Ciągłość czy zmiana? Ład gospodarczy w Polsce Ludowej w latach 80.

Abstract

Thinking about the economy, ideas and actions was influenced mainly by a structural crisis, financial insolvency and Gorbachev’s perestroika, or top-down revolution, which assumed not only the postulates of shifting investment from heavy to light industry, but also changes in ownership and rehabilitation of the market, the financial incentive for groups involved in the reform. In Poland it was only in the mid 80s that proposals for radical reform appeared. They were found within the ruling elite and the political opposition, supported by experts from the academic community. They were verified by the Round Table discussions, which showed that both parties wanted privatization, de-monopolization, restructuring, the role of the state. Finally, the 1980s only brought real ownership change in the form of the so-called enfranchisement of the communist establishment, i.e. the taking over of part of the state assets by people associated with the communist government apparatus. The mechanism of the ownership transformation was similar to that in the USSR. In reply to the question posed in the title: “continuity or change?”, it should be noted that for the communists ruling in Poland, the acceptance of privatization of state assets meant a significant evolution of views. The opposition accepted the idea of partial privatization for two reasons: the program (approval for various forms of property) and tactical (drawing the communists away from the influence on the economy).