Martial Law 1981–1983: History, Daily Life, Interesting Facts

On Sunday, December 13, 1981, Poles woke up in a different country. Phones were silent, and instead of morning programs, the radio and television broadcast a speech by General Wojciech Jaruzelski. Tanks and armored vehicles were on the streets, and during the night, officers took thousands of "Solidarity" activists from their homes. Martial law was introduced, which formally lasted until July 22, 1983, and changed the lives of millions for a long time.

In this guide, we describe how the authorities prepared for martial law starting in 1980, the role played by Colonel Ryszard Kukliński, what is known about the threat of Soviet intervention, how the night of December 12-13 unfolded, who was interned, where strikes occurred, and how many people died. We also show the daily life of those months: the curfew, monitored phone calls, rationing, television boycotts, and resistance symbols, as well as the world's and the Polish diaspora's reactions in the United States, including President Reagan and candles in windows. Finally, we discuss the end of martial law, the murder of Father Jerzy Popiełuszko, and how attempts were made to hold the authors of martial law accountable. Where sources differ or something could not be confirmed, we state this directly.

Preparations and Decision

The Plan Was Created Long Before December 1981

Martial law was not an improvisation from one night. The PRL authorities began preparing for it during the August 1980 strikes, even before the August agreements were signed. The Committee for the Defense of the Country and the General Staff of the Polish Army began what were called study works on the introduction of martial law. On November 10, 1980, the court registered the NSZZ "Solidarity," and just two days later, on November 12, General Wojciech Jaruzelski informed members of the Committee for the Defense of the Country that a "set of necessary legal acts concerning martial law" had been prepared.

Simultaneously, the Ministry of Internal Affairs was working. According to IPN historian Grzegorz Majchrzak, the oldest preserved list of individuals designated for internment by the SB dates back to October 28, 1980, and a list prepared three days later included "only" 1,200 people. A week later, at a meeting of the Ministry of Internal Affairs leadership, Deputy Minister Adam Krzysztoporski spoke of detaining "maybe around 30-40 thousand" people at the start and "maybe two or three times more" later. Majchrzak notes that no prisons in the PRL could accommodate such a number of people.

In February 1981, the Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Internal Affairs conducted a joint "staff exercise." It was then established that a pretext was needed, a general strike by "Solidarity" had to be preempted, and the operation was best conducted nationwide simultaneously, on a Saturday night, when workplaces were empty. According to historians' findings (Ryszard Terlecki, Andrzej Paczkowski), in the last decade of August 1981, Colonel Tadeusz Kwiatkowski, director of the Ministry of Internal Affairs' Investigative Bureau, agreed with the KGB to print 25,000 announcements from the Council of State about the introduction of martial law. They were printed in Moscow without a date and without the name of the Council's chairman. The internment operation was initially codenamed "Wrzos". As established by the IPN, it was changed to "Jodła" only after Colonel Ryszard Kukliński's escape to the West.

The Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the PZPR approved the decision to introduce martial law on December 5, 1981, and left General Jaruzelski, who had also been the party's First Secretary since October, the freedom to choose the specific date.

Colonel Kukliński, the Man Who Knew the Plans

The most extraordinary figure in this story is Colonel Ryszard Kukliński, an officer of the General Staff, who had been collaborating with American intelligence since 1972. By 1981, he had passed over 40,000 pages of documents regarding the PRL, the USSR, and the Warsaw Pact to the West. According to biographer Sławomir Cenckiewicz, from the spring of 1981, he led a team that planned martial law.

In early December 1980, Kukliński reported to the CIA that 18 divisions of the Warsaw Pact were to enter Poland: 15 Soviet, two Czechoslovak, and one East German. This report from December 4, 1980, is now available in the collections of the National Security Archive in Washington. The "Sojuz 80" exercises, which were to cover the operation, were ultimately canceled after the Warsaw Pact leaders' summit in Moscow on December 5, 1980.

On November 2, 1981, Kukliński and several other officers were informed by their superiors that there had been a leak of plans and that the Military Internal Service had initiated an investigation. On the night of November 7-8, the CIA evacuated him from Poland along with his family. Sources describe the details of the escape differently. Biographer Sławomir Cenckiewicz and American journalist Benjamin Weiser write about a van with diplomatic plates that the Kuklińskis crossed the border in at Świecko, according to Cenckiewicz at 8:20 on November 8. According to Weiser, the family hid in large cardboard boxes. Other accounts, including in Maria Nurowska's book, mention a flight from Okęcie on someone else's passport. In 1984, a military court sentenced the colonel in absentia to death. In 1997, after the verdict was overturned, the investigation was closed, stating that he acted in a state of higher necessity.

Kukliński's assessment still divides Poles: for some, he was a hero, while for others, he broke his military oath. Some authors, including historian Paweł Wieczorkiewicz, even entertained the hypothesis that he was a double agent, but this remains an unconfirmed hypothesis. The United States knew about the preparations because of him, yet did not warn the Polish opposition. Documents published by the National Security Archive show that American analysts focused on the threat of a Soviet invasion rather than on an "internal solution."

WRON and the Night Meeting of the Council of State

Martial law was formally introduced by the Council of State. According to the dzieje.pl portal (PAP), the members of the Council gathered at the Belweder around one in the morning, and most of them did not know why they were called. After about an hour and a half of deliberations, they adopted the documents presented to them. Only Ryszard Reiff, the chairman of the PAX association, voted against, and he was later removed from his position. All documents were dated December 12, 1981. Some sources state that the meeting took place "around midnight," so the hours in the sources differ slightly.

The actual power was taken over by the Military Council of National Salvation, or WRON, an organ not provided for in the constitution. According to dzieje.pl, it consisted of 21 members. Published lists of members name 22 individuals, including Lieutenant Colonel Mirosław Hermaszewski, the first Pole in space, who, according to his own account, was added to the list without his knowledge and consent. Historians emphasize that WRON was largely a facade, and the most important decisions were made in an informal "directorate," which included, alongside Jaruzelski, generals Florian Siwicki and Czesław Kiszczak, as well as Mieczysław F. Rakowski. The slogan "The raven cannot defeat the eagle" quickly appeared on the walls.

The Legal Problem: A Decree That Should Not Have Been Issued

The PRL constitution allowed the Council of State to introduce martial law due to national defense or state security. The problem lay elsewhere. Detailed rules for martial law, restrictions on citizens' rights, and emergency courts were introduced by decrees with the force of law, and Article 31, paragraph 1 of the constitution allowed the Council of State to issue decrees only between sessions of the Sejm. In December 1981, the session was ongoing, and the next meeting was scheduled for December 15 and 16. The Sejm approved the decrees post factum by a law dated January 25, 1982, with one dissenting vote from MP Romuald Bukowski from Gdańsk.

