The 51st session of the Gostyń County Council was held on Thursday, 28 September 2023. At the request of the PiS council members’ club, an item was added to the agenda in which the council members should adopt a “Position on reparations and compensation for losses suffered by Poland as a result of the German attack and subsequent occupation of the Gostyń district.”

The board members of the PiS club requested that the district council express its support for activities aimed at obtaining the compensation that Poland is entitled to from Germany for the damage caused by the outbreak of World War II by the Third German Reich.

The PiS board members’ club sued that the Gostyń County Council, by taking a position regarding reparations, compensation and compensation, will support pro-state ideas to resolve the costs of the German occupation, to recover property stolen from Poland and raise awareness – in the country and throughout the world – of the irreparable losses repairs that Poland suffered during World War II.

– At the same time, the Gostyń County Council expects firm diplomatic and legal action from the Government of the Republic of Poland, aimed at obtaining appropriate compensation for Polish war losses from the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany. Poland should accept it in the name of historical truth and a fundamental sense of justice, which can create a solid foundation for Polish-German reconciliation – this is written in the draft position prepared by the district council members representing PiS.

War reparations is just a topic raised by PiS

When setting out the council’s work schedule, which this time lasted about 20 minutes, the permanent member of the Gostyń district council, Szymon Jakubowski, spoke. On behalf of the SKW – PSL club, he submitted a request to abolish the above agenda.

– According to generally accepted laws and standards, international policy is the responsibility of the central government. The president and government, with the assistance of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, are responsible for bilateral relations with other countries. Taking a position at the district level can only be done deliberately, which may do more harm than good. This will have no impact on the shape of international politics and will only raise the topic. Gostyń County Council must deal with issues that have an impact and that will truly improve the quality of life of residents. I believe that during this period we have always had substantive discussions about topics that are important to the district. We never deal with international politics (…) – said the council member.

We need to speak out loud, even though we will not solve this problem

Councilor Mirosława Bigaj of the PiS club considered councilor Jakubowski’s request regarding a matter of “historical importance” unjustified. He said that pulling it from the agenda was an attempt to hide the issue. According to him, the issue of World War II compensation worries many aggrieved families, including residents of the Gostyń district.

– I believe we have the right to speak on their behalf. And this motion deprives us of the opportunity to express opinions held by many residents of our district. (…) It is known that you have the majority and you can hide this problem. But I think we are all citizens of this country, and as a council, we represent our voters, explained council member Mirosława Bigaj, stressing that he is a historian and he thinks these things should be talked about out loud, regardless of whether “we will “. solve this problem or not.”

– We probably won’t get it. Maybe this is not our standard task, but maybe this is the time we should speak up (…). Does the current generation not really need history? There is such a view (…). This is a fight for memory, and not necessarily for the economic impact, which may take the form of restitution from the perpetrator. It’s about building social memory, PiS board members argue.

PiS councilors did not provide a legal basis, because if necessary, the voivode would revoke the resolution

Piotr Kogut, representing the same club, was “shocked by this action”. He admitted that he did not expect that at the agenda setting stage there would be a proposal to delete this item. He hopes that there will be discussions at the discussion stage of the project and whether it will be approved or not through voting.

Sebastian Czwojda agrees with the opinion of SKW-PSL council members that in fact the motive for making resolutions related to compensation or compensation is the internal politics of our country.

– The issue of estimating war losses and reparations is a very complicated area related to public international law. It is related to relations between countries and is based on agreements, understandings and systems operating in the interstate space. The current rhetoric is aimed at electoral interests and may soon become a campaign element in local government elections. Is it feasible to involve local governments, which are supposed to address the real problems of citizens (…), into political activities like this? (…) This is a mechanism to politicize regional government – explained councilor Czwojda and demanded to show the legal basis for adopting the resolution.

The PiS board members, Piotr Kogut and Mirosława Bigaj, did not state the legal basis. Councilor Kogut pointed out that resolutions regarding reparations and compensation were adopted by councilors in many communes and counties in Poland.

– If the resolution has a bad legal basis and is adopted wrongly, the voivode will cancel this resolution – he said.

Starosta from Gostyń: “Feelings should not occur in the local environment”

While setting the agenda, Gostyń star Robert Marcinkowski also spoke, appealing to the district councilors not to give in to patterns and not to be divided when discussing this issue.

– Councilor Mirosława Bigaj looked me straight in the eye and said that we do not represent the ruling party or do not support it. I don’t know on what basis the board members came to such a conclusion. I want to say openly that my party is Gostyń district and its residents. In this entire discussion, we must look for what unites, not what divides. (…) I don’t agree that we divide each other. I wanted to defend Sebastian Czwojda, but Mr Kogut just said that if anyone has different views, they should be identified with the opposition. Let’s not fit into this pattern, let’s not go down this path – exclaims Gostyń starosta. Just because someone sees the movie “The Green Border” in theaters doesn’t mean they have to be a livestock animal. The fact that someone defends the Polish uniform does not mean that he lacks artistic sensibility. The fact that someone watches TVP does not mean they support PiS, and someone who watches TVN does not necessarily support the opposition – says the mayor of Gostyń County.

According to star Robert Marcinkowski, the motivation for pulling this item from the agenda may have been the maturity of district council members.

– We are a council that is mature in dealing with issues that have a real impact and that is what I am calling for – let’s resolve and put aside the disputes and quarrels that should not happen in our local environment – said the Gostyń star.

In the end, the project regarding the adoption of the position of district councilors regarding reparations, compensation and compensation, proposed by the PiS council club, was removed from the agenda. Of the 17 council members present, Szymon Jakubowski’s proposal was supported by 12 council members, with 2 voting against and 3 abstaining.