Der Mythos vom „dicken Strich“. Der 24. August 1989 und der Anfang vom Ende der Staatssicherheit

Abstract

Abstract: The ‘Thick Line’ myth: 24th August 1989 and the beginning of the end of Poland’s political police On 24th August 1989, Tadeusz Mazowiecki was nominated as the first non-communist Prime Minister in a Warsaw Pact country. This date also marks an important step in the debate on the legacy of political violence and the future of State security and police forces in Poland. Rather than safeguarding the professional interest of the old guard, as often alleged, the ensuing reform of State security initiated by the then-Minister of the Interior Czeslaw Kiszczak further undermined the reputation of an already demoralised police force. A close reading of contemporary debates and archival sources demonstrates that the formation of the Mazowiecki Government and its renewed compromise with the crumbling communist establishment elites explored and extended the limits of democratic reform within the existing order before the Berlin Wall came down. It is not a story of missed opportunities.