Aleksander KwasniewskiIn an exclusive interview for the English Section at Polish Radio, former president Aleksander Kwasniewski says that the divisions in society following the Smolensk plane disaster are the deepest in the country since Poland threw off the chains of communism in 1989.
“The split between political groups is not so dangerous. The real danger is a split, a division, in society,” Aleksander Kwasniewski, the only president to be elected to a second term in Poland since the fall of communism tells our reporter, Michal Kubicki.
“During the last twenty years, following the start of our [democratic] transition, the split [in Poland] this year has been the deepest ever. I remember [the divisions] after the Round Table talks [in 1989]. I remember them after my election in 1995. Of course, such divisions existed. But these divisions were never so deep and so dangerous.“
He tells us that the conflict of who to blame for the Smolensk tragedy and the rows over how to commemorate President Lech Kaczynski and 95 others who died near Smolensk on 10 April last year have left the general public “exhausted”.
Kwasniewski calls for a more bi-partisan approach to identify the main problems facing Poland and how to overcome them.
He also says that the political tension may decrease after this autumn’s general election, but the conflict could be “long lasting”. (pg)
The second part of this interview, where Mr Kwasniewski talks about Poland’s role in the international community, will follow in the next few days…