Years later, the dispute was resolved by the Constitutional Tribunal. In a ruling dated March 16, 2011 (case file K 35/08), issued at the request of the Commissioner for Human Rights, it declared the decree on martial law and the decree on special proceedings to be inconsistent with Article 7 of the current Constitution in connection with Article 31, paragraph 1 of the PRL Constitution and with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. In the case of the Council of State's resolution on the introduction of martial law, the Tribunal discontinued the proceedings, deeming the issuance of a ruling inadmissible. In January 2012, the District Court in Warsaw sentenced General Czesław Kiszczak to four years in prison, reduced by amnesty and conditionally suspended, stating that the highest commanders had created "a criminal association of a military nature." The case against General Jaruzelski was separated in 2011 due to his health condition, and after his death in 2014, the proceedings were discontinued.

Would the Soviets Have Invaded? What the Documents Say

This is the most contentious issue in the entire history. General Jaruzelski maintained until the end of his life that martial law was the "lesser evil" that saved Poland from Soviet intervention and civil war. His supporters recall the Brezhnev doctrine, Hungary in 1956, and Czechoslovakia in 1968, the transfer of over 600 tanks to the Soviet base in Bornem Sulinowo in July 1981, and the large "Zapad-81" maneuvers near the Polish borders.

However, documents revealed after the fall of the USSR also show another side. On December 10, 1981, the Politburo of the CPSU Central Committee met. KGB chief Yuri Andropov said at that time, according to a protocol declassified in Russia in 1993: "We do not intend to send troops to Poland. This is the correct position, and we must stick to it until the end." Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko added that "there can be no introduction of troops into Poland." Russian historian Rudolf Pichoi believed that intervention was not considered, and it was the Polish side that demanded it.

The second key source is the notebook of General Viktor Anoshkin, aide to Marshal Viktor Kulikov, the supreme commander of the Warsaw Pact forces, who was in Poland from December 7 to 17, 1981. American historian Mark Kramer, who published excerpts from the notebook in the Cold War International History Project Bulletin at the Wilson Center, believes that Jaruzelski requested military support and was shocked by the refusal. In December 2009, IPN historian Antoni Dudek published in the "IPN Bulletin" a note from Anoshkin about a conversation with Kulikov on the night of December 8-9. Jaruzelski reportedly said: "If this is to engulf the whole country, then you (USSR) will have to help us. We cannot manage on our own," and when asked if Kulikov could report the decision to Brezhnev, he replied: "Yes, provided you give us assistance." Dudek notes that Kulikov's words did not contain a clear promise of help but did not exclude it either.

Jaruzelski denied this. In an interview with Radio Free Europe in 2009, he said he did not ask for the introduction of Soviet troops. He did not claim that the note was forged but stated that "it can be interpreted in various ways." Historians continue to differ in their assessments. For some, the documents prove that it was Jaruzelski who sought help, while Moscow refused. Others, like Andrzej Paczkowski, remind us that a real alternative could have been a takeover by party hardliners allied with the Kremlin. Society remains divided as well: in a CBOS survey from 2016, 41 percent of respondents deemed the introduction of martial law justified, while 35 percent considered it unjustified.

The Night of December 12-13, 1981

"Azalia" and "Jodła"

The operation began before midnight on December 12, formally before the introduction of martial law. Around 10:30 PM, the "Azalia" action commenced. According to Ryszard Terlecki, armed units occupied 451 telecommunications facilities across the country. Just after midnight, civilian phones went silent, including in embassies. Domestic and international calls were blocked at telecommunications centers, and the army and militia occupied the buildings of radio and television. It was impossible to call an ambulance or fire department. Communication in cities was restored on January 10, 1982, but conversations were monitored, as indicated by the message "controlled conversation."

Simultaneously, the "Jodła" action, meaning internment, was underway. Although it was scheduled for midnight, officers, as noted by Grzegorz Majchrzak from the IPN, often "knocked" on the doors of activists before 11 PM. The main blow fell on Gdańsk, where the National Commission of "Solidarity" was meeting on December 11 and 12, and where many activists and advisors of the union stayed overnight after the meetings. Jacek Kuroń, detained in a Gdańsk hotel, recalled a conversation with the major escorting him: "Do you remember, Major, how three years ago you came to take me from here, near Gdańsk? You came then in four Fiats. And today, you see for yourself how many tanks and soldiers you had to bring out onto the streets to take me."

According to a report from the Helsinki Committee, cited by the IPN, in the first hours, "doors were being broken down and people were being dragged from their beds," with some being pulled out in their underwear into the cold. Jacek Kuroń, his wife Grażyna, and son Maciej were interned. When both parents were detained, children sometimes ended up not with relatives but in a militia children's home.

Six in the Morning: "Our Homeland Has Found Itself on the Precipice"

At 6:00 AM on Sunday, December 13, Polish Radio broadcast a speech by General Jaruzelski. A slightly altered version was also aired by television. The general addressed Poles "as a soldier and as the head of the Polish government": "Our homeland has found itself on the precipice. The achievements of many generations, built from the ashes, are collapsing." He warned that "it is no longer days, but hours that bring us closer to a nationwide catastrophe." He announced that the Military Council of National Salvation had been constituted and that "the Council of State, in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution, has introduced martial law throughout the country at midnight today." He assured: "We do not aim for a military coup, for a military dictatorship" and appealed: "Let not a single drop of Polish blood flow in this tormented country, which has already experienced so many calamities, so much suffering." He concluded his speech with the words of the anthem "Poland Is Not Yet Lost, as Long as We Live."

Sunday Without "Teleranek"

For millions of children, martial law began with a blank screen. On Sunday morning, television did not air the beloved program "Teleranek." It resumed only three months later, in March 1982, and the absence of "Teleranek" became a synonym for that day for an entire generation. Classes in schools and universities were suspended, and the publication of newspapers was halted, except for "Trybuna Ludu," "Żołnierz Wolności," and party newspapers in the provinces. A curfew was introduced from 10 PM to 6 AM, and a permit was required to leave one's place of residence.

Military on the Streets: The Numbers

According to data cited by dzieje.pl and other studies, about 70,000 soldiers and 30,000 Ministry of Internal Affairs officers participated in the operation. 1,750 tanks, about 1,900 armored vehicles (1,400 armored personnel carriers and 500 infantry fighting vehicles), and 9,000 cars were deployed on the streets. About one-fourth of the forces were concentrated in Warsaw and its surroundings.

