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Leszek Balcerowicz: There is a need to build stronger, more organised civil society organisations, Financial Times | 2019-10-01
moreThirty years ago, Leszek Balcerowicz and a group of advisers were preparing to try something no one had done before: transform a collapsing communist economy into a free market one — and at breakneck speed.
In the decades since, Poland’s economy has almost trebled, and the country is in the grip of a multiyear boom. Yet Mr Balcerowicz’s reforms remain a topic of heated debate, and as Poland prepares for an election this month, the faultlines that opened up during its transition to capitalism continue to run through the nation’s politics.
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Leszek Balcerowicz defends legacy amid backlash, Associated Press | 2019-09-27
moreIn a recent interview with The Associated Press, Balcerowicz lamented the heavy-spending policies, which he believes will hurt the country in the long run. He also accuses the ruling party of trying to recreate “homo sovieticus,” a mindset of dependence on ruling authorities for security and benefits as the party consolidates its power over the state and many state-run companies.
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Marek Tatała: "It's Not Only The Economy, Stupid: Progress in Poland after Socialism", 4Liberty.eu | 2019-09-24
moreMany people are familiar with President Bill Clinton’s “It’s the economy, stupid” campaign slogan. The economic success of Poland since 1989 is indisputable. Nevertheless, defenders of Poland’s success story may sometimes hear that they focus too much on economic advances, prosperity, and GPD growth instead of thinking about the actual lives of “average people” and the “social costs” of Poland’s transformation.
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The Civil Development Forum is calling for international solidarity with the Hong Kong | 2019-09-11
moreThe Civil Development Forum, joined an international coalition of 46 think tanks and advocacy groups in calling for international solidarity with the Hong Kong people against the authoritarian Chinese Communist Party (CCP) government’s encroachment on their freedoms and autonomy, and the pro-CCP Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) police who have repeatedly violated protesters’ human rights.
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FOR Communication 29/2019: "Balanced" budget – a great manipulation | 2019-09-10
moreThe Law and Justice government, when publishing the draft state budget for 2020, called it "balanced". This "balance" is based on one-off revenues and concerns only the state budget, which accounts for half of the entire public finance sector. After eliminating one-off revenues and taking all expenditures into account, the deficit will amount to 1.3% of GDP - that is, it will remain far from a sustainable improvement of public finances - and it will not take the promises of Saturday's Law and Justice election convention into account.
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Rafał Trzeciakowski took part in meeting organized by LFMI, DELFI.lt | 2019-09-08
moreLenkijos organizacijos FOR ekonomistas Rafalis Trzeciakowskis pasakojo, kad naujoji Lenkijos vyriausybė 2015–2018 m. įvedė keletą priemonių, kuriomis siekiama kovoti su PVM sukčiavimu ir paskatinti mokesčius mokėti sąžiningai.
Analysis 5/2019: The Prosecutor's Office is in the hands of the authorities, that is, what the law allows | 2019-08-27
On 8 July 2019, prosecutor Mariusz Krasoń was seconded from the District Prosecutor's Office in Kraków to the District Prosecutor's Office in Wrocław, which is almost 300 km away and two levels lower in the hierarchy. The Justice Defense Committee (KOS) indicates that in May 2019 prosecutor Krasoń initiated a resolution of the Assembly of the District Prosecutor's Office in Kraków. This resolution signals, among other things, restrictions on the independence of prosecutors.
Leszek Balcerowicz: I am one of your main enemies, Suddeutsche Zeitung | 2019-08-16
30 years ago, economist Leszek Balcerowicz abolished socialism in Poland. Today he warns against the authoritarian tendencies in Eastern Europe. That does not like Poland's government at all.
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FOR Communication 28/2019: Forced Deglomeration: The Government’s Report is Not Convincing | 2019-08-13
moreIn July 2019, the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Technology, after six months, published its report regarding transfer of central offices from Warsaw to smaller cities (interchangeably referred to as deglomeration or delocalisation) – a solution taken into consideration in the government circles. The contents of the report are disappointing.
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Marek Tatała: Chernobyl – Warning Against Lies, Not Against Nuclear Power | 2019-08-09
moreIn 2006 Mikhail Gorbachev stated that the 1986 Chernobyl disaster had had more significance for the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 than the perestroika he had introduced. The causes of the collapse were surely more complex, but the events in the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant perfectly show two pillars supporting the communist system – that is lies and fear.