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Poland
Poland (Polish: Polska), officially the Republic of
Poland (Polish: Rzeczpospolita Polska), is a country
in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west,
the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south,
Ukraine and Belarus to the east, and the Baltic Sea,
Russia (in the form of the Kaliningrad Oblast
exclave) and Lithuania to the north. It also shares
a maritime border with Denmark and Sweden. The total
area of Poland is 312,683 sq km[1] (120,728 sq mi)
making it the 69th largest country in the world with
population over 38.5 million people [2] concentrated
mainly in large cities, including the historical
capital of Poland, Kraków, and the present capital,
Warsaw.
The first Polish state was born in 966, within
territory very similar to the present boundaries of
Poland. Poland became a kingdom in 1025, and in 1569
it cemented a long association with the Grand Duchy
of Lithuania by uniting to form the
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The Commonwealth
collapsed in 1795, and the Poles were without a
state for 123 years. Poland regained its
independence in 1918 after World War I but lost it
again in World War II, emerging several years later
as a communist country within the Eastern Bloc under
control of the former Soviet Union. In 1989
communist rule was overthrown and Poland became what
is informally known as the "Third Polish Republic".
Today, as the 6th most populated member state of the
European Union, Poland is a liberal democracy made
up of sixteen voivodeships (Polish: województwo).
Poland is also a member of NATO, the United Nations,
and the World Trade Organization.
Politics
Poland is a liberal democracy. Its current
constitution dates from 1997. The government
structure centres on the Council of Ministers, led
by a prime minister. The current prime minister of
Poland is Jarosław Kaczyński. The president appoints
the cabinet according to the proposals of the prime
minister, typically from the majority coalition in
the bicameral judicial lower house (the Sejm). The
president, elected by popular vote every five years,
serves as the head of state. The current president
is Lech Kaczyński, the twin brother of Jarosław
Kaczyński.
Polish voters elect a bicameral parliament
consisting of a 460 member lower house Sejm and a
100 member Senate (Senat). The Sejm is elected under
a proportional representation electoral system using
the d'Hondt method similar to that used in many
parliamentary political systems. The Senate, on the
other hand, is elected under a rare plurality bloc
voting method where several candidates with the
highest support are elected from each constituency.
With the exception of ethnic minority parties, only
candidates of political parties receiving at least
5% of the total national vote can enter the Sejm.
When sitting in joint session, members of the Sejm
and Senate form the National Assembly, (Polish
Zgromadzenie Narodowe). The National Assembly is
formed on three occasions: Taking the oath of office
by a new president, bringing an indictment against
the President of the Republic to the Tribunal of
State, and declaration of a President's permanent
incapacity to exercise their duties because of the
state of their health. Only the first kind has
occurred to date.
The judicial branch plays an important role in
decision-making. Its major institutions include the
Supreme Court of Poland (Sąd Najwyższy), the Supreme
Administrative Court of Poland (Naczelny Sąd
Administracyjny) with judges appointed by the
president of the Republic on the recommendation of
the National Council of the Judiciary for an
indefinite period, the Constitutional Tribunal of
Poland (Trybunał Konstytucyjny) with judges chosen
by the Sejm for nine-year terms, and the State
Tribunal of Poland (Trybunał Stanu) with judges
chosen by the Sejm for the current term of office of
the Sejm, (except for the position of chairperson
which is held by the First President of the Supreme
Court). The Sejm (on approval of the Polish Senate)
appoints the Ombudsman or the Commissioner for Civil
Rights Protection (Rzecznik Praw Obywatelskich) for
a five-year term. The Ombudsman has the duty of
guarding the observance and implementation of the
rights and liberties of people and the citizens, the
law and principles of community life and social
justice.
Demographics of Poland
The demographics of Poland describe the make-up of
the country of Poland. A number of censuses have
assessed this data, including a national census in
2002, and a survey by the Helsinki Foundation for
Human Rights (HFHR), which confirmed there are
numerous autochthonous ethnic groups in Poland.
Estimates by INTEREG and Eurominority present a
similar demographics picture of Poland but they
provide estimates only for the most numerous of the
autochthonous ethnic groups.
Nationalities
96.7% of the people of Poland claim Polish
nationality, and 97.8% declare that they speak
Polish at home (Census 2002). The population of
Poland became one of the most ethnically homogeneous
in the world as a result of the radically altered
borders after World War II and the subsequent
migrations. This homogeneity is a result of
post-World War II deportations ordered by the Soviet
authorities, who wished to remove the sizable Polish
minorities from Lithuania, Belarus and Ukraine.
