Renata Berent- Mieszczanowicz FROZEN IN THE FRAME. A DIARY OF TWO DECADES 1990-2010 Wrocław 2010 Edited by Elżbieta Woźniak Substantive assistance Agnieszka Curyło Cooperation: Lucyna Orłowska, Daria Mieszczanowicz, Anna Radłowska, Małgorzata Mieszczanowicz, Teresa Gołembiowska Printed by: Jakopol Wrocław ul. Skoczylasa 16 54 -071 Wrocław Copyright @ Demokratyczna Unia Kobiet – Rada Krajowa, 2010 Any parts of this publication may be reproduced without permission for educational and non- profit purposes if the source is acknowledged 2 This book is dedicated to Izabela Jaruga-Nowacka and all the wonderful women and girls from the Women’s Democratic Union Renata Berent-Mieszczanowicz 3 CONTENTS Twenty years have passed. ……………………………………………………………. 5 And that‟s how it all began: 1st Congress of WDU ……..…………………………..………. 8 New challenges – new perspectives: 2nd Congress of WDU ………………………………… 18 Democracy without women is half a democracy: 3rd Congress of WDU ……………………… 25 On our way to Europe: 4th Congress of WDU ……………………………………………. 35 Citizens participation – working for a change: 5th Congress of WDU ……………………… 42 Women‟s dialogue beyond boundaries in a new European home: 6th Congress of WDU ……. 50 20th Anniversary of Women‟s Democratic Union ……………………………………….. 62 Twenty years of Women‟s Democratic Union in Wroclaw…………………………………... 69 Our friends …….………………………………………………………………………………. 72 The chronicles of Women‟s Democratic Union ………………………………………………. 76 Acknowledgments ……………………………………………………………………………. 115 Appendix ………………………………………………………………………………………. 116 A 1. Initiators of Women‟s Democratic Union ………………………………….. 117 A 2. Members of Women‟s Democratic Union awarded by the President of the Republic of Poland …………………………………………………………………………….. 118 A 3. People honored with the Sapphire Rose Award ……………………………. 120 A 4. Major resolutions and stances …………………………………………. ….. 121 A 5. Major projects implemented between 1990 and 2010 ……………………… 132 A 6. Conferences organized by Women‟s Democratic Union ………………….. 142 A 7. Partners of Women‟s Democratic Union …………………………………… 157 A 8. Women‟s Democratic Union: outsiders perspective ……………………….. 159 A 9. Women‟s Democratic Union and the media ………………………………… 4 TWENTY YEARS HAVE PASSED… We need to know where we came from to understand where we are going Over twenty years have passed since the event that had and still has a significant impact on my life and development. In the Spring of 1990 Łucja Banaś, the secretary of the Voivodeship Branch of the Polish Women‟s League, paid me a visit. She has invited me to a meeting with Danuta Waniek and proposed me to join the initiative associated with the organization of the new women movement. Although I accepted the invitation, I did it without much enthusiasm. At that time I did not know much about feminism and did not notice the importance of gender in the political and social sphere, but simultaneously I was deeply interested in the issues of human rights and freedoms, as well as democratization of public life. Ever since I remember I have been involved in the public sphere. I served as the vice chairperson of the Voivodeship Trade Union‟s Agreement for culture and education. For many years I have worked as chair of a large branch of Polish Teachers' Union and also have been cooperating with NGOs. My whole adult life has been associated with education and culture. So if today many of you mention my deep determination, associated with activities in the Women's Democratic Union, I must admit that my first commitment was more due to curiosity and obligation to participate in something that could possibly result in a beneficial social change than political engagement. For me Women's Democratic Union as well as other NGOs and women‟s organizations have been the most difficult universities that shaped my views and civic involvement. Thanks to my participation in various forms of activities of the Association I got the chance to meet prominent and interesting people, who taught me about feminism, perseverance and political struggle. Looking at Women's Democratic Union from the perspective of two decades I reached the conclusion that the last twenty years of our activities in many respects seem to mirror the Polish transformation. On one hand they reflect women‟s social enthusiasm and active citizenship, on the other: socio-cultural barriers limiting their democratic participation. Some say that we are open, dynamic, reliable and consistent on our way to reach the goal. Our creative independence, activity and responsibility make us leaders of social change. Despite all that, we still find out that if a woman wants to get the same function or position in public life as a man, she needs to be way better than he is. This is confirmed both by our own experience as well as