Over 8,000 military commissioners were sent to offices, institutions, and the most important enterprises. Transport, communication, energy, mining, and ports were militarized, and workers were treated like soldiers. Strikes and gatherings were prohibited, and courts transitioned to emergency mode, where some offenses carried the death penalty.

Interned: How Many, Who, and Where

Already on the first day, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs data, 3,173 people were interned, the vast majority of whom were members of the National Commission of "Solidarity." At the peak, on December 21, 1981, 5,128 people were in detention centers. The most accurate data for the entire period is provided by the IPN, citing the Ministry of Justice: by the end of December 1982, 10,132 internment decisions were issued against 9,736 people. The difference arises because 396 decisions concerned people who were interned again, some even three times. Among the interned were 8,728 men and 1,008 women. Over 80 percent were members of "Solidarity," and nearly 43 percent were workers. Various publications also mention the number 10,131 or generally "around 10 thousand" interned.

Not only "Solidarity" activists were interned but also members of the Independent Students' Association, agricultural "Solidarity," KOR, and KPN. The Congress of Polish Culture, which was meeting in Warsaw, was also interrupted. Reformist members of the PZPR, several dozen militia officers who tried to establish a trade union, and later criminals were also detained. The IPN points to another group of "inmates": secret collaborators of the SB who were supposed to inform on their fellow detainees.

Formally, 46 detention centers were established, and later more. According to prison authorities, interned individuals were held in a total of 52 locations, not counting five centers for former dignitaries, although many studies mention the number 49. Most were sent to prisons, such as in Potulice and Bydgoszcz-Fordon, or to detention centers, where conditions were the worst. Women and some intellectuals were placed in holiday centers, such as a military holiday home in Jaworze. In Warsaw's Białołęka, the interned published hand-copied writings, and in Iława, from March 1982, Radio "InterNowa" operated through the prison's loudspeaker system.

Some of the most notorious beatings of the interned occurred in Wierzchowo Pomorskie, Iława, and Kwidzyn, where on August 14, 1982, according to the IPN, 50 people were injured, and nine were hospitalized. Other studies report around 80 beaten, so sources differ. The last 62 people were released on December 23, 1982. However, eleven leading activists, including Andrzej Gwiazda, Jacek Kuroń, and Adam Michnik, did not go free but were sent to detention centers.

Wałęsa in Arłamów, Gierek in Głębokiem

The authorities treated Lech Wałęsa differently, as they hoped to use him politically. Around two in the morning, the voivode Jerzy Kołodziejski and the First Secretary of the Voivodeship Committee of the PZPR Tadeusz Fiszbach came to his apartment in Gdańsk with the message that he was to go to Warsaw for talks. Wałęsa rejected the proposals for cooperation. He was held in the Ministry of Internal Affairs villa in Skolimów, in Chylice, and Otwock (sources provide different orders), and from May 11, 1982, in a government center in Arłamów. He was guarded by the Government Protection Bureau, not the Prison Service. He was released in November 1982, but sources provide different dates: some studies state November 11 or 14, while the chronology in the Encyclopedia of Solidarity (IPN) states November 12.

One of the most surprising details is that former communist leaders were also interned. The IPN lists 36 such individuals, with Edward Gierek, First Secretary of the KC PZPR from 1970 to 1980, at the forefront. Among them were also former prime ministers Piotr Jaroszewicz and Edward Babiuch. They were held in a center in Głębokie and later in Promnik near Warsaw. According to dzieje.pl, this was mainly for propaganda effect.

Strikes and Victims

Strikes After December 13

Monday, December 14 was the first day of work under martial law. Despite the internment of leaders, strikes broke out independently in many large enterprises: in steelworks, in most mines, in ports, in the shipyards of the Tri-City and Szczecin, in Ursus, and at the Wrocław Pafawag. According to PAP, strikes occurred in a total of 199 establishments out of about 7,000 existing enterprises in Poland at that time, and in 40 of them, brutal pacifications took place involving ZOMO and the military equipped with heavy equipment.

Subsequent strikes were broken night after night: at the Warski Shipyard in Szczecin, at the Lenin Steelworks, and at the Lublin FSC. According to the IPN, the Gdańsk Shipyard was occupied by the military and militia on December 16 at 6:27 AM. The Katowice Steelworks was pacified on December 23 with the support of tanks and airborne troops. On December 15, at the "Manifest Lipcowy" mine, militia officers opened fire and injured four miners. This was a precursor to what happened the following day.

"Wujek," December 16, 1981

At the "Wujek" mine in Katowice, around 1 AM on December 13, the chairman of the "Solidarity" factory committee, Jan Ludwiczak, was arrested. On December 14, the crew decided not to work until he returned. Residents of the nearby estate brought food to the strikers. The pacification plan, prepared on the evening of December 15, involved the use of 1,471 militia officers and ZOMO personnel, as well as 760 soldiers with 22 tanks and 44 infantry fighting vehicles.

On December 16 at 10:30 AM, water cannons and tear gas struck the crowd of residents and families in front of the mine. Tanks broke through the wall, and miners, armed with rods and pickaxe handles, repelled the assaults. Around 12:30 PM, a special ZOMO platoon was introduced to the mine, consisting of about twenty officers with PM-63 submachine guns. 156 shots were fired. The deceased included: Józef Czekalski, Józef Giza, Joachim Gnida, Ryszard Gzik, Bogusław Kopczak, Andrzej Pełka, Jan Stawisiński, Zbigniew Wilk, and Zenon Zając. The youngest, Andrzej Pełka, was born in 1962. More than twenty miners were injured (sources report 21 or 23), as well as 41 militia officers and soldiers. The IPN calls this the bloodiest pacification of martial law.

The military prosecutor's office discontinued the investigation on January 20, 1982, stating that the officers acted in necessary defense. Meanwhile, on February 9, 1982, the court of the Silesian Military District sentenced the strike leaders: Stanisław Płatek to four years in prison, Jerzy Wartak to three and a half years, and two others to three years. The trials of the special platoon members only began after 1989 and dragged on for years.

"Piast": Fourteen Days at a Depth of 650 Meters

At the "Piast" mine in Bieruń, miners chose a different tactic: on December 14, they remained underground at a depth of 650 meters. According to the IPN, the protest began with over two thousand workers, and more than a thousand persevered until the end. This was the longest strike of martial law and the longest underground protest in the post-war history of Polish mining. The strikers continuously secured the mine because they did not want to destroy their own facility. The miners feared that the mine would be flooded or that chemical agents would be introduced, and years later, documents were found confirming that the authorities considered pacification using the militia, military, armored vehicles, and firearms. The miners emerged to the surface on the evening of December 28. The next day, the mine extracted 12,000 tons of coal.

