Patriotic Movement for National Rebirth

Patriotic Movement for National Rebirth

Patriotyczny Ruch Odrodzenia Narodowego
Patriotic Movement for National Rebirth Patriotyczny Ruch Odrodzenia Narodowego
Founded	20 July 1982
Dissolved	8 November 1989
Headquarters	Warsaw, Poland
Ideology	Pro-government; Communism; Patriotism; Left-wing nationalism
Political position	Left-wing to far-left
	Politics of Poland; Political parties; Elections;

Patriotyczny Ruch Odrodzenia Narodowego (PRON, English: Patriotic Movement for National Rebirth or National Renaissance Patriotic Movement) was a Polish popular front that ruled the Polish People's Republic. It was created in the aftermath of the martial law in Poland (1982). Gathering various pro-communist and pro-government organizations, it was attempted to show unity and support for the government and the Polish United Workers' Party (PZPR). PRON was created in July 1982 and dissolved in November 1989.

Members[]

The Patriotic Movement for National Rebirth included the following member parties:

Party	Polish name	Foundation	Dissolution	Ideology
Polish United Workers' Party	Polska Zjednoczona Partia Robotnicza	21 December 1948	30 January 1990	Communism
United People's Party	Zjednoczone Stronnictwo Ludowe	27 November 1949	29 November 1989	Agrarian socialism
Alliance of Democrats	Stronnictwo Demokratyczne	18 September 1937	Still active	Centrism

It also included the following organizations when founded:

Stowarzyszenie PAX (Pax)
(ChSS)
(PZKS)

It was later joined by many other organizations, such as All-Poland Alliance of Trade Unions, Związek Harcerstwa Polskiego and . Few members of those organizations were aware of their membership in PRON, as PRON members included organizations, not individuals. PRON membership was required by communist propaganda, and necessary for any organization that wanted to exist on political scene with support of the government.

PRON was mentioned in the amended Polish communist constitution, where it replaced the Front of National Unity. Like its predecessor, it was dominated by the PZPR; the minor parties had to accept the PZPR's "leading role" as a condition of their continued existence.

PRON's chairman was the writer Jan Dobraczyński. The foundation committee included in addition to Dobraczyński: Marian Orzechowski, , , , Jan Majewski, , Józef Chlebowczyk, Władysław Ogrodziński, , , , , , Piotr Perkowski, , Jerzy Ozdowski, , , , , and .

It was the sole organisation to put forward candidates in the 1985 election, which proved to be the last elections in which no opposition candidates were permitted to run. As such, it won every seat in the Sejm.

As part of the Polish Round Table Agreement in April 1989 which paved the way for free elections in Poland, PRON was guaranteed 299 out of 460 Sejm seats (65%), with the remaining 161 up for free election with the opposition Solidarity. In the semi-elections that June, Solidarity won every contested seat in the Sejm as well as 99 out of 100 seats in the reestablished Senate. PRON effectively ceased to exist in August after the Democratic Party and United People's Party announced they would be forming an alliance with Solidarity. This reduced the PZPR to a minority in the chamber and precipitated the appointment of Poland's first non-Communist government since World War II. The Patriotic Movement for National Rebirth was formally disbanded in November 1989.

Electoral history[]

Sejm elections[]

Election	Votes	%	Seats	+/–	Position	Outcome
1985	20,554,182	100%	460 / 460		1st	Sole legal coalition
1989		28.7% (contested seats)	299 / 460 0 / 161 (contested seats)	161	2nd	Part of governing coalition

References[]

Patriotyczny Ruch Odrodzenia Narodowego entry at PWN Encyklopedia
[1] and [2] - entries at WIEM Encyklopedia