everyday‟s life of hundreds of thousands of Polish women. Polish authorities and the government do not seem to like the competent and active women who expect more than electoral declarations and demand a real improvement in their situation. The number of women‟s organizations involved in equal opportunities policy is decreasing every year, which raises concerns and should stimulate a broader political reflection on the causes of this situation and result in enhancing actions of the state administration. Women‟s civic involvement and their participation in public life are often limited because of their living conditions and low social status. If we are willing to start a broad social movement to stimulate the development of women's active citizenship, above all 5 we have to remember to guarantee them the possibility to do so, manifested in free participation, allowing to develop and improve their civic competence in order to broaden their involvement in public life and decision-making areas. On the occasion of the twentieth anniversary of the Women's Democratic Union I present you a brief history and a handful of memories that will allow you to evaluate our political commitment, effectiveness of our civic actions and contribution to the development of democracy in Poland as well as the process of European integration. This publication is not meant to be a precise record of all of the activities of the Women's Democratic Union in the past two decades, but rather a concise description, indicating the most important trends and areas of our activity. It shows our path from self-discovery to self-realization in a democratic society. While congratulating all of my colleagues, Chairpersons and members of Women's Democratic Union on a wonderful anniversary, I encourage you to read this publication. Renata Berent–Mieszczanowicz Chairperson Women‟s Democratic Union 6 20 YEARS OF ACTIVITY 1990 – 2010 THREE CHAIRPERSONS Danuta Waniek WDU Chairperson 1990-2000 Jolanta Banach WDU Chairperson 2000-2004 Renata Berent–Mieszczanowicz WDU Chairperson since June 20th 2004 7 AND THAT’S HOW IT ALL BEGAN… 1st Congress of Women‟s Democratic Union The social and political changes in Poland after 1989 increasingly revealed areas of social discrimination, violations of human rights and freedoms, moral and cultural stereotypes, particularly limiting women‟s freedom and their right to free choice. The anxiety caused by these phenomena resulted in the development of new initiatives for women, who began to organize themselves in associations, foundations and other social organizations. Before 1989 there were few women's organizations in Poland. The constitutional and economic transformation created new legal and organizational conditions that facilitated the development of active citizenship and allowed the freedom of association1. In 1990 on the basis of these changes Women's Democratic Union (WDU, in Polish: Demokratyczna Unia Kobiet, Polish abbreviation: DUK) has been created. Currently WDU is a nationwide association with a developed field structure, organized in clubs and Voivodeship Conciliatory Councils. Initiating group and its activities In the Spring of 1989 many debates were held in women's circles on how to improve women‟s political and social situation. Problems arising from the transformation, such as unemployment, poverty and lack of influence and social control of the decision-makers, required new activism. The need for creating a new nationwide women's organization arose. Both the existing legal and organizational conditions and the opportunity to get involved to meet their own needs and challenges have been favorable.. The original plan was to develop a new organization, including the Polish Women's League (Liga Kobiet Polskich, LKP), the most important Polish women's organization before the 1989. Therefore the first steps in organizing a new movement were undertaken in close cooperation with the Secretary General of the Polish Women's League - Elżbieta Dehnel – Łuczyńska2. Eventually, however, Polish Women‟s League did not join the WDU, preserving autonomy and organizational independence. The WDU initiating group consisted of 63 ladies3. It is worth noting that Izabela Jaruga – Nowacka was also among the initiators of WDU. At various stages of her political activity she has always supported our organization. She was a close friend both of the Women‟s Democratic Union as an organization and personally of many of its members. The founding meeting, led by Danuta Waniek, was held on 16 June 1990 in Warsaw at the headquarters of the Polish Women's League. The meeting was recognized the first Congress of the Women's Democratic Union. During the meeting the first National Conciliatory Council of Women's Democratic Union and the first