We’ve had enough
Opposition supporters have demonstrated for a change of government in several Polish cities. Alone in Warsaw, there are said to have been over one million people. Poland will hold elections in two weeks.
Two weeks before the parliamentary elections in Poland, hundreds of thousands of people demonstrated against the policies of the national-conservative ruling party, PiS. The participants marched through the center of Warsaw, packed tightly together. Protesters carried signs that read “We’ve had enough and want change” and “Together we have strength”.
A spokesperson for the city government of Warsaw said that an estimated one million people participated in the rally. A spokesperson for the city administration told the Onet.pl portal that this was the largest demonstration in the history of the capital. There were also demonstrations in other cities today.
The liberal-conservative Civic Coalition (KO), which emerged from the former ruling party, Civic Platform, led by current opposition leader Donald Tusk, called for the “March of a Million Hearts”. The demonstration is also supported by the leftist alliance, Lewica. “This force can no longer be stopped by anything,” said Tusk. “No one in the ranks of the powerful above should have any illusions. This change is inevitable.” Discrepancies in participant figures
Tusk had already spoken of nearly one million participants at the start of the event, while the PAP news agency reported, citing unofficial police information, that there were just under 100,000 demonstrators.
Buses were provided to transport participants of the march from all over Poland to Warsaw. The police cordoned off some streets for the four-kilometer march. According to organizers, around 500,000 people participated in a similar event in June.
PiS still leads in polls
Poland will vote for a new parliament on October 15th. According to all polls, the national-conservative PiS, which has been in power since 2015, is still leading. However, it may require a coalition partner to form a government and could find one in the far-right Konfederacja.
Recently, statements by the PiS government about a possible halt to military aid for Ukraine caused some confusion. In addition, a scandal involving illegal visa grants to migrants has put the right-conservative government, which stands for a tough stance on migration policy, under pressure.
The liberal Civic Platform, led by opposition leader Tusk, is in second place in the polls. They hope that the demonstration will mobilize their supporters enough to secure a victory in the parliamentary elections and succeed in replacing the PiS. The 66-year-old Tusk has previously been the Prime Minister of Poland and later the President of the European Council.