The District Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw has officially filed an indictment against Lech Walesa, former President of Poland and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, in connection with allegations that he acted as a communist-era informant.
The charges stem from Walesa’s testimony during a 2016 interrogation at the Institute of National Remembrance, where he was questioned as a witness. Szymon Banna, a spokesperson for the District Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw, stated that Walesa is accused of providing false statements regarding claims that he collaborated with the communist-era secret security service before leading the Solidarity movement, which played a crucial role in dismantling Poland’s communist regime.
During the April 2016 questioning, Walesa denied being an informant for the communist secret services under the code name ‘Bolek,’ who reportedly spied on colleagues and received compensation for these activities.
Education Minister Krzysztof Szczucki commented on the indictment, stating on Polish Radio Three, “Lech Walesa is a citizen just like everyone else, and if he provided false testimony, he should be held criminally liable. Basically, every self-respecting historian of the 20th century confirms that Lech Walesa had a period when he cooperated with the (Communist – PAP) Security Service, but Lech Walesa himself is probably unable to admit it, and a small group of his admirers deny the historical facts.”
Walesa has previously admitted to signing a commitment to be an informant but has consistently maintained that he never acted on it. In 2000, he was cleared by a special court, which found no evidence of collaboration. The current indictment, however, focuses on the alleged false testimony given by Walesa during the 2016 interrogation. The case adds a new chapter to the complex narrative surrounding Walesa’s role during the communist era, with both supporters and critics engaging in an ongoing debate over his historical legacy.