WEEKLY 3,00 zloty (with 7% VAT) Published by: Jargon Media Sp. z o.o. Index Number: 236683 ISSN: 1898-4762 NO. 33 WWW.KRAKOWPOST.COM DECEMBER 20-JANUARY 9, 2008 Traditional feast held in city center for haves and have-nots Poland remembers martial law in 1981 On Dec. 13, 1981, the arrests and jailings started. Radio programs were halted. The borders were shut down. Martial law was imposed 2 Valuable primeval forest under threat Environmental organizations The 10th annual event has become the biggest holiday gathering in Poland, where those who have resources share with those who haven’t. It is far from the only such event, are raising the alarm about the however. Many cities reach out to the poor during the holiday season. The cooks at the Krakow event prepared about 6,000 liters of mushroom soup with pasta. management of Poland’s most valuable primeval forest: Kinga Rodkiewicz “I ask them to put together parcels with the most help from homeless programs. Bialowieska Forest 2 STAFF JOURNALIST important necessities, such as sugar, tea, coffee, flour Gdansk has a Christmas Eve meal program that gets the young and rice,” she said. involved in the spirit of the season. Since 1989, students from all About 50,000 homeless, poor and lonely ate free on At the Christmas Eve event, those in the crowd get the universities in the Pomeranian region have staffed the Kitchen Rynek Glowny (Main Market Square). raffle tickets. Numbers are called, and every person of Santa Claus, cooking soup every Thursday for the homeless School students The 10th annual event has become the biggest holi- receives a gift. and poor. day gathering in Poland, where those who have resourc- “I remember that once a man who had a big family They prepare special meals on Christmas Eve and Easter for the can read, not count es share with those who haven’t. It is far from the only received a parcel in which there was food – and 500 90 or so people they serve. Assessments of teenage students such event, however. Many cities reach out to the poor zloty,” Ziembicka said. Lublin held its 8th Christmas Eve meal program this year. The during the holiday season. It is a tradition that if the beneficiary of a gift knows main organizer was the Dominican Order. showed that they performed best The cooks at the Krakow event prepared about 6,000 who the donor is, he must express his thanks. When When the Old Town event was first held, it was only for the in reading tasks, while they had liters of mushroom soup with pasta, six tons of cabbage the man with the big family sent his appreciation let- homeless. Now it’s for everyone. difficulty in math exercises 4 with mushrooms and 100,000 homemade dumplings. ter, the donor was so pleased that he gave the family Residents, including people dressed as angels holding candles, “Ten years ago, I had no idea that Christmas Eve on another 1,000 zloty. wander through the streets singing Christmas carols. At the main the main market square in Krakow” would become so Katowice also has a Christmas Eve meal for the market square the carolers take part in the most important part of big, said Jan Kosciuszko, owner of the Chlopskie Jadlo homeless and poor. each Christmas Eve – sharing wafers and good wishes. Military takes part restaurant, who started the tradition. Bishop Gerard Bernacki told When he initiated the program, he said, he hoped it the 60 Silesians at this year’s in peace program would become a tradition that spread to many locations event to fill their hearts “with Partnership for Peace sends – and it would involve people of means helping those love, kindness and goodness. without. I wish you on this Christmas troops overseas to deal with Mayor Jacek Majchrowski and Cardinal Stanislaw peace, joy and kindness.” terrorism and proliferation 6 Dziwisz are among the notables who have embraced the Non-governmental organi- event. zations estimate the number of Ninety percent of those who ate on the main market homeless in Poland at between Int’l women raise square this year were needy, meal organizers said. 80,000 and 130,000. The num- Christmas is Poland’s most important religious holi- ber in Katowice has grown each money for orphans day. The Catholic Church tells its members that those year over the last several years, with means should celebrate Jesus’ birth by helping the the mayor’s office said. Last The Int’l Women’s Association less fortunate. year about 5,000 people got holds Christmas Charity Ball to In almost every Polish home on Christmas, Eve there is a place at the dinner table for anyone who wanders support local poor children 11 in. If someone comes to the door unexpectedly, the tra- dition is that the host invites him or her to eat the 12 traditional Christmas dishes with