Seven miners stood trial before the Military Court in Katowice. The prosecutor demanded prison sentences of 10 to 15 years for them. On May 12, 1982, Judge Józef Medyk acquitted all of them, and the courtroom sang "Poland Is Not Yet Lost." For this verdict, the judge was removed from adjudicating. However, the acquitted did not enjoy their freedom for long: according to the IPN, a few hours after the verdict, all were interned. Five of them later emigrated to the United States. The strike was commemorated by a song sung, among others, by Jan Krzysztof Kelus, with the lyrics: "Boys from Piast, it's time to leave this hole."

Gdańsk and the Streets of Cities

The pacification of the shipyard did not calm Gdańsk. According to the IPN, on December 16, between 25,000 and 30,000 people participated in street battles in the city center, while other reports even mention 100,000. In the evening, tanks guarding the KW PZPR building fired several volleys of blank ammunition towards the train station, which was recorded on tape by "Solidarity" activists eavesdropping on militia communications. On December 17, near the KW PZPR building, the militia fired with machine guns, and 20-year-old Antoni Browarczyk was killed.

August 31, 1982 and Lubin

The largest demonstrations of underground "Solidarity" took place on August 31, 1982, on the second anniversary of the August agreements, in many cities across the country. According to reports, over 5,000 people were detained in 34 provinces at that time. The most tragic events occurred in Lubin. About five thousand people gathered in the market, arranging flowers into a cross with a ribbon reading "Solidarity." The militia used gas and then firearms, shooting from police cars at groups of people and at the windows of houses. Michał Adamowicz, Andrzej Trajkowski, and Mieczysław Poźniak were killed, and 11 others were injured. A photograph by Krzysztof Raczkowiak, showing four men carrying the mortally wounded Adamowicz, became one of the icons of martial law.

The authorities tried to cover up the traces, and the investigation was discontinued in 1983. Three military prosecutors who described the true course of events were accused of revealing state secrets. After 1989, three former militia officers were convicted, but the direct perpetrators were not identified. In December 2025, an IPN prosecutor submitted an indictment to the court in Legnica against ten former militia officers.

People also died outside of the large demonstrations. On October 13, 1982, in Nowa Huta, Captain SB Andrzej Augustyn fatally shot 20-year-old Bogdan Włosik. In May 1983, towards the end of martial law, 18-year-old Grzegorz Przemyk died after being beaten at the police station on Jezuicka Street in Warsaw, just three days before his 19th birthday.

How Many Were Killed and Why the Numbers Differ

There is no single answer to the question of how many people died during martial law. Various reports cite around 40 or over 70 victims. Lists compiled in the 1980s by the underground, the Helsinki Committee, and church aid committees counted, according to the IPN, from several dozen to 104 names. In 1989, the Sejm established a commission to investigate the activities of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, known as the "Rokita Commission" after its chairman, Jan Rokita. It examined 122 cases of deaths in which the involvement of Ministry of Internal Affairs officers was confirmed or suspected, and in 88 cases, it concluded that the cases should be reopened. This number is presented differently: "Rzeczpospolita" reported that 88 deaths were "directly" caused by officers, while the IPN speaks of cases to be reopened due to suspected crimes or negligence in investigations.

The discrepancies have several causes. The lists cover different periods: the martial law itself (December 13, 1981 – July 22, 1983) or the entire decade up to 1989. The definition of a victim also varies. The IPN, in an exhibition in 2006, presented 56 profiles of victims from martial law and later years, deliberately omitting those killed by officers without political context. Many deaths remain unexplained to this day, as investigations in the PRL served to conceal the perpetrators. The number of people who lost their health due to beatings cannot be determined.

Courts, Sentences, and Verifications

Alongside internments, the authorities resorted to courts, often military ones operating in an ad hoc manner. The sentence considered the highest during martial law was delivered on February 3, 1982, to Ewa Kubasiewicz, a librarian from the Maritime University in Gdynia. The Navy Court sentenced her to 10 years in prison for a leaflet calling for resistance against martial law, and according to her account published by the IPN, also for leading an occupation strike at the university. Two ambassadors of the PRL who requested asylum in protest against martial law were sentenced in absentia to death: Romuald Spasowski, the ambassador to the United States, and Zdzisław Rurarz, the ambassador to Japan. Both sought refuge in the United States.

Repressions also affected employment. In striking enterprises, people were mass-dismissed, around two thousand from "Piast," and activists received blacklists. As a result of "verifications," at least 800 journalists lost their jobs, and in March 1982, the Polish Journalists' Association was dissolved. In the autumn of 1982, some activists were called for "military training," which Jaruzelski referred to as an "intelligent form of internment." According to reports, by 1983, 850,000 members had left the PZPR.

One-Way Passport

The authorities quickly realized that some opponents could be most easily "neutralized" by pushing them out of the country. On January 25, 1982, Jaruzelski stated in the Sejm: "It is not the intention of the authorities to deport anyone against their will. However, we will not place obstacles if these individuals wish to settle in other countries of their choice." In March 1982, the Ministry of Internal Affairs began a special operation. Officials from the passport office visited detention centers and promised that within a month of submitting an application, the interned person would find themselves in the chosen country. Applications could even be submitted incomplete.

The catch lay in the type of document. As explained by Marta Marcinkiewicz from the IPN, emigration passports were issued for one year and allowed for a one-time crossing of the border, while visits to Poland required permission. Thus, returning was practically impossible. Government spokesman Jerzy Urban insisted that "everyone, absolutely everyone received normal passports, valid for three years." The interned in Jaworzno decided that no one would accept such an proposal in confinement, as they considered it to be blackmail. Accounts collected by the IPN indicate that the decision to leave was often made by the wives of the interned, who, after months of harassment, could not imagine continuing life in the country.

By December 23, 1982, 4,322 applications for emigration passports had been submitted, including 1,278 from the interned. Approval was granted to 1,096 of the interned, but by that date, only 147 of them and 299 family members had left. Some submitted applications only to get out of the center. The U.S. Embassy in Warsaw prioritized individuals who had been interned for at least six months starting in December 1982. The author of the IPN text speculates that one reason could be that among those leaving were also secret collaborators of the SB, later used for surveillance of the emigration. By the end of 1988, 2,218 former internees had applied for permission to leave, just over 20 percent of the total, and 2,119 left. Some of them, like the five acquitted miners from "Piast," ended up in the United States and joined the Polish diaspora there.

