognition of powers. The new regime was to guarantee the rule of law and civil liberties, such as freedom of conscience and religion, resulting in a stable rule of law. In a programmatic nod to its own pre-war tradition, labour was seen as the basis of wealth, which in an unforced way coincided with one of the conclusions of the new power's making the working masses the formal sovereign. The basis of foreign policy was seen in cooperation and friendship with the Soviet Union.[3]

The "socialization" of SD had the effect of reducing the social base, traditionally made up of intelligentsia circles and a growing group of craftsmen, who sought to find in the party an expression of their interests, increasingly threatened by the growing oppressiveness of the political system. The number of members of the party's structures was gradually decreasing: from 140,000 in 1945, only 48,000 remained four years later, which, given the conditions in which it operated, i.e. the de facto omnipotence of the communist party and the intensive totalisation of socio-political life, was regarded as a nevertheless relatively satisfactory result. However, democratic activists with a desire for social reform, who clearly articulated political independence and democratic subjectivity, were gradually leaving the party, despite the party constituting a relatively safe refugee from political persecution.[3]

At their 12th Convention in 1981, the Alliance put forward proposals to establish a

Constitution of 3 May 1791, should become a national holiday, as it had always been for the Alliance of Democrats. After martial law was declared in Poland in 1981, a group of MPs representing the Alliance, Hanna Suchocka, Dorota Simonides and Jan Janowski among them, voted against abolishing the Solidarity Trade Union
. Some Alliance members became engaged in the activities of the anti-Communist underground opposition.

Fall of Communism and post-communist era (1989–2009)

In 1989 representatives of the Alliance of Democrats participated actively in the

Constitution of 3 May
was proclaimed a national holiday, the state again assumed "Republic of Poland" as its name, and an eagle wearing a crown was restored as the national emblem.

After 1990, most of the members of the SD joined other parties, such as the

Polish parliament
.

Rebirth after 2009

Due to the financial considerations required under the Polish political system, parties need to have sufficient funding to finance large-scale campaigns if they are new or have recently obtained under 3% of voters' support. The Democratic Party possessed a large number of properties, which made it possible to finance several political campaigns after sale of these properties. The value of its assets is estimated at PLN 65 to 250 million, as the Rzeczpospolita newspaper calculated.[6]

After 2009 new politicians joined the party, such as centrist-conservative Paweł Piskorski. The party restored their representation in parliament, by taking over of the members of the Democratic Party – demokraci.pl group consisting of three members (including Marian Filar, Bogdan Lis and Jan Widacki). After Paweł Piskorski rise to the leadership of the party many of its old members of party resigned from being members of SD. In the 2009 European Elections, the party's candidates obtained 0.027% of votes because of registration problems and lack of organisation. Since May 2009 the Alliance of Democrats has been a member of the European Democratic Party. SD supported former Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrzej Olechowski's candidature in the 2010 presidential election. In the 2011 parliamentary elections Alliance did not register any lists but three[7][8][9] candidates who were enlisted on the Poland Comes First election list but were supported by SD received 0,0031% of votes. The Party was to announce its new political programme at its XXVI Congress.[10]

Before the 2019 European elections SD declared its desire to join the European Coalition, however, none of the party members were on its electoral list. Before the 2019 parliamentary elections SD joined the Polish Coalition. Several members were on the PSL list, but they had not won any seats in the Sejm.[citation needed]

Headquarters of the SD, in Warsaw

Ideology

The party incorporates liberal, social democratic and left-wing elements, which also resulted in the willigness of the party to work with the trade union movement. The party promotes state interventionism and economic planning and calls for land reform in the interests of smallholder and landless peasants. The party also proposed the development of co-operatives and the "decartelisation" of the market. The party also endorsed the concept of a "third way" between capitalism and socialism. After 1989, the party described its ideology as one that includes "both elements of the social teachings of the Church and the tenets of social democracy" and that "as a party of effective people, we want to appeal to our electorate, which consists of private businessmen, craftsmen and the intelligentsia".[11]

Chairmen of the party since 1939

Electoral history

Sejm elections

Election Leader Votes % Seats +/– Position
1947
Wincenty Rzymowski as part of Democratic Bloc
41 / 444
- Steady 4th
1952
Wacław Barcikowski as part of FJN - PZPR
25 / 425
Increase 25 Increase 1st
1957
Stanisław Kulczyński
39 / 459
Increase 14 Steady 3rd
1961
39 / 460
Steady Steady 3rd
1965
39 / 460
Steady Steady 3rd
1969
39 / 460
Steady Steady 3rd
1972
Zygmunt Moskwa
39 / 460
Steady Steady 3rd
1976
Andrzej Benesz
37 / 460
Decrease 2 Steady 3rd
1980
Tadeusz Witold Młyńczak
37 / 460
Steady Steady 3rd
1985
as part of PRON
35 / 460
Decrease 2 Steady 3rd
1989
27 / 460
Decrease 12 Decrease 4th
1991 Aleksander Mackiew 159,017 1.4%
1 / 460
Decrease 26 Decrease 14th

