Stalinism in Poland

Articles The Person and the Challenges Volume Volume97(2019) (2017) Number Number 2, p. 9–23 5–22 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15633/pch.3446 http://dx.doi.org/10.15633/pch.xxxx Leszek Gęsiak Filip Musiał Jesuit University Ignatianum in Krakow, Poland ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7329-886 Institute of National Remembrance, Kraków, Poland Jesuit University Ignatianum in Kraków, Poland Reform of the Vatican media, a difficult search for a new path Stalinism in Poland Abstract Abstract Rapid technological changes, which are mainly the result of the progress in computer technology, in the last of the twentieth century, haveoftouched everythe area of life The article presents, indecades a synthetic manner, the mechanism introducing Stalinist and have enforced numerous innovations. Modern ways of communication and exchange system in Poland and describes its essence. It points to the importance of – until now of information, the development of social media,ofhave led to a significant and given less value especially in the relevant literature – the mechanism elimination of institutions complex transformation theconstitutional traditional media. all mediasocial companies and persons representingofthe orderPractically and state-creating fabric,around as well the world, in order to maintain their positionofon market, have had to make decisive as introducing in their place representatives thethe lowest social classes and institutions modifications of their ways of working. On one hand they remained available to the users of impersonating Polish centres of power, but in fact fully dependent on the USSR. The text traditional media, but on the other hand, they look for effective ways of reaching all those focuses on political and social issues, as well as on the extensive repression apparatus. who are using only new ways. Similarly, the Vatican media could not remain indifferent to the issues mentioned above. For several years the Vatican has initiated a process of Keywords preparation for a general reform of its media institutions. However, these works have Stalinism, totalitarianism, “people’s” Poland, communism, repression apparatus, ideoaccelerated at a great rate during the pontificate of Pope Francis. logy,The Joseph Stalin, Bolesław reform of the VaticanBierut, media Stalinist is not ansystem easy task. It concerns several independent institutions. Each one of them has their own history and way of announcing the Gospel. The widespread computerization, especially the development of the internet and social media, has also forced the Vatican to reflect on new ways of communicating. Among many questions, the most important were about the effectiveness of evangelization through the media, the ways of spreading the Pope’s message around the world to as many faithful as possible, and about the costs of necessary investments that would allow further, dynamic development and effective functioning of the Vatican media. 10 The Person and the Challenges Volume 9 (2019) Number 2, p. 9–23 1. Stalinism Stalinism is a termused in the related literature to define the period of the rule of Joseph Stalin – first in the USSR, then in the Eastern Bloc – but, above all, to define the methods of exercising his authority. The term is, however, not precise, and the periodization of this phenomenon also varies.1 However, it can be assumed that in the USSR Stalinism had crystallized in the 1930s, and after the war it was instilled in the countries occupied by the Red Army. The decline of the ideology and system of exercising power is associated with the death of Joseph Stalin in 1953.However, in the Eastern bloc countries the turning point cameonly later. With regard to the “people’s” Poland, those historians who accept Stalinism as a form of ideological pressure, believe that it began in 1948. On the other hand those who recognize repression and intimidation of society to be the leading features of Stalinismmark its beginning in 1944. For the purposes of this article, it is assumed that Stalinism in Poland began in 1944, along with the occupation of its territory by the Red Army, to reach its mature form in 1948. It finished in 1956, the year of the political “thaw” and the change of the tools of exercising power. Undoubtedly, it should be said that in the history of Poland the Stalinist years constituted a period, during which the communist party exercisedtotalitarian power. The years 1944–1948 should be considered as the time during which the totalitarianism would attain its full form, to be then followed by erosion between the years 1954–1956. It seems that although the discussion between historians and political scientists continues, the political system in the post1957 People’s Republic of Poland should be described as a system with strong totalitarian tendencies. 1 See definitions of Stalinism in e.g.: Leksykon historii powszechnej 1900–1945, ed. S. Sierpowski in collaboration with S. Żerko, Wydawnictwo Naukowe UAM, Poznań 1996, pp. 415–416; J. Palmowski, Słownik najnowszej historii świata 1900–2007, v. 5: przyunia, Rzeczpospolita, Prószyński i s-ka, Warszawa 2008, pp. 115–116; Słownik polityki, ed. M. Bankowicz, Wiedza Powszechna, Warszawa 1996, pp. 263–264; See also: L. Kołakowski, Główne nurty marksizmu, p. III: Rozkład, Zysk i S-ka, Poznań, no date of issueavailable, pp. 7–220. Filip Musiał Stalinism in Poland 11 2. The Stalinisation process in the political, social, and economic spheres In connection with the approach adopted for the purposes of this paper, t the basic elements of the process aimed at installing the Stalinist system in Poland will be indicated. As intended by Moscow, the areas occupied by the Red Army at the end of the World War II were to remain in the Soviet sphere of influence. In the case of Poland, these plans were complicated owing to the existence of constitutional authorities in exile and civil and military structures of the Polish Underground State in conspiracy. Therefore, the Soviet plans provided for the formation of institutions imitating the Polish authorities, though fully dependent on the Kremlin and for their presentation on the international arena as democratic bodies. The concept held that the role of the substitute of legislative power was to be exercised by the State National Council (Krajowa Rada Narodowa, KRN), while the executive power would be exercised by the Polish National Liberation Committee (Polski Komitet Wyzwolenia Narodowego, PKWN), transformed subsequently into a Provisional Government. This set off the process of forming, under the protection of the Red Army, the communist administration in the territory which, in line with Stalin’s intention, were to become the post-war Poland.2 The importance of the foregoing statement lies in the fact that virtually half of the pre-war territory of the Polish Republic was incorporated into the Soviet Union. On the other hand, in the west and north, after the preliminary findings made a (...truncated)