Lech Kaczyński

Lech Kaczyński
Born	(1949-06-18) 18 June 1949 Warsaw, Poland
Died	10 April 2010(2010-04-10) (aged 60) Near Smolensk, Russia
Occupation(s)	Politician, lawyer, academic
Years active	1970s–2010
Known for	President of Poland (2005–2010), Mayor of Warsaw (2002–2005)

Biography

Lech Aleksander Kaczyński (Polish: [ˈlɛx alɛkˈsandɛr kaˈt͡ʂɨj̃skʲi] <phonos file="Pl-Lech Kaczyński.ogg"></phonos>; born 18 June 1949 – died 10 April 2010) was a prominent Polish statesman who held the position of Mayor of Warsaw from 2002 until 2005, and subsequently served as the President of Poland between 2005 and his untimely death in a plane crash near the Russian city of Smolensk. The fatal accident occurred while he and other high-ranking Polish officials were en route to attend commemorations for the 70th anniversary of the Katyn massacre. Prior to his presidency, Kaczyński was President of the Supreme Audit Office from 1992 to 1995, and later held the offices of Minister of Justice and Public Prosecutor General in the government led by Jerzy Buzek from 2000 until his removal in July 2001.

Born in Warsaw, Kaczyński appeared as a child actor alongside his identical twin brother, Jarosław Kaczyński, in the 1962 Polish film The Two Who Stole the Moon. He earned a degree in law and administration from University of Warsaw. In 1980, he obtained his doctorate at University of Gdańsk, where he later completed his habilitation in labour and employment law in 1990. Subsequently, he held academic posts at both the University of Gdańsk and the Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw.

During Poland’s communist era, Kaczyński was actively involved in the pro-democracy and anti-communist movements, including participation in the Workers' Defence Committee and engagement with the Independent Trade Union initiatives. In August 1980, he took on an advisory role within the Inter-Enterprise Strike Committee at the Gdańsk Shipyard, supporting the burgeoning Solidarity movement. Following the imposition of martial law in December 1981 by communist authorities, he was detained as an "anti-socialist element." After his release, he resumed underground activities connected to Solidarity. When Solidarity was re-legalized towards the late 1980s, Kaczyński served as a key advisor to Lech Wałęsa and his Solidarity Citizens' Committee during 1988.

Together with his brother, he participated in the historic Polish Round Table Talks from February to April 1989. After Solidarity's victory in the 1989 Polish legislative election, Kaczyński secured a seat as a senator and became vice-chairman of Solidarity. In the subsequent 1991 Polish parliamentary election, he was elected to the Sejm as an independent candidate. He also acted as a principal adviser to Lech Wałęsa following Wałęsa’s election as president in December 1990. Wałęsa appointed him Security Minister within the Presidential Chancellery but dismissed him in 1992 due to disagreements related to Jan Olszewski’s government. In 2001, together with his brother, he co-founded the Law and Justice party after departing from both Solidarity Electoral Action and the Christian National Union.

Kaczyński was nominated as Law and Justice's candidate for president during the 2005 Polish presidential election. He secured 33.1% of votes in the initial round and went on to win the runoff with 54.04%, defeating Donald Tusk who garnered 45.96%. His presidential inauguration took place on 23 December 2005.

On 10 July 2006, following Prime Minister Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz’s resignation, Kaczyński appointed his twin brother Jarosław as Prime Minister. This marked a historic moment as they became the first siblings worldwide to simultaneously hold their nation’s presidency and premiership—and uniquely, identical twins to do so. Jarosław’s tenure ended after losing the parliamentary elections on 21 October 2007 to the conservative-liberal Civic Platform party; Donald Tusk succeeded him as Prime Minister.

Tragically, on 10 April 2010, Lech Kaczyński perished alongside his wife in a crash involving a Polish Air Force aircraft during its approach to Smolensk North Airport in Russia. His death marked the first instance of a sitting Polish president dying while in office since Gabriel Narutowicz’s assassination.

Early life

Lech Kaczyński was born in Warsaw to Rajmund, an engineer who had fought as a soldier in the Armia Krajowa during World War II and participated in the Warsaw Uprising, and Jadwiga, a philologist affiliated with the Polish Academy of Sciences. During his childhood, he appeared alongside his identical twin brother Jarosław in the 1962 Polish film The Two Who Stole the Moon (original title: O dwóch takich, co ukradli księżyc).

