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Andrzej Zbigniew Lepper
(photo: PAP) |
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Many articles can be written about Andrzej Lepper. He is the most scandal Polish politician at present time. Local press associates him with Hitler and Stalin, as well as with the famous politician Vladimir Zhirinovsky, and with the leader of the French antiglobalists, Jose Bove, and with his countryman Jan Marie Le Pen. It is remembered as well that Lepper was under arrest for about 70 times for organizing illegal peasants' protests (including paralyzing the largest highways of the country), and for the offensive statements addressed to the highest representatives of the Polish elite.
Andrzej Zbigniew Lepper was born on June 13, 1953 in a small village of Stowiecino, in the northern part of Poland. At present time there leave no more than 200 persons in the village, and the world would have never known about its existance, if Lepper had not been born in it. He himself is proud of this circumstance, as well as of the fact that he formally does not have a higher education (he graduated only from the agricultural college), which fits well to his image of a "common fellow". Meanwhile, his simplicity is no more than a mask. In business, every single person who had a chance to communicate with him personally, understands from the first minutes, that he is a man of an acute mind, crafty and charismatic. Moreover, Lepper once was a professional boxer, which fact helped his character to become tough and fighting.
Those features were of much value to Lepper in the beginning of the 1990s , when his own farm, bought in1980, was going bankrupt. Then he, as a former member of the Polish United Working Party (PZPR), created Professional Union of Peasants Samoobrona (1992). The new political power declared of itself with such scandal actions of protest as blocking of highways. Following Lepper's initiative, in one of the small Polish towns the unemployed captured the Mayor, and were rolling him in the wheelbarrow along the market. Only in 1993, the Polish General Prosecutor's Office charged him twice for disrespect to the President, Sejm and Government. And both times he was declared not guilty. As a result, Lepper turned into a so-called Robin Hood. His Samoobrona quickly gained the sympathy of peasants' sector, as well as that of the non-educated, professionally unqualified part of the urban population – the part of the Polish society, which most of all suffered from political and economic processes in the country. Apart from loud actions, the most attractive were the populist slogans of the party program – the controlled privatization, financial support of the agricultural sector, VAT 10%, etc.
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Andrzej Zbigniew Lepper
(photo: PAP) |
At present time, the public opinion polls show that Lepper got the sympathy of about a half of the Polish peasants.
The growing support of population is very well shown in political successes of Samoobrona. In the parliament elections of 2001, this party overcame the electoral barrier for the first time. 10.5% of votes gave it 53 mandates in the Sejm, and 2 mandates in the Senate. A year earlier, Lepper's followers blocked all the large highways in the country, protesting under raising costs for agricultural production. Being elected into Sejm, Lepper was even functioning as its vice-speaker, but was soon terminated from this position for "non-parliament" behavior. The last parliament's elections on September 18, 2005 were successful for Samoobrona as they got 11.4% of votes, which shows the growth of its' popularity. At present time party has 56 mandates in Sejm (3 more then the last time).
Before present president's elections Andrzej Lepper took part in president's race twice already. In 1995 he got 1.32% of votes, and in 2002 - already 3.05%. This time, public opinion polls forecast 10% of votes to him, which is about to what Samoobrona got on the last parliamentary elections on September 18.
Foreign policy's views of Andrzej Lepper are the community of euro-skepticism, antiglobalism, anti- Atlanticism, isolationism, xenophobia, and Polish nationalism. During the referendum of 2003 for the EU membership, Lepper asked the comrades from his party to refrain from voting, but the Polish society in general showed their wish to join the EU. Lepper got a lesson from this tactic fiasco. "Poland's joining EU will be the beginning of the end of this organization!" – he announced in the press. For, as he says, "to fire EU from inside", Lepper decided to take part in the elections to the European parliament in July 2004. "Samoobrona" got 10% of votes then and 6 mandates from 54 reserved for Poland in Euro Parliament.
Anti-Atlanticism and anti-European moods of Lepper make him actively support the dictator of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko. The leader of Samoobrona positively commented his style of management and methods not a single time. And in October 2004 even came to Minsk himself as a observer to support Lukashenko in his elections to local parliament and referendum for prolongation the presidents' rights. Using this opportunity, Lepper was the guest of Belarus First National Channel and announced to vote for Lukashenko being the president of Belorussia by the end of his life on the referendum.
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