We anclose a letter issued by the Ambassador of Poland to Ireland, Mr. Marcin Nawrot in response to the article “Welcome to ‘good life’ on welfare – how Polish waitress embraced La Dole-ce Vita” published in the Irish Independent of Feb 1.
http://www.dublin.polemb.net/files/Response%20of%20the%20Polish%20Ambassador.PDF

The article was far away from the original one and will probably have very serious and long-term repercussions not only on a Polish society, but also on all immigrants in Ireland. Therefore we invite you on an open public discussion on it.

There should be a strong objection to articles which are not based on facts and which have the potential to cause serious harm to all immigrants in Ireland. Please let us know what your opinion on this matter is and join us on discussion this Sunday @ 5pm in the Polish House (20 Fitzwilliam Place, Dublin 2).

At 7:30 pm, on the evening of Thursday, 2nd February, Polish House – 20 Fitzwilliam Pl. Gabriel Doherty of the School of History, University College Cork, will give an illustrated lecture on the topic of the reception accorded in Ireland to the Polish trade union ‘Solidarity’, between its foundation in the aftermath of the Gdansk shipyard strike in August 1980, and the imposition of martial law in Poland in December 1981.
Among the topics to be considered during the talk (which will utilize, among other sources, contemporary RTÉ footage, newspaper reports, parliamentary debates, and photographs) will be the policies pursued by the Irish Government towards Poland during the period in question, the response of the Irish trade union movement and left-wing political groups to the rise of ‘Solidarity’; and the reaction of the Catholic church in Ireland, other voluntary organizations (such as the Irish Red Cross), the artistic community, the Polish émigré community in Ireland, and the Irish media.

Attendance is free and all are welcome to attend.

More information on the exhibition: .CLICK HERE

More information on the guest speaker Dr. Łukasz Kamiński: CLICK HERE.

The cost of participation:
· Free for IPS members
· € 5 for non-members
· Children free of charge

All are invited to join us along with children and friends!

P.S. Our Society new vice-chair, Sean, promised to provide Irish traditional gooses for forthcoming Christmas party!

PROGRAMME
J.S. Bach – Prelude and Fugue G minor (DWK I)
S. Rachmaninov – Etude-tableau F sharp Minor op.39 no 3
F.Chopin – Scherzo B Flat Minor op. 31
J. Haydn – Sonata F Major Hob.XVI/23
F. Chopin – Ballade F minor op. 52
S. Prokofiev – 3rd Sonata A Minor op. 28
C.Debussy – Prelude La fille aux cheveux de lin
C.Debussy – Prelude La cathédrale engloutie
F. Liszt – Sonata B Minor

At a time when the Department of Education and Skills in Ireland is striving to improve and increase literacy levels in Irish schools, migrant-led schools play a very important support role in this work.

There are 12 Polish schools in Ireland which operate under the remit of the Polish Department of Education and which cater for over 4,000 Polish children living in Ireland. The work of these migrant-led schools is undeniably essential in the area of first language maintenance, which is important for educational, cognitive, as well as social and economic reasons.

With an estimated Polish population in Ireland of 200,000 (Census 2006 recorded 5,900 children aged 0-19) and no significant impact of the recession on return figures (by the end of 2008, the only decreases recorded by Poland’s CSO in the number of Poles registered abroad were in Britain (decrease of 40,000) and Ireland (decrease of 20,000)), this conference is both timely and welcome.
Over 50 delegates, including teachers and parents from all the Polish schools in Ireland, are expected to attend. The programme includes a number of informative and practical workshops, as well as a forum for discussion on work at Polish schools in Ireland and elsewhere.
Keynote speakers include experts from the Ministry of Education in Poland and ORPEG (the agency responsible for training Polish teachers who work abroad). Also attending will be the Chairperson of the Network of Polish Schools in Britain (Polska Macierz Szkolna), Ms. Aleksandra Podhorodecka, who will kickstart a discussion on the creation of a similar network in Ireland. Representatives from the Education for Democracy Foundation and the MyMind Psychological Centre will also deliver presentations.
The conference has been made possible through the support of Wspólnota Polska, the Polish Embassy in Ireland, the Irish Polish Society, and Forum Polonia.

Additional information:

· The Polish schools in Ireland operate at the weekend. On Saturdays and Sundays, pupils follow the Polish school curriculum in Polish (language), history, geography and maths. Five of the twelve Polish schools are (Polish) State-funded, while the remaining seven are privately funded. The five State-funded schools cater for approximately 3,000 pupils; the seven privately-funded schools cater for over 1,000 pupils.

· At present, approximately 10% of primary school pupils and 12% of post-primary school students were born outside of Ireland. In schools, there are pupils from over 160 countries and over 200 languages are spoken. For approximately 70-75%, English is not their first language (Source: Department of Education and Skills 2010, Better Literacy and Numeracy for Young People. A Draft National Plan to Improve Literacy and Numeracy in Schools, p. 35).

