Lech Walesa leads Solidaroty struggle

Lech Walesa has told an Italian newspaper that John Paul II’s contributions to the overthrow of communism were great but the struggle of the Solidarity trade union was what finally tipped the balance.

In an interview with La Repubblica, Walesa said: “The Pope organised us for prayers, not to fight.”

The former Solidarity leader’s comments come just days before the late John Paul II’s beatification ceremony in Rome on 1 May.

"The Pope did not end communism; he did pastoral work, and we used that work in our struggle," Walesa adds. "The proof? In Cuba, more people gathered in the square [when JP II made a pilgrimage to Havana in 1998] but there was nobody to turn his words into action,” he said, referring to the fact that no Cuban Solidarity movement emerged following the historic visit.

When asked, however, what would have happened in 1980s Poland without the Polish Pope being elected to lead the Roman Catholic church, Walesa said: “We would have had to struggle much, much longer. Communism would have fallen anyway, but there could have been bloodshed”. (pg)