15 days before the legislative elections, "about a million people" took part in a demonstration called by the Polish opposition on Sunday in central Warsaw, against the

populist-nationalist government, according to the capital's municipality.

 

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Edited by| Paul Mitchel

 

Europe section -  CJ journalist

 

Warsaw– October,1,2023

 

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"This is definitely the largest demonstration in the history of Warsaw,"said City Hall spokeswoman Monika booth.

For their part, the organizers of the rally earlier confirmed that hundreds of thousands of Poles took part in it.

At the beginning of the rally, former prime minister and former president of the European Council Donald Tusk, who became the leader of the bloc, said

"When I see hundreds of thousands of smiling faces, I feel that a decisive moment in the history of our homeland is coming,"the centrist Civic Platform said.

The rally was aimed at mobilizing people from across the country, which has been ruled by nationalists for eight years.

The" million-heart March, " as Tusk called it, set off at Ten in the morning GMT, and the main streets narrowed in

The center of the capital is crowded with crowds.

Tusk stressed that it represents "one of the largest events" in Poland's modern history and will be one of the " largest demonstrations in Europe in

Recent years".

Speaking about the ruling Law and Justice party, the former prime minister said Thursday during a public meeting in Elbling, " I will not

They scare us, they won't force us to be silent. It is necessary for the whole of Poland to see that no one is afraid of them anymore,"he said.

The ruling party is holding a rally on Sunday in the southern city of Katowice.

In Warsaw, demonstrators expressed their rejection of the positions of the authorities, waving Polish and European flags and standing on

Their clothes depict a small white and red heart-a symbol of the center alliance.

Opposition leaders are scheduled to give speeches at the end of the March.

The former president and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1983, Lech wawensa, announced his participation.

Despite its numerous conflicts with the European Union and being accused of undermining the rule of law, the law and Justice Party retains leadership

Yaroslav Kaczynski is comfortably ahead in the polls, with about 35% of voting intentions, according to the Institute "Ypres".

The Civic Platform party comes second, with the support of 27% of voters, according to the Institute.

But Donald Tusk emphasizes that polls conducted by his party show that the PiS's lead has recently narrowed to only two percentage points.

"Nothing has been decided yet," he said in Elbling, vowing to hold the current authorities accountable after the elections.

"Many of them will go to prison on charges of theft, violation of the law and the Constitution,"he said, speaking of ruling party officials.

 

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