Krzysztof Turkowski

* 1954

  • “Twice a day, on the bus, we had made a quasi-centre in which we talked ( about the idea of freedom). Then I thought that we need to organize a mass, and I sent and asked, so that he could go in and out, the Vice− Head of the Club of Catholic Intellectuals (KIK)– Maciek Zięba, I asked him to bringing along Orzech (priest Stanisław Orzechowski). Orzech expressed his enthusiasm and arrived at the mass. I need to say it, it was incredible, it really was a unique feeling. I remember, they set up this raw of trucks, which were linked. I grabbed the microphone because I wanted to say something before the mass, and I saw it. There was a little bit of space, you know this place, and there- close to the fence- I saw my mum was standing and my sister, and my brother in law. It was really important. However, from the one side to the end, there was a sea, a sea of people. Here, we were somewhere else.”

  • „ The strong point was that at this depot there were I guess 170, maybe 176 representatives of factories which were a part of Inter-Enterprise Strike Committee. It was them who dominated the local environment. Jurek Kopystyński, he was fierce, fierce anti−communism, electronics engineer, the next one etc. So, they were people, whose companies delegated them to this, you know, this high-profile one…. and everything was focused right here. It was beyond any defense”

  • „To be honest, my impression is that we all wanted to participated in that strike. It was a sort of asylum for the opposition, because everyone was totally closed. Olek was already in prison, there were sanctions for The Workers' Defense Committee in Warsaw […] where have you been, Kornel Morawiecki: I won’t come in here, I’ll print outside- I remember this conversation at the gate, Krzysiek Grzelczyk, Jarek Broda for editing. Aśka (Krzysztof Turkowski’s wife), Andrzej Kiełczewski. These boys reported themselves and they were our technique which means they printed the pamphlets."

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    Wrocław, Polska, 14.11.2015

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Rapid maturation to freedom

Krzysztof Turkowski
Krzysztof Turkowski
zdroj: Ośrodek "Pamięć i Przyszłość"

Krzysztof Turkowski was born on 17 May 1954 in Wroclaw. He graduated from the Institute of History at the University of Wroclaw. In 1977-1981 he was working as a librarian in Ossolineum (National Ossoliński Institute). In the 70s he was an associate of the Workers‘ Defence Committee, the Student Committee of „Solidarity“ in Wroclaw and the Independent Publishing House. In September 1980 he co-organized a strike at the bus depot number 7 at Grabiszyńska Street in Wroclaw. After the strike he became a spokesman for „Solidarity“ Regional Board of Lower Silesia (a Delegate to the first congress of „Solidarity“ in Gdansk in 1981). Since the introduction of martial law until 1983 he was hiding and working in the underground as a member of the Regional Strike Committee. He was one of the editors of „Z Dnia na Dzień“, also published in the Bulletin of Lower Silesia. He organized the network of Christian universities with the Ministry of Working People and groups of the Academic Ministry and lectured during the Weeks of Christian Culture. In years 1989-1990 he was a member of the Provincial Committee of Citizens „Solidarity“ in Wroclaw. Since 1990 he was a member of the City Council and the Provincial Regional Council. In 1990-94 he held the position of the Vice President of Wroclaw. In 1995-98 he was the chairman of PAIFILM, since 1997 an adviser of the president of TV Polsat, a member of Supervisory Board of RSTV, since 2003 the president of the company Antena I, in 2004-06 a member of the board of TV Puls. Since 2006 he was the chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Polish Press Agency (PAP). Chairman of the Supervisory Board of TV Lubin. He won the award of the President of the Polish Radio for editorial activity and the award of the President of Wroclaw in 2007. Krzysztof Turkowski is an author of numerous publications for the Solidarity, underground and emigration press, a series of talks with leaders of London emigration, a creator of historic and political broadcasts on Radio Free Europe, the Polish Radio and Radio Kolor. He is a member of the Presidium of the Lower Silesian Cultural Federation, President of the Association for the Development of Wroclaw, Vice-President of the Association of Radio and Television Broadcasters and the Association of Radio and Television Authors. In October 2011 he was appointed to the Council of the Polish Film Institute.