| |
| 1989, Feb. 6 |
| |
| Roundtable talks began between the government and Solidarity with the aim of reaching an agreement on a program of economic stabilization and political reform, including Solidarity's reauthorization. By April, Solidarity and the government came to an agreement that some parliamentary seats were to be contested at the polls. | 1 |
| |
| Feb. 15 |
| |
| The journal Odrodzanie reprinted a report, originally published in 1943, on the murder of Polish officers by Soviet secret police, called the Katyn massacre. | 2 |
| |
| April |
| |
| Parliament passed laws on constitutional changes to create a bicameral Parliament and a presidency, on new electoral regulations, and on rights of associations. Solidarity and Rural Solidarity were formally granted legal status. | 3 |
| |
| May 10 |
| |
| Lech Walesa received the Council of Europe's Human Rights Prize for 1989. | 4 |
| |
| June 4, 18 |
| |
| National elections. Solidarity and independent candidates won all contested seats for a new National Assembly, beating the ruling Communist Party candidates. Solidarity-supported candidates won 92 of 100 seats in the Senate and 160 of 161 seats in the Sejm (the lower house). | 5 |
| |
| July–Aug |
| |
| Gen. Jaruzelski was elected by the two chambers of the National Assembly to the new post of executive president of Poland on July 19. On his recommendation, M. Rakowski was elected first secretary of the PUWP. Jaruzelski's strong suggestion that the government form a “grand coalition” of all parties was rejected by Solidarity, which intended to seek a mandate to constitute a government of its own or form an opposition government. On Aug. 24, after Kiszczak failed to form a coalition government, the lower house of the National Assembly elected Tadeusz Mazowiecki, a leading member of Solidarity, as prime minister and mandated him to form a Solidarity-led coalition government embracing all four main parties in the Assembly—the first non-Communist government in 44 years. | 6 |
| |
| |