He earned his degree in law and administration from Warsaw University. In 1980, he obtained his PhD at Gdańsk University, followed by his habilitation in labour and employment law in 1990. Subsequently, he held academic posts at both Gdańsk University and Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw.

Kaczyński in 1991

Opposition to communism

During the 1970s, Kaczyński was actively involved in Poland’s pro-democracy and anti-communist efforts, notably participating in the Workers' Defence Committee and the Independent Trade Union movement. In August 1980, he served as an advisor to the Inter-Enterprise Strike Committee at the Gdańsk Shipyard and supported the rise of the Solidarity movement. Following the declaration of martial law by the communist regime in December 1981, he was detained as an anti-socialist element. Upon release, he resumed underground activities within Solidarity.

As Solidarity regained legal status in the late 1980s, Kaczyński advised Lech Wałęsa and his Komitet Obywatelski Solidarność during 1988. He also took part in the pivotal Round Table negotiations from February to April 1989.

Political activity from 1989 to 2005

In the June 1989 elections, Kaczyński was elected as a senator and appointed vice-chairman of the Solidarity trade union. During the 1991 parliamentary elections, he secured a seat as an independent candidate supported by Center Civic Alliance, a group closely aligned but not identical to his brother’s party, the Centre Agreement (Porozumienie Centrum). He played a key advisory role to Lech Wałęsa during Wałęsa’s successful presidential campaign in December 1990. Subsequently, Wałęsa appointed him Security Minister within the Presidential Chancellery; however, Kaczyński was dismissed in 1992 following disagreements related to Jan Olszewski’s government.

Between February 1992 and May 1995, Kaczyński served as President of the Supreme Chamber of Control (Najwyższa Izba Kontroli, NIK). Later, from June 2000 until July 2001, he held office as Minister of Justice and Attorney General under Prime Minister Jerzy Buzek. His firm approach against corruption during this period significantly boosted his popularity.

Law and Justice

In 2001, he established the political organization Law and Justice (Prawo i Sprawiedliwość – PiS), commonly described as 'conservative' by the press, alongside his brother Jarosław. Between 2001 and 2003, Lech Kaczyński held the position of party president.

Mayor of Warsaw

Kaczyński secured the office of mayor of Warsaw in 2002 with a decisive landslide victory. Upon assuming office, he prioritized combating corruption. He was a strong advocate for the creation of the Warsaw Uprising Museum and, in 2004, he commissioned a historical committee to assess the material damages inflicted on Warsaw by German forces during the Second World War—noting that approximately 85% of the city was devastated in the Warsaw Uprising. This initiative responded directly to increased reparations claims from German expellees from Poland. The committee evaluated the losses at a minimum of 45.3 billion euros (equivalent to $54 billion today). Additionally, Kaczyński supported the establishment of the Museum of the History of Polish Jews in Warsaw and was among those who signed an agreement to allocate city funds toward its financing.

Interference with LGBT events

Kaczyński prohibited the Warsaw gay pride parade on two occasions—in 2004 and again in 2005—known locally as the Parada Równości (Equality Parade). He told demonstrators, "I respect your right to demonstrate as citizens, but not as homosexuals." He expressed concerns that the parade would endorse a "homosexual lifestyle" and criticized law enforcement for insufficient use of force in dispersing it, asking, "Why was force not used to break up an illegal demonstration?" Furthermore, he labeled the parade organizers as "perverts."

In 2005, Kaczyński endorsed an alternative demonstration called the "Parade of Normality," organized by the All-Polish Youth, a Catholic nationalist group opposing "liberalism, tolerance, and relativism."

In 2007, Poland was found guilty by the European Court of Human Rights in the case Bączkowski v Poland for infringing upon the right to freedom of assembly by banning the 2005 Parada Równości. The ruling cited Article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

Presidency 2005–2010

Presidential election

Main article: 2005 Polish presidential election

On 19 March 2005, he officially announced his candidacy for the presidency in the upcoming October 2005 election.

In the initial round, he secured 33% of votes, placing second after Donald Tusk. However, by the runoff, he had garnered backing from Radio Maryja along with two additional parties beyond his own: Self-Defence of the Republic of Poland and the Polish People's Party.