· There exists a substantial body of international research evidence in support of maintaining and developing first language proficiency among minority language children. These data particularly point to the positive benefits of first language proficiency on the development of the second language (i.e., in this case, English and/or Irish). The well-known academic Professor Jim Cummins has articulated this as the ‘developmental interdependence’ hypothesis (1979).

· Migrant-led schools are a vital link in the development and maintenance of the first language. Only on rare occasions do Irish mainstream schools provide classes in the first language for their pupils. This is mainly a school-based initiative. The school is not obliged to provide first language classes for pupils whose first language is not English.

· The maintenance of the first language is also important for the maintenance and development of intergenerational relationships, friendships at home, as well as for community solidarity, social capital and cohesion purposes. In cases where families decide to remain in Ireland more permanently, it is equally as important to maintain the first language because of the educational and familial benefits to the individual as well as to society as a whole.

For more information contact:

Name: Niamh Nestor. Beata Molendowska

Tel.: 086 3961430 (Niamh), 087 6707837 (Beata)

Presented in conjunction with the Irish Polish Society and the Irish Translators’ and Interpreters’ Association

A presentation of Polish poetry in English translation, suggesting how an individual poem may crystallise a particular mood or moment in the diverse history of Poland over the past six centuries. The texts, taken from the anthology A Story of Poland in 60 Poems, will range from the earliest extant poetic text in Polish to a recently published poem, and the writers represented include such major figures as the Renaissance poet Kochanowski, the Baroque poet Jan Andrzej Morsztyn, the Romantics Mickiewicz and Norwid, the still living Różewicz, Szymborska and Hartwig, and other less well-known authors. The evening will also feature music by Polish composers.

Anita Jones-Dębska is a British translator – and performer – of Polish poetry. She also publishes her own hand-made collections of her translations, which so far have included works by Mickiewicz, Leśmian, Słowacki and others, and copies of which will be available on the evening.

For more information, please contact Pat Quigley (patquig2002@yahoo.com) or John Kearns (kearns@pro.onet.pl).

The Irish Polish Society is the main organization in Ireland for Polish people who want to learn about Ireland and Irish people who are interested in Poland. It has been in existence since 1979.
The IPS is an active organization that promotes contacts and exchanges between Irish and Polish people.
Our activities include musical evenings, poetry and literature readings, film shows, talks by local and visiting high profile lecturers and social meetings. We provide advice to Poles in Ireland and host lectures on integration issues. We also celebrate the main cultural and religious festivals of each country.
Our committee is made up of Irish and Polish people who work together to promote the best from each country and culture. We seek new members who will help to provide new services in a changing environment.
We invite to join us by filling in the application form on the reverse side. Our meeting place is 20 Fitzwilliam Place, Dublin 2.

HISTORY OF THE IRISH POLISH SOCIETY
The Irish Polish Society is a voluntary, non-profit-making and
non-political or- ganization. Its main aim is to foster Polish culture and
traditions in Ireland and to promote links between Irish and Polish
people.

The election of a Polish Pope inspired Poles in Dublin to form the Irish
Polish Society, and on 7th January 1979 the first steering committee of IPS
was set up. The Pope’s visit to Ireland (29th September – 1st October
1979) united us even more, and on 30th Septem- ber 1979 a historic meeting
between the Pope and His fellow countrymen took place in the Papal
Nunciature in Dublin.
After the imposition of Martial Law in Poland on 13th December 1981, the
Irish Polish Society began actively lobbying for democratic changes in
Poland. The Society also managed to organise substantial aid to Poland with
the help of their Irish friends. Some twenty containers with food,
medicines and clothes were shipped from Dublin to Poland.

The meetings and gatherings of Poles and their families and friends used to
take place in Milltown College, where the Society’s founder, Fr Klaus
Cieszynski, was then a student.
Thanks to a generous legacy from the estate of Wanda Petronella Brown, a
Polish lady who married an Irishman, a large Georgian building at 20
Fitzwilliam Place, Dublin 2, was purchased in 1986. This became the home of
the Irish Polish Society.

A new chapter in the development of Irish Polish relations began with the
collapse of the Communist system in Poland, and in 1991 the Irish Polish
Society established contacts with the newly open Embassy of the Polish
Republic in Ireland.

The purpose for which the Society is established is to promote greater
mutual interest and understanding between the Irish and Polish
communities through social and cultural activities and to promote, sponsor,
teach, study, advance and encourage interest in and knowledge of the
culture, history, peoples, language and traditions generally of Poland and
Polish people. The Society organizes lectures, concerts, art exhibitions,
literary events, discussions, social gatherings and other cultural,
educational and traditional events. Membership is open to all who live on
the island of Ireland and have an interest in Poland and Polish-Irish
relations.

In advance of EU enlargement we hosted several meetings and conferences
with politicians and well-known public figures, both Irish and Polish. Our
Society was absolutely committed to enlargement, and, in particular, to
Poland’s accession to the EU.