References

  1. ^ Piskorski, Paweł (2020). Historia Stronnictwa Demokratycznego 1980-1991 (PDF) (in Polish). Warszawa: Uniwersytet Warszawski. p. 27. W kwestiach gospodarczych i społecznych program SD był eklektyczny, zawierając w sobie zarówno pierwiastki liberalne, socjaldemokratyczne, jak i radykalnie lewicowe. [On economic and social issues, the SD's programme was eclectic, incorporating both liberal, social democratic and radical leftist elements.]
  2. ^ Piskorski, Paweł (2020). Historia Stronnictwa Demokratycznego 1980-1991 (PDF) (in Polish). Warszawa: Uniwersytet Warszawski. p. 675. Dwa dni przed Kongresem o jego zadaniach wypowiadał się na konferencji prasowej przewodniczący SD Aleksander Mackiewicz. „SD z 80 tysiącami członków jest największą obok PSL partią w Polsce" i ma „uniwersalny program", który zawiera „zarówno elementy nauki społecznej Kościoła, jak i założenia socjaldemokracji". [Two days before the Congress, SD chairman Aleksander Mackiewicz spoke about its tasks at a press conference. "With 80,000 members, the SD is the largest party in Poland next to the PSL" and has a "universal programme" that includes "both elements of the Church's social teaching and the tenets of social democracy".]
  3. ^ .
  4. ^ Herman, Marceli (2022). Przemiany ustrojowe a funkcjonowanie Sił Zbrojnych Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej w systemie bezpieczeństwa państwa w latach 1989–2004 (in Polish). Kraków: Uniwersytet Komisji Edukacji Narodowej w Krakowie. p. 167. Stronnictwo Demokratyczne (SD). Po wojnie zostało przekształcone w stronnictwo polityczne satelickie wobec monopartyjnego PZPR. Momentem przełomowym Stronnictwa Demokratycznego w powojennej Polsce należy uznać decyzje z sierpnia 1989 r., w której to władze SD pozytywnie odpowiedziały na apel Lecha Wałęsy i postanowiły utworzyć koalicje rządową z „Solidarnością" (oraz z ZSL), a także współtworząc rząd Tadeusza Mazowieckiego (wrzesień 1989-grudzień 1990). Jednak po 1991 r. znaczenie ugrupowania malało, wprowadzając w kolejnych wyborach (1997 i 2001) pojedynczych posłów. Ideologia partii odnosiła się poziomu centrolewicowych. [Alliance of Democrats (SD). After the war, it was transformed into a political party satellite to the monoparty PZPR. The breakthrough moment for the Alliance of Democrats in post-war Poland should be considered the decisions of August 1989, when the SD authorities responded positively to the appeal of Lech Wałęsa and decided to form a government coalition with "Solidarity" (and with the ZSL), and co-founded Tadeusz Mazowiecki's government (September 1989-December 1990). However, after 1991, the importance of the grouping diminished, introducing single MPs in subsequent elections (1997 and 2001). The party's ideology referred to centre-left values.]
  5. ^ Piskorski, Paweł (2020). Historia Stronnictwa Demokratycznego 1980-1991 (PDF) (in Polish). Warszawa: Uniwersytet Warszawski. p. 27. Powstałe Stronnictwo Demokratyczne lokowało się po lewej, postępowej stronie sceny politycznej w ostrej kontrze do obozu rządzącego. [The established Alliance of Democrats positioned itself on the left, progressive side of the political scene in sharp opposition to the ruling camp.]
  6. ^ "Rosną rywale Platformy". Rp.pl. Retrieved 28 June 2019.
  7. ^ "Wybory 2011 - Geografia - Okręg wyborczy do Sejmu nr 19". Wybory2011.pkw.gov.pl. Retrieved 28 June 2019.
  8. ^ "Wybory 2011 - Geografia - Okręg wyborczy do Sejmu nr 6". Wybory2011.pkw.gov.pl. Retrieved 28 June 2019.
  9. ^ "Wybory 2011 - Geografia - Okręg wyborczy do Sejmu nr 36". Wybory2011.pkw.gov.pl. Retrieved 28 June 2019.
  10. ^ "AKTUALNOŚCI | Stronnictwo Demokratyczne". Archived from the original on 2015-05-18. Retrieved 2013-03-13.
  11. ^ Piskorski, Paweł (2020). Historia Stronnictwa Demokratycznego 1980-1991 (PDF) (in Polish). Warszawa: Uniwersytet Warszawski.

External links