The Reformers Must Always Go

Often compared to Margaret Thatcher, Hanna Suchocka pushed through vital reforms during her presidency in 1992 and 1993 that stirred unrest among large parts of the population, but were inevitable to set up democratic and free-market economy structures in Poland. F.A.Z. Weekly's Kristina Merkner met the former Polish prime minister at the general assembly of the Club of Madrid, comprised of former heads of state and government officials, on Sunday and talked with her about Poland's accession to the EU.

Ms. Suchocka, on May 1, 2004, Poland will become a member of the European Union. Does this make you feel proud?

Definitely. On that day we will have reached one of our main goals. Some of the great optimism and enthusiasm from the early years of our transition has, however, evaporated, simply because we are much more realistic about what it means to be on the threshold of joining the European Union. When we started our transformation about 10 years ago we didn't fully understand what that implied.

You initiated many of the radical reforms that put Poland on the path to membership during your presidency. What were the major challenges at that time?

We faced a lot of challenges: We had to build up a new political system, a democratic system, the civil society and a free-market economy all at the same time. When we started our transition in 1989, free market economics were alien to Poland, which had a completely artificial economy. The transformation of our agricultural sector and the huge workforces at the big state-owned businesses continue to pose major problems. At first, the employees of state-owned companies joined forces to promote change, but now they are the big losers. And we still cannot offer them any perspectives for the future.

Was your defeat in the 1993 election following the painful, but necessary reforms, an unavoidable sacrifice?

It was inevitable. In fact, it was a very natural process within a democratic system. The reformers must always go. We also saw that in Hungary, the Czech Republic and several western democracies.

Are you satisfied with how Poland fares today in economic and political terms?

We've lost a lot of time. We had a completely artificial economy for over 40 years. It's impossible to make up for all that in 10 years. We've only created a fundament. It's a stable fundament but a lot still needs to be done after we have joined the EU. It might be a difficult time for our society. Right now we know the European Union only from the outside. But our accession is just like a marriage: Being engaged to someone is different from being married. Once you've gotten married, lots of problems arise that you'd never considered before.

Many Germans are concerned that the free movement of labor within the EU will prompt an immigration wave from Poland. Are those fears justified?

Not at all. There is no reason to fear that Poland's accession will have any negative impact on the German economy or the German labor market. The same argument was made before we lifted the visa regulations between our countries, but nothing happened in the end. The fact that we are building a much more stable, democratic and economically successful Poland will also give many Polish people living abroad a reason to come back - and Germans a reason to come to Poland and work, especially in the border region. It's time for a relationship based on equality between our two countries, just like the relationship between France and Germany, which has always been a great example for us.

Do you think that EU enlargement will positively influence German-Polish relations?

I hope so since I attach great importance to the Polish-German relationship. I have always been very involved in fostering German-Polish cooperation, in building new bridges. I travel to Germany very often to speak about German-Polish relations and our common future within the EU.

Recently, however, relations have been overshadowed by two main factors: Firstly, by the strong disagreements regarding the European constitution. We are in favor of sticking to the agreement of Nice when it comes to the weighting of votes in the EU's institutions and do not support the new proposal favored by Germany. And secondly, by the plans to set up a documentation center in Berlin to commemorate the fate of displaced Germans after World War II, which we view with great concern. Those two factors have resurrected old fears and stereotypes that divided Germans and Poles during Prussia's occupation in the 19th century and there is still a lot of resentment about that in both countries.

But I still retain hope that we will succeed in building a positive and cooperative relationship between our two countries. Those fears and stereotypes should finally belong to history and not influence our future. Luckily, this has already been the case in the border region for the past 10 years, where cooperation is strong and set to grow.