Jenny Flintoft describes the problems of daily life encountered on a recent visit to Poland SUN 21Dec Board London-Warsaw train, packed with Polish expatriates. By Dutch border tongues have loosened and current situation being discussed quite openly.
MON 22 Dec, 10am Zbaszynck — snow-covered platforms, steam trains. Brest-Dresden train full of Russian soldiers. Expatriate Poles gaze at them with open hatred, fingers jabbing aggressively in their direction. 5pm Warszawa Gdanska station. By car to flat. T wearing Solidarnosc badge, shows me Solidarnosc bulletins. *Before September everything in Poland was made out to be wonderful by the media, T tells me. suddenly everything is in a state of collapse. TV News shows a group of workers who have queued all night for coal and not got any. They express their anger very forcibly.
TUE 23 Dec Go to nearest grocers for bread — 'Nie ma' (none). On to another shop where there is a long queue for bread. Leave G in queue and go to buv deodorant. Another queue but not so long.
Queue again for milk and bread. This shop has some bread, though not very fresh. G near front of bread queue. Decide to buy not-soires. bread.
• queue ror cnocolate nas formea outside one shop. It has no chocolate but a rumour has gone round that some may be delivered. Z tells us that when a queue forms people just join it. just know it must be something in short supply.
FRI 26 Dec, 6pm Go to Opera House to see The abduction from the narem, very socianst realist. In Ine Interval i tells us about an opera performance in Lodz a short time ago.
There was chocolate on sale at the buffet. During the second half of the first act the theatre emptied as the audience met to queue outside the still closed buffet.
The puzzled singers thought there was a fire!
Satirical TV programme comedian says, 'Margaret Thatcher had better watch out. There was another country where the leader disagreed with the trade That leader lost his job!' SAT 27 Dec, 11.30am Go to bar for cognac and coffee. Get chatting with English-speaking group there. One Pole expresses admiration for Margaret Thatcher. Horrified, I take a deep breath and ask why. 'Because she is antiCalmiv I point out that she is also racist and displays remarkable callousness in the face of 2.5m unemployed. He is a bit shaken by this figure, keeps saying 'two and a half million unemployed? It's not point out that her foreign policy includes deployment of Cruise missiles, some of which are targeted on turn, we are making an exhibition of ourselves.
Go to J&M's flat for dinner. Very luxurious flat littered with status symbols. 'I got this in India and this photo was taken in Peking.. every country in Europe and many others.
him it it is necessary to wait a long time for a phone to be installed. 'Normally several years,' 'but I got mine in three weeks.
By now it is pretty clear he is a party member.
months tor a phone but that in Hampstead it is likely to take less time than in the East End. say, 'working people don't need phones so much.' get ill so they don't need to phone the doctor.' Too late J realises we are being sarcastic.
Socialist Challenge 'Now still nowhere Some of them don't even know what it's for, they He rallies a bit: "But her foreign policy is good'. I Seems a bit shaken by this too. Voices rise, heads ' J has been to virtually There are three phones in a two-room flat. I ask ' he replies, I say that in England it normally takes three to six 'After al ' I J smiles. G adds: "After all working people don't 5 February 1981 Page 6 "wake up, owl!"
Small wonder, then that the church has such a seductive appeal for many Polish women. To their drab lives it brings art and music, beauty and dignity, love and hope The Pope is idolised In the Basilica in Warsaw women praying with a fervency : I have never seen anywhere else in Europe.
possible escape route is prostituNaturall there aren't the adverts in newsagents' windows Inal you see in britain Nonetheless in places like the Grand Hotel in Warsaw, customers spend on meal for four amounts to week's TOT the average Pole, one finds 'girls for AArO currency' dining with oil-rich Arabs.
As a quite ordinary Veteran strike leader Anna Walentynowicz such as veteran militant Anna Walentynowicz have been an inspiration to everyone. but there are countless other, less well-known women actively organising all over notable that Solidarnose has been able unionise the traditionally organise. such shop assistants. Even the waltesse. female women workers in Pewex weal oldamos. badges. At a Solidarnoso meeting attended it was clear that the women were playing an active and equal part in planning and discussion.
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A WOMAN sent the following poem to the Solidarnosc strike