League of Polish Families

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League of Polish Families
League of Polish Families logo
Leader Roman Giertych
Founded 30 May 2001
Headquarters ul. Hoża 9, 00-528 Warsaw
Official ideology/
political position		 National conservatism, Christian Democracy
International affiliation 5 MEPs in UEN, 2 in ID and 3 N/A in the European Parliament
Website http://www.lpr.pl
Poland

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The League of Polish Families (Liga Polskich Rodzin, or LPR) is a national conservative political party in Poland. It is represented in the Polish parliament and in Poland's current ruling right-wing government. The media in some western European countries have depicted the party as distasteful, and it is widely regarded by them as being a far-right party. In particular, the party's opposition to homosexual rights has led to condemnation from european Left.

Contents

[edit] History

The LPR was created just before the elections in 2001 and gained 8% of the vote, giving it 38 out of 460 seats. Their leader, Roman Giertych, studied Law and History at Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań. During his career his political alliances have included such Polish National Democrats as Jan Łopuszański, Antoni Macierewicz, Gabriel Janowski and others.

Roman Giertych's father, Maciej Giertych, also a member of LPR, is in the European Parliament, and his grandfather was a deputy in the parliament of the Second Polish Republic prior to World War II as member of National Democracy, a nationalist political party opposed to Józef Piłsudski that initially sought to ally Poles with Imperial Russia against Germany in the First World War.

Some sources claim that the LPR owes much of its success to Radio Maryja, a Catholic radio station with a large and growing following among both older Poles and those with strongly religious worldview. Both Radio Maryja and LPR are financed by Jan Kobylanski, a Uruguay-based millionaire. Kobylanski was reportedly prevented from entering the US due to his alleged wartime collaboration with the Nazis. Soon after the election in 2001 a group of deputies separated from LPR, creating a new party known now as Porozumienie Polskie (Polish Circle) led by Jan Łopuszański and Ruch Katolicko-Narodowy (Catholic-National Movement) led by Antoni Macierewicz.

In the 2004 elections to the European Parliament LPR received 16% votes, which gave it 15 out of 54 seats reserved for Poland in European Parliament. This made the LPR the second largest party in Poland in that election, second only to the liberal conservative Platforma Obywatelska, and well ahead of the then ruling post-communist Sojusz Lewicy Demokratycznej, the populist Samoobrona and the conservative Prawo i Sprawiedliwość. However, two notable features of that election were the low overall turnout (less than 20% of eligible voters) and the high average age of LPR voters. Thus, the long-term significance of the LPR's strong performance in that election is unclear. In the 2005 elections LPR again received 8% of votes, but saw its seats reduced from 38 to 34.

[edit] Political agenda

The political agenda is a mix of nationalism and Christian solidarism. Recently the party has begun to emphasize populism, patriotism and conservative social values. The party combines social conservatism with isolationism and left-wing economic policies, based upon its own interpretation of Catholic social teaching.

The LPR opposes: the selling of land to foreign nationals (especially German Heimatvertriebene), abolishing the draft, legalization of "soft drugs", abortion, euthanasia, and gay marriage. It supports capital punishment, maintaining universal health care and public education, and supports the withdrawal of Polish troops from Iraq. The LPR also supports the publication of the complete archives of the Polish communist secret police -- in other words, full "de-Communization."

The party particularly appeals to voters sympathetic towards traditional social values, the Catholic faith, and the concept of Polish national sovereignty. Its populism also attracts some who feel lost in the post-1989 political transformation of the country, although the post-communist PSL and Andrzej Lepper's Samoobrona ("Self Defense") appeal more directly to so-called marginalized voters.

Roman Giertych
Roman Giertych

Roman Giertych reactivated the "All-Polish Youth" (Młodzież Wszechpolska) organization in 1989, becoming its chairman; he remains honorary chairman. For several years he was a member of the National-Democratic Party (Stronnictwo Narodowo-Demokratyczne) and the National Party (Stronnictwo Narodowe), which merged with several other organizations to form the League of Polish Families (Liga Polskich Rodzin, LPR) in 2001.

[edit] Stance towards the European Union

The party is anti-EU. Although it was the only significant political force in Poland that unconditionally opposed Polish membership in the European Union (believing that a union controlled by social liberals could never be reformed), after Polish accession to the EU the party participated in European Parliament elections, in order to have actual influence over decisions made regarding Poland. During the 2004 controversy surrounding Rocco Buttiglione (the conservative Italian nominee as European Commissioner for "Justice, Freedom, and Security"), the LPR deputies demanded the dissolution of the parliament, feeling that it was too much under the influence of a homosexual lobby.

[edit] Eurosceptic caucus: Independence and Democracy

Main article: Independence and Democracy

In 2004, 31 MEPs from the UK, Poland, Denmark and Sweden formed the new Independence and Democracy, formerly the group for Europe of Democracies and Diversities. The main goals of this group are the rejection of any European Constitution and opposition to any plans for a federal Europe. Leaders include Nigel Farage of the United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP, 10 MEPs), Jens-Peter Bonde from Denmark, and Maciej Giertych from the League of Polish Families (10 MEPs).

[edit] Stance on homosexuality

The LPR is strongly against homosexuality, in both its rhetoric and policy objectives. Its youth organization, the All-Polish Youth, has on numerous occasions counter-protested against demonstrations organized by members of homosexual advocacy groups.

As mayor of Warsaw, PiS (The ruling Polish political party) leader Lech Kaczyński refused authorisation for the Equality Parade for gay rights on June 11, 2005 in Warsaw. The Parade took place despite the ban, and eggs, stones and bottles were thrown at the gay marchers by young people (nearly all men) from the All-Polish Youth (Młodzież Wszechpolska) youth organisation (a youth group associated with the League of Polish Families), with at least two people injured and hospitalized. However, the organization condemned the violence that took place.

[edit] Members of Polish Parliament (Sejm) (2005-)

MP, constituency

[edit] Members of Polish Parliament (Sejm) (2001-2005)

MP, constituency

[edit] Electoral committee

Except for LPR party members, the electoral committee consisted of several political parties and groups that formed separate parliamentary caucuses in Polish parliament:

[edit] Members of Polish Senate (2005 -)

  • Ryszard Bender, Lublin
  • Adam Biela, Chełm
  • Janusz Kubiak, Piła
  • Waldemar Kraska, Siedlce
  • Mieczysław Maziarz, Rzeszów
  • Jan Szafraniec, Białystok
  • Ludwik Zalewski, Białystok

[edit] Members of Polish Senate (2001-2005)

  • Adam Biela
  • Ryszard Matusiak - 11/07/2004 by-elections in Jelenia Góra/Legnica constituency, LPR caucus secretary
  • Jan Szafraniec - Senate LPR caucus chairman
  • Zofia Skrzypek-Mrowiec
  • Józef Sztorc - Senate LPR caucus vice-chairman

[edit] Members of the European Parliament

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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