A DIALOGUE WITH USAGE OF SMOOTHBORE WEAPON

FR. IRENEUSZ SKUBIŚ, Honourable Editor-in Chief of ‘Niedziela’

On Monday 9 February in Jastrzębie there were gunshots. Bullets from a smoothbore weapon, water cannons, tear gas – this is what our social dialogue looks like. People attacked a Coal Company in Jastrzębie, wanted to enter rooms of its management board and then police used force. There was nobody who could conduct talks so that they could bring some compromises. Many of us recalled ourselves the martial law and wounds caused by death of miners from ‘Wujek’ mine, not healed yet. Then the way in which the communist authority behaved towards the society was condemned and it seemed that it would not ever reappear. But here we are witnesses of ‘talks’ with usage of bullets, cannons and tear gas, although Poland boasts about being a friendly country for citizens. Indeed, it is particular friendship of the country which uses cruel violence and force towards people, instead of respect and support – in Jastrzębie about 20 people were wounded. And what is astonishing is the fact that authorities decide to such a way of ‘conducting a dialogue’ with the society in XXI century, when people are somehow overwhelmed by freedom and awareness of their value. Demanding some rights, they are right. After all, they know their enterprise from the base, they know why everything is going wrong and have a right to express their opinion on this issue. A social dialogue is mutual listening to each other, an attempt of understanding another party and an attempt of repairing a situation. We also see a strange dialogue in the Polish Seym: quarrels, an ordinary lack of good manners and enforcing issues which are most useless for the nation by those who have prevalence of votes and who are decision-makers…

We all must seriously think about what is the Polish raison d’etat. It is our mines, energetics, economy, this is the Polish countryside, health and existence safety of citizens. So, we must not answer people suffering from poverty that we are restricted by EU provisions which are superior, especially that it is not always the truth – other countries do not undertake EU suggestions, caring only about their interests. Ministers, parliamentarians are supposed to serve to the good of the Polish Republic, that is, the Polish man of labour – everyone of us. If they undertake to manage the country, they bear responsibility for what they do. It is not all about the Polish Republic or appearances of the truth or the good but about the real good and life of all of us in the truth.

So, only a real dialogue – surely not with usage of bullets, cannons or tear gas – is a road to agreement and going towards a better future.

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„Niedziela” 8/2015

Editor: Tygodnik Katolicki "Niedziela", ul. 3 Maja 12, 42-200 Czestochowa, Polska
Editor-in-chief: Fr Jaroslaw Grabowski • E-mail: redakcja@niedziela.pl