Daily Life During Martial Law

For most Poles, martial law began on Sunday, December 13, 1981, with silence. Phones were silent because communication was cut off across the country during the night of December 12 to 13. Instead of the usual programming, radio and television broadcast the speech of General Wojciech Jaruzelski. Polish Radio aired it at 6:00 AM, while television followed a few hours later. For the following months, the state decided when people could leave their homes, how they could talk on the phone, and what they could read in the newspapers.

The Curfew and Passes

The most noticeable restriction was the so-called curfew. According to PAP (dzieje.pl), it was in effect from 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM, during which time people were not allowed to leave their homes. Some sources indicate that initially, the ban started as early as 7:00 PM, and only later was it set at 10:00 PM. We could not confirm this version in another source, so we consider it uncertain.

The curfew was not the same throughout the entire period. On Christmas Eve 1981, it was lifted for one night so that people could attend midnight mass, and on New Year's Eve, it was suspended for one day. Authorities could also tighten it locally, as in Świdnik in February 1982 (more on that below). We could not definitively establish the exact date when it was lifted nationwide based on the sources we accessed.

Freedom of movement was also restricted. Changing one's place of residence required prior notification to the authorities, and a pass was needed to leave one's locality. Foreign travel was suspended until further notice. Restrictions on domestic travel were lifted on March 1, 1982. The militia and military could stop passersby at any time, check their identification, and search them.

“Controlled Conversation”

Telephone connections in cities were restored on January 10, 1982, and according to the RMF24 timeline, long-distance calls were only restored on March 29, 1982. When a number was dialed, a recorded voice would say: “controlled conversation, controlled conversation.” The authorities did not hide the fact that conversations could be monitored. Censorship of correspondence was also introduced, allowing officials to open and read letters.

Newspapers, Radio, and Television in Uniforms

On December 13, the publication of newspapers was halted. Only two newspapers were published: the party newspaper “Trybuna Ludu” and the military newspaper “Żołnierz Wolności.” Some titles were never resumed. Studies cite “Kultura” and “Czas” as examples of closures. On March 19, 1982, the authorities dissolved the Association of Polish Journalists.

After December 13, presenters of the “Dziennik Telewizyjny” appeared on television in military uniforms. According to historian Grzegorz Majchrzak from the IPN, they did this on their own initiative. For example, Andrzej Racławicki appeared in uniform. The television was run by military commissioners who interfered with programming. Distrust of television was persistent. In May 1986, 41 percent of respondents surveyed by CBOS indicated “Dziennik Telewizyjny” as the program that most often provided “completely false” information.

Walks During the “Dziennik” Time

The most creative form of protest was the boycott of the main edition of “Dziennik Telewizyjny,” broadcast at 7:30 PM. It originated in Świdnik near Lublin. On February 5, 1982, at the initiative of activists from the underground “Solidarity” (the idea is attributed to Jan Kaźmierczak), a small group went for a walk on Sławińskiego Street, now Niepodległości, right at the time of the “Dziennik.” By February 7, entire families were walking, and in the following days, thousands of people participated in the action.

Initially, the authorities would check and detain the walkers. On February 11, the Provincial Defense Committee in Lublin imposed a curfew in Świdnik from 7:00 PM to 6:00 AM (the dzieje.pl timeline states 7:30 PM, so sources differ by half an hour). The walk still took place. The authorities also banned personal vehicles from moving around the city. Searches, arrests, and internments proved to be more effective. On February 14, the underground authorities of the union in Świdnik called for the action to end. However, the idea had already spread across the country. Walks took place in Lublin, Puławy, Olsztyn, Ursus in Warsaw, and Białystok, where they continued on Lipowa Street at least until November 1982.

The theme of “the lying television” also appeared on walls. On the evening of December 15, 1981, after the broadcast of the news program, a technical school student from Kielce, Mirosław Satalecki, painted in light green on PKS buses in Kościółki the slogans “Jaruzelski lies,” “TV lies,” “ZOMO beats,” “freedom and democracy,” and “Free political prisoners.” A military court sentenced him to one year in prison, suspended, and he was acquitted only in 1996.

Ration Cards, Queues, and Empty Shelves

Martial law did not introduce ration cards; it inherited them from the crises of previous years. Ration tickets for sugar were introduced as early as August 1976. On February 28, 1981, ration cards for meat and meat products were introduced (which were supposed to last one quarter but lasted until 1989), in April 1981 for butter, flour, groats, and rice, and from September for soap, laundry powder, and toilet paper. According to historian Aleksander Mazur, soon after, more goods were added to the ration list: coffee, chocolate, powdered milk for children, school supplies, cigarettes, alcohol, gasoline, and even shoes. A contemporary “Solidarity” activist from Świdnik, Waldemar Jakson, recalled that his family received 3.5 kg of meat per month. From January 1, 1982, the authorities introduced new rules for selling meat on ration cards, which, according to “Rzeczpospolita,” meant a reduction in allocations. The weekly “Wprost” mentions a reduction of the basic norm from 3.5 to 2.5 kg, but we could not verify this number in the original source.

However, a ration card did not guarantee a purchase. The portal dzieje.pl reminds us that especially the year 1982 was very bad in terms of store supplies, and even low-quality sausages “thrown” into the store became a rarity.

Schools, Work, and the First Wartime Christmas Eve

With the declaration of martial law, classes in schools and universities were suspended. Students returned to school on January 4, 1982, while students returned only on February 8, 1982 (one educational study cites January 8 for universities, but most sources indicate February). The most important enterprises were militarized, and over 8,000 military commissioners operated in institutions and enterprises. On December 30, 1981, a work obligation was introduced for men aged 18 to 45.

On December 21, 1981, there were 5,128 people interned in detention centers, colloquially referred to as “internats,” including 313 women. This was the largest number of people held there at the same time. Some were released just before the holidays, but most spent them behind bars. Historian Grzegorz Majchrzak from the IPN describes that in Potulice, the interned organized a midnight mass in the prison corridor, and in some centers, such as in Białołęka, they shared the wafer with the guards (in Jaworzno with the soldiers guarding them). Meanwhile, phones were still not working outside, and the curfew was lifted only on Christmas Eve night.

