Władysław Stasiak is especially remembered for heading the Lech Kaczyński office. However, Wiktor Świetlik in “Stasiak’s Poland” reveals much more – from the struggle of youth against communism, through the prevention of arms smuggling, to secret international talks regarding the fate of Iraq and European security.

For Minister Stasiak, history is not an opportunity to show off his knowledge, but only a call to draw practical lessons from it: to avoid repeating the crimes that so often befall our society.

– wrote Professor Andrzej Nowak in the introduction to the book. Polska Stasiak by Wiktor Świetlik is a biography of one of the most interesting and talented Polish politicians active after 1989.

This is not only an interesting political biography, but also a reflection on what is missing in Polish public life today

says the author of the book.

Together with him, we follow the biographies of heroes from the time of Wrocław, the high school and student opposition in the last period of the Polish People’s Republic. Then we will walk through the corridors of the Supreme Audit Office and find ourselves in the room of inspectors who fight corruption, arms smuggling and SB connections. We will witness the fight against crime in Warsaw and the closing of an illegal club with the participation of former Grom soldiers. After all, we will find ourselves in the world of world politics. In the corridors of the White House, international missions, strategic meetings at the headquarters of the Polish National Security Bureau, and later in the office of Lech Kaczyński, where Władysław Stasiak was treated as the future leader of the Polish right wing.

In 2010, everyone thought it was the start of a great political career. Future right-wing leader and president

Wiktor Swietlik says:

So what does the future of the character look like? The logic of events and history of the second decade of the 21st century would suggest that a presidential career seems the most likely. These hopes were interrupted by the Smolensk tragedy, where the hero of the book died on the presidential plane.

Wiktor Świetlik not only presents a profile and biography of Władysław Stasiak, but also discusses the most important problems facing Poland in 1989 and seeks solutions to them in the activities of the heroes of his book. The book, as well as the hero’s profile, acquired particular relevance in the face of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, when the book’s hero’s wit, knowledge, and determination were sure to come in handy for Poland. Fortunately, we are left with an intellectual legacy and its achievements that we can draw on and thanks to which we can feel more secure.
Wiktor Świetlik, “Stasiak Poland”, Unitas, 2022