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5 key figures of Poland’s shift to democracy

By Monika Scislowska
Published June 3, 2014 10:04am ET
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5 key figures of Poland’s shift to democracy
FILE - This is a Friday, June 6, 1997 file photo of Pope John Paul II as he gives the blessing to believers on a ski jumping range in Zakopane, southern Poland. The Pope is on an eleven-day tour through his home country. Poland's Solidarity movement played a central role in the drama of ousting communism from Europe and in the breakup of the Soviet Union. From his balcony on St. Peter's Square, John Paul II became the spiritual heart of the Solidarity movement. Elected pope in 1978, his visit to his native Poland the following year rallied millions to open-air Masses, making the Poles realize they could unite in a huge, like-minded democratic force. (AP Photo/Arturo Mari/Vatican Pool, File) | Arturo Mari

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Poland’s Solidarity movement played a central role in the drama of ousting communism from Europe and in the breakup of the Soviet Union. Here are five figures in Poland’s transition from communism to democracy, as the nation celebrates 25 years since the June 4, 1989, parliamentary elections that made the transformation possible.

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Poland World