Boycott of Actors and “Home Theater”

The artistic community also undertook its protest. Actors stopped performing on television and radio, although they continued to act in theaters and parish halls. The start date is not clear: the IPN cites January 13, 1982, while historian Daniel Przastek believes the action began as early as December 18-19, 1981. Historian Daniel Przastek calls this boycott the longest strike in the history of the PRL, lasting about a year. The audience was capable of punishing those who broke the boycott. In February 1982, Stanisław Mikulski was greeted with coughing by the audience at the Teatr Powszechny.

In 1982, Ewa Dałkowska, Emilian Kamiński, Andrzej Piszczatowski, and Maciej Szary founded the Home Theater, performing in private apartments. On December 1, 1982, the authorities dissolved the Association of Polish Stage Artists (ZASP). In November 1982, Primate Józef Glemp appealed to actors to return to the screen. The symbolic end of the boycott was the premiere of the Television Theater “Desire Under the Elms” by Eugene O’Neill in September 1983.

Resistance Symbols, Wall Writings, and Humor

Among the youth, the resistance symbol, a small electronic component pinned to a lapel, became popular. Its name was associated with resistance, so wearing it was a silent declaration. The government press tried to ridicule this trend. The weekly “Rzeczywistość” compared it to wearing an earring in the ear and women's pendants. Writings on walls, leaflets, and posters were one of the main tools of resistance. Studies mention among the wall writings the slogan “The WRON eagle will not be defeated,” which the IPN later titled a book and a series of workshops on martial law. This is a play on words, as WRON stands for the Military Council of National Salvation, which formally held power. Many jokes also remained after martial law, but we could not reliably document specific examples in the sources we accessed, so we do not cite them here.

The Church and Packages from the West

The Church became the largest network of assistance for the repressed. On December 17, 1981, under the patronage of Primate Józef Glemp, the Primate's Committee for Assistance to Persons Deprived of Freedom and Their Families was established, operating at St. Martin's Church on Piwna Street in Warsaw. The Committee gathered information about where the detained were located, organized legal assistance, sent packages with food, medicine, and warm clothing to the interned and prisoners, and helped their families. According to the Bulletin of Public Information of the Commissioner for Human Rights, about 17,000 victims of martial law received assistance. Similar committees were established in other dioceses. Donations from abroad were also distributed through parishes.

The scale of assistance from the Federal Republic of Germany was extraordinary. According to PAP (dzieje.pl), Poles received over 30 million packages from the FRG in the early 1980s, especially during martial law, with a total value exceeding one billion marks. On February 3, 1982, the Bundestag's postal committee unanimously recommended that private packages with donations to Poland be transported free of charge from February 8 to June 30, 1982, with the cost, estimated at 20-25 million marks, covered by the federal budget. According to a report from a postal worker in Hanover at the time, cited by PAP, employment at the local office increased eightfold.

The World and the Polish Diaspora in Response to Martial Law

On Sunday, December 13, 1981, the first demonstrations took place not only in Poland. As Eugeniusz Starky writes in the “IPN Bulletin,” on the same day, thousands of people took to the streets in Paris, London, Tokyo, Rome, New York, and Chicago.

Reagan, the Ambassador, and the Candle in the Window

The first significant gesture from Washington was the escape of the Polish ambassador. Romuald Spasowski, the ambassador of the PRL in the USA, requested political asylum on December 19, 1981, and was immediately granted it. According to the American National Park Service, which describes Spasowski's home in Virginia, on December 22, the ambassador met with President Ronald Reagan and asked him to encourage Americans to light candles in their windows as a sign of solidarity with the Poles. In the PRL, Spasowski was sentenced in absentia to death. The sentence was overturned in 1989.

On December 23, 1981, Reagan delivered a Christmas message to the nation regarding the situation in Poland. In it, he stated (in our translation) that Ambassador Spasowski had asked that a candle be lit in the window of the White House on Christmas Eve as “a small but certain sign of our solidarity” with the Poles, and he urged Americans to do the same the following evening, on Christmas Eve. The IPN states that the president lit a candle on Christmas Eve. Some American publications report that Reagan lit it on December 22, right after his conversation with Spasowski, but we could not confirm this version in any primary source. According to PAP, on Christmas Eve, Pope John Paul II also lit a candle in the window of the Apostolic Palace.

Sanctions and Most-Favored-Nation Clause

In the same message, Reagan announced the first sanctions against the PRL: the suspension of the renewal of export credit insurance lines by the Export-Import Bank, the suspension of the rights of Polish civil aviation in the USA, the revocation of the Polish fishing fleet's rights to fish in American waters, and the suspension of government supplies of agricultural and dairy products to the Polish government. He also proposed to allies further restrictions on the export of advanced technologies to Poland. Soon, sanctions were also imposed on the Soviet Union. The next step came after the dissolution of “Solidarity” by the trade union law of October 8, 1982. The next day, on October 9, 1982, the US government suspended the most-favored-nation clause in trade with Poland. It also opposed the PRL's admission to the International Monetary Fund. This opposition was withdrawn in December 1984. PRL propaganda later explained the ongoing economic difficulties as a result of American sanctions.

The last sanctions were lifted only on February 19, 1987. In a statement on that day, Reagan restored Poland's most-favored-nation clause and the right to official American credits. He justified this by the amnesty of September 1986, after which, as he wrote, no one in Poland was arrested for political reasons. He also added that the lifting of sanctions was requested by the leaders of the Church in Poland and “Solidarity.”

Day of Solidarity and “Let Poland Be Poland”

The Reagan administration declared January 30, 1982, as the Day of Solidarity with Poland. Demonstrations took place in many cities of the free world, but their scale was often smaller than remembered. Piotr Abryszeński from the IPN recalls that in Chicago, Secretary of State Alexander Haig spoke at the International Amphitheater, which was only half full. In New York, about 2,500 people protested, in Boston about 300, and in Dallas about 100.

The next day, January 31, 1982, American television premiered the program “Let Poland Be Poland.” According to the IPN, it was sponsored by the American public diplomacy agency International Communication Agency. Director Marty Pasetta had only ten days to record it. The title referred to the song by Jan Pietrzak “Żeby Polska była Polską.” The program featured politicians, including Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, François Mitterrand, Helmut Schmidt, Japanese Prime Minister Zenkō Suzuki, and Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, as well as artists, including Charlton Heston (narrator), Kirk Douglas, Henry Fonda, Orson Welles, Bob Hope, Max von Sydow, Glenda Jackson, Paul McCartney, and Frank Sinatra. The radio version was prepared by Voice of America in nearly 40 languages. According to the IPN, the program was watched by about 185 million viewers in 50 countries (in another IPN statement, it mentions nearly 200 million).

