December 22, 1990: Walesa sworn in as Poland President

Walesa sworn in as Poland president

1990 — Lech Walesa, the shipyard electrician who challenged Communist rule, was sworn in as Poland’s first democratically-elected president. The Solidarity union chief said the start of his presidency marked the end of “the evil period” of communism and the birth of a new Poland. The 560-strong National Assembly, comprising both houses of parliament, stood, applauded and sang “Sto Lat” (May he live 100 years) after Walesa took the oath of office and told them they were witnessing the birth of a new republic. “The evil period is ending when the authorities of our state were chosen under foreign pressure or as a result of forced compromises,” Walesa declared. “Today we take a fundamental step on the long and bloody road to rebuilding our independence.” Walesa appeared to blink back tears as he recited the oath of office after Sejm (lower house) Speaker Mikolaj Kozakiewicz, with his wife Danuta at his side.