1982 demonstrations in Poland
At the beginning, the Committee opposed street demonstrations, drawing the so-called "Five times yes" appeal, which stipulated negotiations with the government and release of all political prisoners.
However, when the program was rejected, the Committee changed its stance, announcing the "Five times no" appeal, and urging the nation to participate in demonstrations on 31 August 1982, the second anniversary of the Gdańsk Agreement.
The demonstrations were regarded as very important for the future of the opposition movements, as activists hoped that they would become a turning point, forcing the government to change its policy.
Special posters were printed and distributed, and on 25 August general Czesław Kiszczak spoke on TV, warning against "possible tragic consequences".
On 26 August, during a meeting with party activists in Szczecin, said: "The plans of the extremists are the following: public gatherings, a general strike, and, if necessary, an uprising aimed at overthrowing the social system.
[3] On 27 August, Zbigniew Bujak, one of the Solidarity leaders who had eluded arrest, published a statement, in which he urged the nation to participate in rallies and demonstrations on the second anniversary of the Gdańsk Agreement.
In Wrocław, which was one of main centers of underground Solidarity, several thousand people for many hours fought riot police and soldiers.
[1] Street fights were a common sight not only in major urban centers, such as Warsaw, Kraków, Szczecin, Wrocław, Łódź, and Gdańsk, but also in provincial cities (Rzeszów, Koszalin, Kielce, Przemyśl, Częstochowa, Bielsko-Biała, Gorzów Wielkopolski), and towns (Starachowice, Lubin, Konin).
[4] The magnitude of the demonstrations was confirmed by official sources, as on 1 September PAP informed that a day before, the police detained 4,050 people nationwide (589 in Warsaw, 645 in Wrocław, 201 in Szczecin, and 120 in Gorzów Wielkopolski).
Besides Michałczyk, who was killed in Wrocław, other victims of police brutality were: 32-year-old Piotr Sadowski from Gdańsk, Mieczysław Joniec from Nowa Huta, and Jacek Osmański from Toruń.
The rally in the local Freedom Square began on 31 August; at 3 pm A cross made of flowers was laid and a small banner was raised.
Before 5 pm, another ZOMO platoon came to Lubin (its members were armed with semi-automatic pistols P-83 Wanads), and local police commandant asked offices in Leszno and Zielona Góra to send more reinforcements.
More people joined the fighting, and riots lasted until 10:30 pm, when another ZOMO company from Zielona Góra, a platoon of soldiers from Krosno Odrzańskie, and three water cannons were brought to Lubin.
On 2 September police authorities ordered repairs of damaged buildings – broken windows were replaced, and traces of bullets on the walls were covered with plaster.
