In October, Ly Thai Hung, General Secretary of Viet Tan, met with elected officials and former pro-democracy activists in Poland as part of his tour of Europe. The Viet Tan delegation was hosted by journalist Robert Krzyston. Mr. Krzyston is one of the leaders of The Committee for Freedom of Speech in Poland, a pro-democracy organization with members being mostly intellectuals and reporters. The Committee for Freedom and Speech was established in the 1970s and contributed towards the fall of the communist regime in Poland.
On October 8, Mr. Hung and the Viet Tan delegation visited Gdansk. During the 1970s and 1980s most of the peaceful pro-democracy struggles of Polish workers originated from Gdansk. Solidarity was founded in 1980 in this city.
The Viet Tan delegation was taken back to a bygone era in Gdansk. They visited the historical places of the Polish uprising against Communism decades ago. The tour started at the headquarters of Solidarity and ended at the Lenin shipyard where the first labor strikes started in the 1970s.
“Being at the Lenin shipyard was the most touching moment for me. This place has historical importance for the entire country. Here the Strike Committee declared their 21 demands, among which they demanded the Polish Communist Party to respect the right of the Polish people to form independent trade unions. It was also at this shipyard that Lech Walesa in front of thousands of workers, intellectuals and students announced the formation of Solidarity in the beginning of September 1980,” said Mr. Hung. “Were are here to show our admiration for Poland’s peaceful struggle.”
The Viet Tan delegation met Parliamentary Member Akadiusz Rybick. Mr. Rybick played a key role during the Polish struggle for democracy. He was one of the two people who drafted the 21 demands presented by the Strike Committee in 1980. This document was later recognized as a historical document by UNESCO.
At the meeting Rybick Akadiuz expressed his sympathy for Viet Tan’s struggle for democracy in Vietnam and the democracy movement there in general. He said that the Vietnamese Communist Party will eventually face an end as they cannot prevent the inevitable development of mankind.
As a token of appreciation, Ly Thai Hung presented Akadiuz Rybick a copy of his book titled “Eastern Europe in Vietnam.”
Ly Thai Hung was also scheduled to meet Poland’s former President and Chairman of Solidarity Lech Walesa, another figure of historical significance. Unfortunately, Lech Walesa experienced minor heart problems and was taken to the hospital.
While in Warsaw, Mr. Hung appeared on Radio Warsaw FM 106 to discuss the democracy movement in Vietnam and the support of the Vietnamese Diaspora for people within the country. Radio Warsaw FM 106 was an underground broadcast during the 1970s and in the 1980s was operated by the Polish Catholic Church to support Solidarity.
Following his guest appearance on radio, Mr. Hung attended a conference hosted by the Polish Parliament’s Committee for Laws and Human Rights, where the possibility of boycotting the 2008 Olympics to pressure China to respect human rights was discussed.
The trip to Poland was concluded with a meeting with Dr. Bogdan Borusewicz, Chairman of the Polish Senate. Dr. Borusewicz was imprisoned for several years for his involvement with the Justice and Human Rights movement. The Movement was founded in 1977 and was at one stage led by Dr. Borusewicz. In his role as Chairman of the Polish Senate Dr. Borusewicz raised the issue of Vietnam’s human rights violations to Hanoi Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung during his visit to Poland the previous month. He also raised the issue of Hanoi’s recent crackdown against peaceful pro-democracy activists and promised to continue the pressure on the Vietnamese government.
