a story lives forever
Register
Sign in
Form submission failed!

Stay signed in

Recover your password?
Register
Form submission failed!

Web of Stories Ltd would like to keep you informed about our products and services.

Please tick here if you would like us to keep you informed about our products and services.

I have read and accepted the Terms & Conditions.

Please note: Your email and any private information provided at registration will not be passed on to other individuals or organisations without your specific approval.

Video URL

You must be registered to use this feature. Sign in or register.

NEXT STORY

Failed attempt at normalisation

RELATED STORIES

The marathon congress of the Polish Socialist Party
Jan Józef Lipski Social activist
Comments (0) Please sign in or register to add comments

Odbyliśmy właśnie dopiero co Kongres Polskiej Partii Socjalistycznej, wielki maraton, który zaczął się o godzinie jedenastej jednego dnia, a skończył o godzinie dziewiątej następnego dnia, bez nocnej przerwy, a tylko z krótkimi przerwami na posiłki i ewentualnie papierosa. Mamy statut, mamy ciągle niepełny niestety program, program bieżący nie jest jeszcze... dokończony. Rada Naczelna dostała uprawnienia od Kongresu, żeby prowadzić dalej prace w tym kierunku, no i zobaczymy, co ta partia potrafi. Ale muszę powiedzieć, że gdyby ta partia nawet okazała się przez... że przez długi czas będzie za słabą, żeby wpływać na życie w Polsce, to ja i tak widzę, że miejsce wybrałem sobie właściwe, dlatego że gdzie jest miejsce dla człowieka, który uważa się od czterdziestu kilku lat za socjalistę? Właśnie tutaj, a nie gdzie indziej.

We've just held the great Congress of the Polish Socialist Party, a great marathon which began at 11 o'clock on one day and ended at nine o'clock the following day without an overnight break, just brief stops for meals and for cigarettes. We have a statute, a programme which, unfortunately, is still incomplete; the current programme is still unfinished. The General Council was authorised by the Congress to continue its work in this area so we'll see what this party is capable of. But I have to say that even if this party proves to be too weak to make much impact on life in Poland for some time, I still see that I've chosen the right place for myself, because where else should someone be who for 40-odd years has regarded himself as a socialist? Where else but here?

Jan Józef Lipski (1926-1991) was one of Poland's best known political activists. He was also a writer and a literary critic. As a soldier in the Home Army (Armia Krajowa), he fought in the Warsaw Uprising. In 1976, following worker protests, he co-founded the Workers' Defence Committee (KOR). His active opposition to Poland's communist authorities led to his arrest and imprisonment on several occasions. In 1987, he re-established and headed the Polish Socialist Party. Two years later, he was elected to the Polish Senate. He died in 1991 while still in office. For his significant work, Lipski was honoured with the Cross of the Valorous (Krzyż Walecznych), posthumously with the Grand Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta (1991) and with the highest Polish decoration, the Order of the White Eagle (2006).

Listeners: Jacek Petrycki Marcel Łoziński

Cinematographer Jacek Petrycki was born in Poznań, Poland in 1948. He has worked extensively in Poland and throughout the world. His credits include, for Agniezka Holland, Provincial Actors (1979), Europe, Europe (1990), Shot in the Heart (2001) and Julie Walking Home (2002), for Krysztof Kieslowski numerous short films including Camera Buff (1980) and No End (1985). Other credits include Journey to the Sun (1998), directed by Jesim Ustaoglu, which won the Golden Camera 300 award at the International Film Camera Festival, Shooters (2000) and The Valley (1999), both directed by Dan Reed, Unforgiving (1993) and Betrayed (1995) by Clive Gordon both of which won the BAFTA for best factual photography. Jacek Petrycki is also a teacher and a filmmaker.

Film director Marcel Łoziński was born in Paris in 1940. He graduated from the Film Directing Department of the National School of Film, Television and Theatre in Łódź in 1971. In 1994, he was nominated for an American Academy Award and a European Film Academy Award for the documentary, 89 mm from Europe. Since 1995, he has been a member of the American Academy of Motion Picture Art and Science awarding Oscars. He lectured at the FEMIS film school and the School of Polish Culture of Warsaw University. He ran documentary film workshops in Marseilles. Marcel Łoziński currently lectures at Andrzej Wajda’s Master School for Film Directors. He also runs the Dragon Forum, a European documentary film workshop.

Tags: Polish Socialist Party, General Council

Duration: 1 minute, 29 seconds

Date story recorded: October 1989

Date story went live: 15 March 2011