The evaluation of the program was not unanimous. The European press mostly criticized it, calling its form “agitative” and boring, reminiscent of propaganda from the Eastern bloc. It was practically only praised by the French “Le Figaro.” In the FRG, only fragments were initially shown. In Poland, the entire recording was aired only in 2011. According to the IPN, it was in September, while other sources state December 13, 2011, on TVP Historia.

Trade Unions and the Polish American Congress

Western trade unions played a special role. Demonstrations in the USA were organized at the call of the Polish American Congress, the AFL-CIO trade union federation, and the New York Committee for Solidarity Assistance. According to English-language studies, the AFL-CIO raised $300,000 for “Solidarity,” and in subsequent years, support was also provided by the National Endowment for Democracy. On Christmas Eve 1981, at 5:00 PM, thousands of people marched silently, with candles and black armbands, from St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York to the PRL consulate.

The Polish American Congress, based in Chicago, became the main coordinator of protests and assistance. According to the Congress itself, its president Alojzy Mazewski, along with other leaders of the organization, met after December 13 with President Reagan and Vice President George Bush at the White House, and the leaders of the Congress issued a joint statement condemning martial law. “Christian Science Monitor” reported on February 4, 1982, that the Congress raised $900,000 in the previous year and sent 3.4 million pounds of food to Poland, and after the introduction of martial law, sent over 200,000 pounds of food and raised $200,000 in January 1982 alone. According to the Congress itself, its foundation sent to Poland in the 1980s, in cooperation with the Church, medicines and medical supplies worth $200 million, which we could not independently verify. The Congress long opposed lifting sanctions against the PRL. It only changed its position in the summer of 1984. As “Christian Science Monitor” wrote on August 2, 1984, Mazewski then called on the US government for a “positive and concrete” (in our translation) response to the amnesty announced in the PRL on July 21, 1984.

Refugees, Asylum, and Emigration

Martial law found thousands of Poles abroad: tourists, sailors, scientists, and contract workers. In Austria, at the time of its introduction, about 26,000 Poles were already applying for asylum, and according to Austrian authorities, another 20,000 to 30,000 Poles residing there could apply for asylum. Austria sought help from Australia, Canada, and the USA in accepting refugees. The story of the trawler “Regulus” from Gdynia's “Dalmor,” which was picketed by the Canadian Polish community in Vancouver on January 11, 1982, was widely publicized. We did not find credible, documented cases of Polish athletes who remained in the West during this time, so we do not mention them here.

According to “Christian Science Monitor” from November 1983, since the introduction of martial law, about 15,000 Polish refugees settled in the USA, including about 5,600 in the budget year 1983. Some of them were interned. General Czesław Kiszczak offered opposition activists who were interned, as stated in the IPN statement, “a one-way ticket to the West in exchange for leaving custody”: they could leave with their families but could not return to the country. According to this statement, about 10,000 people took advantage of the opportunity to leave. In May 1983, the State Department reported that 300-400 former internees were in the USA, and with their families, about 1,150 people.

The overall scale of emigration in the 1980s is difficult to determine. The IPN statement mentions “a million refugees” who left Poland “during martial law,” without providing exact time frames for this calculation. English-language studies cite about 700,000 Poles who emigrated to the West between 1981 and 1989. Sources differ significantly, likely due to different periods and methods of counting. We could not determine how many of them settled in the United States based on reliable sources.

The End of Martial Law and Settlements

The authorities gradually lifted martial law in stages, aiming to retain as many control tools as possible. On July 21, 1982, the day before the national holiday of July 22, about a thousand detainees were released, including all women. On October 8, 1982, the Sejm formally dissolved the NSZZ "Solidarity" through a law on trade unions. On December 18, 1982, it passed the law "on special legal regulations during the suspension of martial law," which maintained most of the repressive provisions, and on December 19, the Council of State suspended martial law effective December 31, 1982.

July 22, 1983, and Amnesty

On July 20, 1983, the Council of State, at the request of the WRON, adopted a resolution to abolish martial law effective July 22, 1983. The date was chosen deliberately, as July 22 marked the anniversary of the announcement of the PKWN Manifesto, one of the most important holidays of the People's Republic of Poland. The WRON was also dissolved. Sources provide different dates here: some studies mention July 21, 1983, while the PAP calendar (dzieje.pl) and RMF24 state July 22, 1983. The amnesty law of July 21, 1983, covered crimes committed before the abolition of martial law. According to a report for the leadership of the PZPR, cited by PAP, 365 people were released from prison, and proceedings were discontinued against 1,116 individuals. The amnesty also covered acts committed during the suppression of strikes and demonstrations, thus protecting MO, ORMO, and SB officers from accountability. Eleven leaders of "Solidarity" and activists of KSS "KOR" remained in prison without a verdict.

What Remained After Martial Law

The formal end did not mean a return to the situation before December 13. The law on special legal regulations during the overcoming of the socio-economic crisis, in effect until the end of 1985, allowed for the extension of working hours and the dissolution or suspension of workers' councils. Criminal and misdemeanor laws were tightened, and control over publications and performances was expanded. The constitution was amended to include the possibility of the Council of State introducing martial law or a state of emergency, and the 1982 law on the Ministry of Internal Affairs granted the militia and SB the right to detain individuals for 48 hours. Historian Jan Żaryn estimates that "a significant portion of the martial law regulations became part of the legislation of the People's Republic of Poland." Many political prisoners were released only after the amnesty in September 1986.

The Murder of Father Jerzy Popiełuszko

The most shocking evidence that repression did not end in July 1983 was the murder of Father Jerzy Popiełuszko. The chaplain of Warsaw's "Solidarity" had been celebrating "Masses for the Homeland" at St. Stanislaus Kostka Church in Żoliborz since February 28, 1982. On October 19, 1984, while returning from Bydgoszcz to Warsaw, his car was stopped near Górsk by officers of the Independent Group "D" of the IV Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs disguised as traffic police. The driver, Waldemar Chrostowski, managed to jump out of the speeding car and escape. The priest's body was recovered on October 30, 1984, from the Vistula River near the dam in Włocławek. His funeral on November 3, 1984, gathered an estimated 600,000 to over a million people, according to independent observers.

