New Polish party announces 30-day national tour
PR dla Zagranicy
Grzegorz Siwicki
04.02.2019 15:00
The head of a new Polish leftist political party on Monday said its leading figures would go on a 30-day tour to take their message to voters in 13 cities nationwide.
Robert Biedroń (centre) talks to reporters in Warsaw on Monday. Photo: PAP/Paweł Supernak
The new party, launched on Sunday, is called Spring, a name it says reflects its aim of bringing a breath of fresh air into Polish politics.
The group is led by Robert Biedroń, an openly gay politician who was formerly mayor of the northern city of Słupsk.
The party’s founding convention in Warsaw on Sunday drew thousands of people, according to reports.
The new party appears as the country gears up for European elections in May, followed by a parliamentary ballot in the autumn.
Beata Mazurek, a spokeswoman for Poland’s ruling conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party, described the launch of the party as the start of an internecine war among the opposition.
Biedroń, an LGBT activist, is advocating the separation of church and state, legal recognition of gay partnerships, greater equality for women, and easier access to abortion, with terminations on demand up to the 12th week of pregnancy.
He has also vowed to increase pensions and shut down all coal mines in the country by 2035 in a bid to fight smog.
(gs/pk)
Source: PAP, IAR, Gazeta Wyborcza