In 2004 the greatest shift in the relation between Ireland and Poland came
with the opening of the Irish labour market to Polish workers. Since then
IPS have been focused on how we should respond to the new situation. We
wish to increase our social and cultural activities to promote integration
of the new Poles through events and information.

Irish Polish Society is the only Polish organization in Ireland with full
EUWP membership (Europejska Unia Wspolnot Polonijnych – Union of Polish
Communities in Europe).

A committee elected annually runs the Society. A newsletter is sent to
members at least every 6 weeks. Membership is € 12 per annum , or € 17 per
family (students and unwaged € 10)
MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION FORM
(APLIKACJA CZŁONKOWSKA)

NAME: …………………………………………………………………..
(Imie i nazwisko)

ADDRESS:……………………………………………………………….
(Adres)

TELEPHONE NO: Home: ………………………. Work:……………………….
Mobile……………………….

Email: ………………………………..

Occupation: (zawód)……………………………………………..

I enclose yearly membership fee:

10 Euro – students and unwaged
12 Euro individual………………….
17 Euro family………………………

Annual subscriptions run from 1st September until the end of August the following year.

Cheques/Postal orders etc are payable to the Irish Polish Society.

Please send your subscription with completed application form to Hon. Treasurer:
Patrick Quigley, 21 Coolmine Court, Clonsilla, Dublin 15
Tel: 018205609, Mob: 085 7133106 Email: patquig2002@yahoo.com

He tells TheJournal.ie about his plans, and why he believes emigrants from all countries – including Ireland – should be able to vote back home.

I’VE BEEN IN Ireland since 2002, so a bit over nine years. My family is here; I met my fiancée in Ireland, though she is Lithuanian, and we live in Dublin. I’m running in the Polish elections this Sunday.

The results of the previous election showed that more people from abroad are voting in elections in Poland. So one party came up with this idea that they would allow Polish people abroad to run as candidates. In order, hopefully, that we don’t lose the Polish diaspora.

They contacted me, and I refused at first, but then I thought I might have some ideas on how to improve relationships between Poland and the Polish diaspora – people like me who went abroad, started from scratch, gained some experience and progressed. It’s about engaging Polish people abroad, making them interested in what’s happening in Poland. Because even if they stay in their new countries, in years to come they may be well placed in Ireland or the UK, in private business or big companies. They could help with Poland’s economy and trade.

Ireland is a great example of this, of the potential that people living in other countries have. The Irish who emigrated to the States came back with money, and brought companies to set up here in Ireland.

Voting from abroad very simple. You register online up to three days before the elections. So you go to the website, put in your passport number, your place of residence and some personal details – it takes five minutes. Then you pick your ballot point – so one would be the Polish embassy in Dublin, another would be in Galway, Cork, and I think Limerick. Three days later you go with your passport and vote.

Altogether there are 15 or 16 candidates outside Poland, but there are no others running in Ireland. My friends are helping with the campaign. I’m still in full-time employment so it’s basically weekends. I’ve given a couple of interviews to the Polish press in Ireland, I have a meeting in the Polish House, a meeting with Polish people in Cork; I have some leaflets which I’m leaving at Polish shops and churches, and I’m trying to talk to people. I also have a website, which shows my programmes for Polish migrants and infrastructure. These are the things I’d improve if I got a chance.

‘Emigrants influence the Polish economy’

Some people say that once you move away, you shouldn’t be interested in your home country. But this emigration from Poland is very new; it’s only the last six or seven years. Many people still have their families, their friends in Poland; I would hope that they would still wish Poland very well. And they know the problems that Poland has – because from a distance of 2000km, with the perspective of another country, you can see better what could be improved. So they should have someone, a candidate who can make that kind of difference.

I don’t agree with the idea that people who aren’t paying tax in Poland shouldn’t be able to vote in Poland. Emigrants travel home to Poland, they spend their money in Poland. If they decide to move back, they might bring savings with them, and then they will be investing in Poland. Ryanair flies to almost every city in Poland, it boosts the local economies, airports are growing. Plus our Irish friends are travelling to Krakow and Warsaw, and I would say that this is also because they know Polish people and they can ask us for a recommendation. Research also shows that we are sending money to support families at home. So we do have a big influence on the Polish economy. So it’s not like we have no right to vote.

I would say that Irish emigrants who hold Irish passports should also be eligible to vote at home. This would change politics, and I think it could make politics better. Because people in other countries can see the faults of their own homeland better; they can see ways of improving things.

If I was elected, I would hope to be in Ireland as often as possible. I’d like to have a clinic meeting in Ireland every two weeks, like Irish TDs have, an Irish phone number. One of the differences between the countries is that Polish politicians are not as approachable as Irish ones would be, so I’d like to try and change that.

Polish people abroad can vote, and they should. It doesn’t matter who they vote for .But as long as they do, they won’t be forgotten for the next four years.

Today is the deadline for Polish emigrants to register in Sunday’s elections. For more information about Sebastian Widel, check out his website (translated version here). As told to Michael Freeman.