Winning the presidency (defeating runner-up Donald Tusk with 8,257,468 votes, representing 54.04% of the total), Kaczyński was sworn in on 23 December 2005 before the National Assembly.

Domestic policy

Lech Kaczyński with U.S. President George W. Bush in 2007

In his inaugural address as president-elect, Kaczyński outlined his commitment to reforming the Republic by eradicating societal issues, especially crime and corruption—describing it as a widespread pursuit of illicit gain that undermines social welfare, health security, family development conditions, economic stability, and basic business safety.

At his inauguration, he detailed several domestic objectives: fostering greater social cohesion within Poland; delivering justice for victims and perpetrators of communist-era offenses; combating corruption; ensuring economic security; and promoting family welfare. He also pledged to reduce economic disparities among Poland's regions. His remarks stressed harmonizing progress with tradition while honoring the legacy of Pope John Paul II.

On 21 December 2008, Kaczyński became the first Polish president to visit a synagogue and participate in religious ceremonies there, coinciding with the opening night of Hanukkah.

Kaczyński advocated for reinstating the death penalty in Poland, leading to disputes with the European Union over this stance in 2006.

Presidential pardons

Between 2005 and 2007, pursuant to article 133 of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland, Kaczyński granted clemency to 77 individuals while refusing pardons to 550 others.

Foreign affairs

Meeting with Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaitė at the Presidential Palace in Vilnius, 8 April 2010. This marked Kaczyński's final engagement with another head of state.

In the realm of foreign policy, Kaczyński emphasized that Poland’s challenges were significantly linked to insufficient energy security, a matter he deemed essential to resolve for safeguarding national interests. His foreign relations agenda prioritized reinforcing the alliance with the United States alongside advancing Poland’s role within the European Union. Additionally, he sought to enhance diplomatic connections with France and Germany, despite encountering difficulties with the latter.

Beyond these priorities, Kaczyński aimed to establish a substantial strategic partnership with Ukraine and foster closer cooperation with the Baltic states, as well as with Azerbaijan and Georgia.

Kaczyński earned considerable respect in Israel due to his efforts in promoting Holocaust education among Polish youth. His passing was met with profound sorrow across Israel.

Defense Minister Radosław Sikorski equated the proposed gas pipeline from Russia to Germany, known as Nord Stream 1, to the historic Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact, while Foreign Minister Anna Fotyga declared that the project posed a threat to Poland’s energy security.

At a November 2006 European Union-Russia summit held in Helsinki, Poland exercised its veto power to block the initiation of EU-Russia partnership negotiations, responding to Russia’s import ban on Polish meat and plant products.

Lech Kaczyński with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, 2008

Lech Kaczyński alongside Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, 2008

In response to assertions made by a German exile organization, Preussische Treuhand, representing post-World War II German expellees from Eastern Europe, Polish Foreign Minister Fotyga erroneously threatened to revisit the 1990 treaty establishing the Oder-Neisse line as the border between Poland and Germany, confusing it with the Neighborhood Treaty signed in the same year.

Kaczyński meeting French President Nicolas Sarkozy in Paris, 8 October 2007

Following the armed conflict between Russia and Georgia in 2008, Kaczyński utilized the official website of the Polish Presidency to share information from Georgian internet portals that had been blocked by the Russian Federation. During his address regarding Russia's aggression against Georgia, he warned: "Today Georgia, tomorrow Ukraine, the Baltic States the day after tomorrow, and then perhaps it will be Poland’s turn!"

On a state visit to Serbia in 2009, Kaczyński stated that although the Polish government had constitutionally decided to recognize Kosovo, he personally did not support this recognition as President of Poland.

Marriage and family

In 1978, Kaczyński wed economist Maria Kaczyńska. The couple had a single daughter, Marta Kaczyńska-Dubieniecka. His sibling is Jarosław Kaczyński, who formerly served as Poland's Prime Minister.

Death

Main article: Smolensk air disaster

The remains of the Tu-154 at the crash site

On 10 April 2010, Lech Kaczyński, his wife Maria, and several members of a Polish delegation—including prominent military and civilian officials—were aboard Polish Air Force Flight 101, a Tupolev Tu-154M aircraft traveling from Warsaw to a ceremony commemorating the Katyn massacre. The plane tragically crashed while descending toward Smolensk Air Base in Russia. Officials from Smolensk Oblast confirmed on the Russia 24 news channel that no survivors were found. The accident claimed the lives of all 96 passengers on board, including many of Poland's top military and governmental leaders.