the family. Local Guggenheim The tradition started in the 19th Century, when many families reserved a chair for a family member whom the Museum underway Russians had sent to Siberia for fighting for Polish in- dependence. A Krakow resident has decided In many Polish cities, local governments, private to build a Guggenheim sponsors and volunteers put together a Christmas Eve Museum in his hometown 12 meal for the poor. In Wroclaw, the event is associated with one deter- mined woman, journalist Wanda Ziembicka. She has Mediterranean dishes been organizing a Christmas meal for 20 years. Exotic drinks “I do this for very poor people, for the lonely, ill and those abandoned by relatives,” she said. “The disabled Hookahs and multi-children families come as well.” Arabian music So many people look forward to the event that “some- times at the beginning of September people ask me if Belly dancers they will receive an invitation,” Ziembicka said. Ziembicka prepares for the event by sending a letter Maly Rynek 2 each year seeking donations from 300 companies, busi- Tell.: (0) 12 421-6498 nessmen, editors, actors and politicians. Email: [email protected] 2 The Krakow Post POLAND DECEMBER 20-JANUARY 9, 2008 R E G I O N A L N E W S Poland remembers introduction of martial law in 1981 Gazprom warns of possible tensions with Ukraine Russian energy giant Gazprom late last week warned of a risk of “tensions” with Ukraine’s future government, two days before pro-Western Yulia Tymoshenko was voted in by the parliament as prime minister. “Today, the only place where there could be tensions is in Ukraine,” said Gazprom spokesman Sergei Kuprianov on the Russian news channel cc:sa:Hiuppo Vesti 24. Problems could arise “if a new govern- ment is elected that tries to modify the accord signed” earlier this month concerning the price of gas deliveries to Ukraine, he said. “There have been statements in that regard by the Ukrainian party and that worries us,” he added, alluding to comments by Tymoshenko’s party. On Dec. 4, Ukraine and Russia agreed on the price for gas deliveries in 2008 at $179.5 (122 euro) per 1,000 cubic meters. The current price for Russian gas paid by Ukraine is $130. However, a lawmaker from the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc, which is set to form Ukraine’s governing coalition, criticized the deal, saying it was proof of the “incapacity” of outgo- ing, pro-Moscow prime minister Viktor Yanu- kovych. Russia cut off gas supplies to Ukraine in 2006 after Kiev refused to accept a much higher price for imports. The move subsequently dis- rupted gas supplies to EU countries further down- stream, raising criticism that Moscow was using its energy resources to put pressure on neighbor- ing governments. (AFP) Martial law was declared for 586 days until July 22, 1983. Gazprom sets price limit at Iwona Bojarczuk tened Polish independence. The anniversary member at the controls. It transported high law gathered in front of the Warsaw home of $119 for Belarus Staff Journalist included masses, historical re-enactments, school students dressed in ZOMO uniforms. General Wojciech Jaruzelski to protest. The meetings and exhibitions. Another group of students was distributing man, whom many Poles despise for declar- Russian energy giant Gazprom late last week On Dec. 13, 1981, the arrests and jailings It also included some supporters of mar- leaflets about the anniversary of martial law. ing martial law, is still alive. set a gas price limit for Belarus at $119 (82 euro) started. Radio and television programs were tial law, who contend that Russian troops When the tram arrived at the stop where the As in previous years, those who gathered per 1,000 cubic meters for the first quarter of 2008, a day after President Vladimir Putin promised halted. Newspaper publication was stopped. would have come into Poland to suppress leaflet distributors were, sirens began blar- outside the house included martial law sup- Minsk to freeze natural gas costs. The government prohibited Poles from trav- the uprising if the Polish government had ing. The ZOMO forces rushed from the tram porters. They used candles to spell out the Gazprom spokesman Sergei Kuprianov made eling. The borders were closed. So were not declared martial law. to arrest those distributing leaflets. message: “We remember.” the announcement on Echo of Moscow radio, say- airports. Curfews were imposed. Correspon- The Civic Responsibility Foundation In Krakow, Defense Minister Bogdan Then they fired flares and sang the na- ing it met with the conditions of the contract signed dence was censored. organized the re-enactment of a clash in Klich joined the head of an uprising memo- tional anthem and the patriotic song “Rota.” in Dec.