The conflict, which has pitted five French employee organizations against Solidarnosc since the end of 2021, has just ended. Blacklisted for its complacency towards Marine Le Pen and Eric Zemmour, the management of the legendary Polish union has agreed to make a gesture, synonymous with distancing itself from these far-right personalities, thus giving satisfaction to its opponents. While it had been seized of a complaint, the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) declared, on March 16, that the procedure was closed, after noting that the protagonists had reached a modus vivendi.
The dispute results from a joint approach by the CFDT, the CFTC, the CGT, FO and the UNSA. The leaders of these five organizations had written, on December 7, 2021, to their Solidarnosc counterpart, Piotr Duda, to send him a volley of green wood. At the root of their anger were several articles that appeared in the Polish trade union press organs – including the weekly Tygodnik Solidarnosc (also called Tysol). This newspaper had put on the front page a full-page photo of Mme Le Pen, all smiles, and published a long interview with her.
In this article, the candidate of the National Rally (RN) in the presidential election had castigated “The Attack on Poland” on the part of the European institutions, which are suing the conservative government of the Law and Justice party (PiS) for having repeatedly undermined the principles of the rule of law and the separation of powers.
Closing of the tricolor gate
Second grievance of French trade union officials: the fact that Tygodnik Solidarnosc has created, in 2021, an Internet portal in French, Tysol.co.ukthe purpose of which was to oppose “the censorship of political correctness in the West, especially towards people with conservative, patriotic and Catholic views”. In several articles, journalists from Tysol.co.uk expressed their admiration for the ideology of Mr.me Le Pen and Mr. Zemmour.
Laurent Berger, the boss of the CFDT, who was the first to sound the charge, had seen in this positioning “despicable” a “combat betrayal” that the cedist central had carried out with Solidarnosc “forty years ago”. An allusion to the mobilization of the Polish trade union, which played a decisive role in the fall of communism, at the level of the country and of the entire Eastern bloc.
It is in this context that the five French employee organizations called on the ETUC. This held a “hearing”, at the end of February, with all the parties involved in the case. After recalling that “actions supporting the far right have no place in our organization”the ETUC representatives formulated “recommendations” intended for Solidarnosc: immediately remove its logo from the site Tysol.co.uk and close ” as soon as possible “ the tricolor gate. What the Polish union did. He also explained “that it did not support the content” offending articles “and that he regretted their publication”according to the minutes of the hearing, that The world was able to consult. So many concessions that have therefore made it possible to iron out the dispute.
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