Other than the Poles, Poland is also inhabited by:
Ukrainians
Ukrainians are scattered in various eastern and
northern districts. After the quashing of a
Ukrainian insurrection at the end of World War II,
most Ukrainians remaining in the country were
forcibly moved to northern and western Poland in
Operation Vistula (Akcja Wisła). Since 1989, there
has been a new wave of Ukrainian immigration, mostly
of jobseekers, which is concentrated in larger
cities. The HFHR estimates there are 250,000 to
500,000 Ukrainians in Poland at present, with the
most numerous concentrations are in the north east (Olsztyn
and Elbląg), north west (Słupsk and Koszalin) and
south west of Poland (Legnica and Wrocław). The
figure includes 50,000 to 60,000 Lemko-Rusyns.
Kashubians
INTEREG estimated there are up to 500,000 Kashubians
in Poland. In the Polish census of 2002, however,
only 5,100 people declared Kashubian nationality,
although 51,000 declared Kashubian as their native
language.
Belarussians
There are 200,000-250,000 Belarusians. They live in
close concentrations on south and east area of
Białystok, near and in areas adjoining Belarus and
Lithuania.
Lithuanians
There are 15,000 - 25,000 Lithuanians in close
concentrations, in Suwałki in the north-east of
Poland, and in the territory of Puńsk commune where
they constitute 80% of inhabitants.
Jews
The Jewish community, once numbering 3,474,000, has
been almost entirely eradicated, due to the
Holocaust, where the Nazis exterminated most of the
Jewish population of Poland during WW2, and
subsequent emigration. See History of Jews in Poland.
The current estimated Jewish population of Poland is
7,000-15,000 Jews. Its representatives live mainly
in large cities like Warsaw, Wrocław and Kraków.
Many Polish Jews often avoid referring to themselves
as members of a "national minority", as they
consider Jews in Poland to be a religious and
cultural minority, not an ethnic one.
Silesians
In Silesia, a significant segment of the population
of mixed Polish and German ancestry variously
declares itself as Polish or German. There is also a
large minority of people who describe themselves as
Silesians, an historical, related West Slavic ethnic
group.
Germans
Germans remain in Pomerania, Silesia, East Prussia
and Lubusz Land. The Helsinki Foundation for Human
Rights estimated there are 450,000 to 1,100,000
Germans living mainly in the region of Opole,
Katowice and Częstochowa (south-west part of Poland).
INTEREG estimated the population at 900,000.
Roma
There are 50,000-60,000 Roma in Poland. They are
dispersed and live on the area of the whole country,
although their more numerous concentrations are in
the south of Poland.
Tatars
Small populations of Polish Tatars still exist and
still practice Islam. Some Polish towns, mainly in
northeastern Poland have mosques. Tartars arrived as
mercenary soldiers beginning in the late 1300s. The
Tatar population reached approximately 100,000 in
1630 but was less than 5,000 in 2000.
Armenians
Armenian population is estimated at between 8,000 to
15,000, with tradition since 14th century. The
remains of pre-war Armenian church organizations
serve for the community. The Armenian-orthodox
community converted to Catholicism in the 18th
century. There is still an Armenian church in
formerly Polish Lwow (now Lviv in Ukraine) with
clergy that preach in the Armenian language.
Russians
Russians are scattered around the territory of
Poland but mostly reside in eastern Poland. The HFHR
estimated around 13,000-15,000 Russians are in
Poland. This society includes also Old Believers who
are members of the Eastern Old Believers' Church and
account for 2,000–3,000 persons living in the
south-east of Poland.
Czechs
2,000 Czechs live in Zelów, and near the Czech
border.
Slovaks
Slovaks live in some areas in southern Poland, to
the number of between 15,000 and 25,000. Polish
Slovaks inhabit two small frontier regions in the
Spisz and Orawa (south of Poland, near Polish-Slovak
border). Larger groups of Slovaks are in Kraków and
Silesia region.
Greeks
Some 4 - 5,000 Greeks live in central and southeast
Poland.
Macedonians
There are 4,000 to 5,000 Macedonians in central and
southern Poland
There are also groups of Americans, Hungarians,
French, Italians, Serbs, Bulgarians, Georgians,
Africans, Palestinians, Kurds and Vietnamese, who
constitute small ethnic communities within major
cities such as Warsaw, Kraków, and Gdańsk.
[edit] Declared nationality (Census 2002)
36,983,720 Polish
774,885 Not specified
471,475 Non-Polish, or multi-racial, including:
173,153 Silesian
152,897 German
48,700 Belarusian
31,000 Ukrainian
12,900 Roma
6,103 Russian
5,863 Lemko
5,846 Lithuanian
5,062 Kashubian
4,500 Other (including Africans)
2,000 Slovak
1,808 Vietnamese
1,633 French
1,541 American
1,404 Greek
1,367 Italian
1,112 Bulgarian
1,100 Israeli Jews
1,082 Armenian
831 Czech
800 English
500 Tatar
45 Karaite
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poland
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Poland