In the Toruń trial, which took place from December 27, 1984, to February 7, 1985, before the Voivodeship Court in Toruń, Captain Grzegorz Piotrowski was sentenced to 25 years in prison, Lieutenant Leszek Pękala to 15 years, Lieutenant Waldemar Chmielewski to 14 years, and their superior, Colonel Adam Pietruszka, also to 25 years. In 1986-1987, the sentences were reduced, partly due to the intervention of General Czesław Kiszczak and by virtue of the amnesty. Piotrowski was released in 2001. Questions still arise regarding the masterminds behind the crime and the circumstances of the last hours of the priest's life. Prosecutor Andrzej Witkowski formulated the hypothesis that the priest died only on October 25, which critics, including Witold Kulesza, deemed unsupported by evidence. The case remains a subject of dispute. Father Popiełuszko was beatified on June 6, 2010, in Warsaw.

Attempts to Judge the Authors of Martial Law

After 1989, holding the creators of martial law accountable proved to be extremely difficult. In October 1996, the Sejm discontinued proceedings regarding the constitutional responsibility of the authors of martial law before the State Tribunal. The matter returned thanks to the IPN. On April 16, 2007, prosecutors from the Katowice branch of the Institute submitted an indictment to the District Court in Warsaw against Wojciech Jaruzelski and other representatives of the then authorities, including living members of the Council of State.

On January 12, 2012, the District Court in Warsaw issued a verdict. It found that Generals Wojciech Jaruzelski, Czesław Kiszczak, Florian Siwicki, and Tadeusz Tuczapski formed a criminal association of a military nature, and martial law was prepared and implemented in violation of the constitution in force at the time. Kiszczak was sentenced to four years in prison, which was halved due to amnesty and suspended for five years. Former First Secretary of the PZPR Stanisław Kania was acquitted because, according to the court, he advocated for a political solution to the situation. Kania's acquittal is final, and the verdict against Kiszczak became final on June 15, 2015, when it was upheld by the Court of Appeal in Warsaw. Proceedings against former Council of State member Eugenia Kempara were discontinued due to the statute of limitations, although the court acknowledged her guilt. Tuczapski died during the trial, and the cases of Siwicki and Jaruzelski were excluded due to health reasons. Jaruzelski died on May 25, 2014, and on June 5, 2014, the court discontinued the proceedings against him. Therefore, none of the main authors of martial law were imprisoned for it.

Ruling of the Constitutional Tribunal and Compensation

On March 16, 2011, the Constitutional Tribunal in full composition (case number K 35/08), at the request of the Commissioner for Human Rights, ruled that the decrees of December 12, 1981, on martial law and special proceedings were unconstitutional. This ruling is different from the compensation ruling described below.

The basis for compensation is the law of February 23, 1991, recognizing the invalidity of judgments issued against individuals repressed for activities in favor of an independent Polish state. The amendment of September 19, 2007, allowed for compensation claims to be made by interned individuals as well, but limited the total amount of compensation and redress to 25,000 zł and set a one-year deadline for filing claims, which was lifted by an amendment effective from January 29, 2009. On March 1, 2011, the Constitutional Tribunal (case number P 21/09) found this limit unconstitutional. According to data from the Ministry of Justice, from 1991 to 2008, courts awarded compensation to 68,615 individuals for a total amount exceeding 1.1 billion zł.

How Poles Evaluate Martial Law

CBOS regularly surveys Poles on their opinions regarding the decision to impose martial law. In December 1994, 54 percent of respondents considered it justified, while 23 percent deemed it unjustified. In 2011, the proportions were 44 to 34 percent, and in 2016, 41 to 35 percent. In a survey conducted from November 4 to 14, 2021, with a sample of 1,100 people, opinions reversed for the first time: 37 percent deemed the imposition of martial law unjustified and wrong, 33 percent justified, while 30 percent had no opinion.

Supporters of a positive evaluation most often argue that the decision prevented a Soviet intervention and bloodshed. Critics point out that it was primarily about maintaining power by the PZPR. In 2021, 40 percent of respondents chose the latter answer, while 27 percent cited the avoidance of foreign intervention (multiple reasons could be indicated). The debate over whether a Soviet intervention was genuinely threatened continues among historians and is discussed in another part of this guide.

Interesting Facts

• Ohio Governor James A. Rhodes announced at a rally in Columbus on January 30, 1982, on the Day of Solidarity with Poland, that the state alcohol monopoly would stop selling Russian vodka.
• According to Piotr Abryszeński from the IPN, Frank Sinatra sang two verses in Polish in the program "Let Poland Be Poland." The song "Ever Homeward" was composed to the melody of 19th-century composer Kazimierz Lubomirski to a poem by Wiktoryn Zieliński from 1842, and Sinatra had already sung it in the film "The Miracle of the Bells" from 1948, in which he played a priest.
• The program "Let Poland Be Poland," which was watched by millions worldwide, was shown in its entirety in Poland only in 2011, nearly 30 years after its premiere.
• Two ambassadors of the People's Republic of Poland requested asylum within a few days: Romuald Spasowski in Washington on December 19, 1981, and Zdzisław Rurarz in Tokyo four days later. It was Spasowski who asked Reagan to appeal to Americans to light candles in their windows.
• The court that convicted a technical school student for writing "Jaruzelski lies" on a PKS bus stated in its justification that about eight people could read the inscription, and the slogan was so absurd that no reasonable person could consider it harmful to the prestige of the prime minister. The convicted student was acquitted by the Military Chamber of the Supreme Court in 1996.
• In Świdnik, where the boycott of "Television News" was born, the authorities imposed a curfew from 7:00 PM (according to some calendars from 7:30 PM) for the entire city and prohibited personal vehicles from moving around it. In Puławy, the curfew for primary school students was set at 6:00 PM.
• In a survey by a press research center belonging to the party conglomerate RSW in 1984, the least credible journalist turned out to be Tadeusz Samitowski, the host of "Television News." He even surpassed government spokesman Jerzy Urban, 26.5 to 25.5 percent.
• From February 8 to June 30, 1982, private packages with gifts to Poland were sent from West Germany free of charge, with the costs covered by the federal budget. According to a postal worker in Hanover at the time, cited by PAP, up to 70,000 packages arrived daily.
• The crew of the trawler "Regulus" learned about martial law from Western radio stations in the North Pacific. When the ship docked in Vancouver, five sailors remained in Canada, and the Navy Prosecutor's Office in Gdynia refused to initiate preparatory proceedings against them on May 27, 1982.
• The Home Theater, established in 1982 by actors boycotting television, gave about 150 performances until 1989, mainly in private apartments.
• According to historian Aleksander Mazur, vinegar was the only product always available in every grocery store and at any time of the year.
• The gold coin issued by the NBP dedicated to Father Popiełuszko has a denomination of 37 zł, as that is how many years the chaplain of "Solidarity" lived.