[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 49 (Tuesday, April 28, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E686]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  IN HONOR OF POLISH CONSTITUTION DAY

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. DENNIS J. KUCINICH

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 28, 1998

  Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in celebration of the two-
hundred seventh anniversary of the Polish Constitution. The Polish 
Constitution of May 3, 1791 established a tradition of democracy and 
human rights in Poland that continues today.
  The Polish Constitution has the honor of being the first Constitution 
in Europe to give inalienable human and economic rights for all. In the 
turbulent 1790's of classical Europe, Poland emerged as a beacon for 
the future of democracy in this unstable land. While other nations 
surrounding its sovereign borders engaged in revolution and civil war, 
Poland maintained its integrity for many years under this Constitution.
  The rise of Soviet communism in the post-World War II era stemmed the 
Polish democratic principle for forty years, but under the capable 
leadership of Lech Walesa, democracy embodied in this Constitution 
returned to the Eastern European ``cradle of democracy.'' The human and 
economic rights that were abandoned by years of communist rule returned 
triumphantly in recent years.
  My fellow colleagues, join me in honoring the people of Poland, their 
long struggle for democracy, and their timeless Constitution.

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