Following the incident, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev established a governmental commission to examine the cause of the crash, appointing Prime Minister Vladimir Putin to lead the investigation.

Subsequently, Russian politician Valeriya Novodvorskaya accused the Russian authorities of orchestrating Kaczyński’s death.

State funeral

Main article: Death and state funeral of Lech and Maria Kaczyński

File:Lech Kaczynski, Maria Kaczyńska, Wawel.jpg

Tomb of Lech and Maria located in the Crypt Under the Tower of Silver Bells, Kraków

On 11 April 2010, Kaczyński’s remains were repatriated to Poland. He and his wife were accorded a lying in state ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Warsaw. The official state funeral took place in Kraków on 18 April 2010. After a Roman Catholic Mass at St. Mary's Basilica, the presidential couple was interred in a coffin positioned within the antechamber of the Crypt Under the Tower of Silver Bells beneath the Wawel Cathedral. Numerous international dignitaries were unable to attend due to widespread air travel interruptions across Europe caused by the eruption of Iceland’s Eyjafjallajökull volcano.

Exhumation and post-mortem

Main article: Death and state funeral of Lech and Maria Kaczyński

In June 2016, the Polish authorities declared their intention to resume the inquiry into the Smolensk plane disaster, with a plan to exhume and conduct autopsies on all 96 victims. The initial exhumation, which included the remains of Lech Kaczyński, took place on 14 November 2016 as part of a series of ten bodies. Following the post-mortem examinations, Kaczyński and his spouse were reinterred on 18 November 2016.

By 1 June 2017, exhumations had been completed for 27 coffins. DNA analysis revealed that in 24 of these cases—including that of Kaczyński—there were discrepancies such as body swaps, incomplete remains, and instances where multiple remains were found within a single grave.

Honours and awards

Statue of Lech Kaczyński located in Warsaw's Piłsudski Square

National honours

• Poland:
  • Knight of the Order of the White Eagle
  • Grand Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta

Foreign honours

• Template:Country data Azerbaijan:
  • Awarded the Heydar Aliyev Order (2 July 2009)
• Croatia:
  • Holder of the Grand Order of King Tomislav (10 January 2008)
• Czech Republic:
  • First Class Member of the Order of the White Lion (21 January 2010)
• Template:Country data Georgia:
  • Posthumous recipient of the Order of National Hero of Georgia (10 April 2010)
  • Awarded the St. George's Order of Victory (23 November 2007)
• Hungary:
  • Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary (18 March 2009)
• Lithuania:
  • Commander Grand Cross with Golden Chain of the Order of Vytautas the Great (16 April 2009)
• Template:Country data Sovereign Military Order of Malta:
  • Collar of the Order pro Merito Melitensi (26 February 2009)
  • Grand Cross Special Class of the Order pro Merito Melitensi (14 May 2007)
• Portugal:
  • Grand Collar of the Order of Prince Henry (2 September 2008)
• Romania:
  • Collar of the Order of the Star of Romania (7 October 2009)
• Template:Country data Saudi Arabia:
  • Collar awarded by the Order of Abdulaziz al Saud (25 June 2007)
• Slovakia:
  • First Class Member of the Order of the White Double Cross (21 February 2009)
• Template:Country data Ukraine:
  • First Class Member of the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise (6 December 2007)

Additional Honors

• Template:Country data Georgia : Awarded an honorary doctorate by Tbilisi State University in Georgia on 16 April 2007
• South Korea : Conferred an honorary doctorate from Hankuk University of Foreign Studies in Seoul on 6 December 2008
• Poland : Received an honorary doctorate from the Catholic University of Lublin on 1 July 2009
• Poland : Granted honorary citizenship of Warsaw on 15 April 2010

External links

• (in Polish and English) official website of the President of the Republic of Poland Archived 17 July 2018 at the Wayback Machine
• Complete text of the address President Lech Kaczyński intended to deliver at Katyn
• Comprehensive Genealogy
• "The Death of a President: Countdown To the Crash of Flight PLF 101" by Leszek Misiak, Grzegorz Wierzchołowski
• Lech Kaczyński at IMDb

Template:S-legal