Motions — Poland—Death of President Lech Kaczynski and Other Dignitaries 
Motions — Poland—Death of President Lech Kaczynski and Other Dignitaries 
[Volume:662;Page:10227] 
Motions 
Poland—Death of President Lech Kaczynski and Other Dignitaries 
Hon JOHN KEY (Prime Minister) 
: 
 I seek leave to move a motion without notice on the recent plane crash that claimed the lives of the Polish President and other dignitaries. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Is there any objection to that course being followed? There is none. 
Hon JOHN KEY 
: I move  
That the House express its sympathy and concern to the people of Poland following the recent plane crash that claimed the lives of the Polish President and other dignitaries 
. On 10 April 2010 Polish President Lech Kaczynski his wife and many respected senior Government officials lost their lives in a place crash in western Russia. The presidential party was on its way to commemorations for the 70th anniversary of the massacre of some 22000 Polish officers during World War II. The sudden passing of 96 people is a tragedy for Poland. It has been deeply felt by the Polish people and by the Polish community in New Zealand. President Kaczynski was admired for his strong leadership and commitment to his country and he will be greatly missed.  
The New Zealand Government extends its condolences and thoughts to the Polish people as they grieve. We cherish our warm relationship and the values we share with Poland. Many of the senior Government figures and officials who died had met New Zealand Ministers and had assisted in furthering ties between our two countries. Some had links to the New Zealand Polish community.  
New Zealand’s acceptance of more than 700 Polish orphans in 1944 who were known as the Pahiatua children holds a special resonance in both countries. Some of the officials who lost their lives had worked with our Government on celebrations and book publications for the Pahiatua children. Last September the Minister of Veterans’ Affairs Judith Collins visited Poland to mark the 70th anniversary of the start of World War II. Her visit shows the strong links between our two countries. When the Germans invaded Poland’s Baltic coast in 1939 at the beginning of World War II New Zealand did not hesitate to respond. About 140000 New Zealanders served overseas during that war.  
There has been an outpouring of grief throughout Poland since this tragic plane crash. Our thoughts and heartfelt sympathy are with the people of Poland as they mourn the loss of so many lives. 
Hon PHIL GOFF (Leader of the Opposition) 
: 
 The Labour Party extends its deepest sympathy to the people and the Government of Poland as they mourn the loss of not only President Kaczynski and his wife Maria but also 94 other Polish leaders killed tragically in that plane crash. The tragedy took place as those leaders were flying to Russia to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the massacre by the Soviet secret police in 1940 of the Polish officer corps. Some 22000 Polish officers were massacred at that time which has left a lasting and deeply traumatic impact on the people of Poland. For this tragedy to occur on the same day 70 years later adds to that trauma. The loss not only of their President and his wife but also of 15 parliamentarians heads of the armed services independence and Solidarity leaders and in fact the last leader-in-exile from the Second World War has had a deep impact on the Polish people. It truly has been a time of national mourning a time when Polish people from all sectors of the community have come together to grieve and to comfort one another. 
I also extend my sympathy to members of the Polish community in New Zealand. I have a very special connection with that community: my sister-in-law is the daughter of two Polish refugees from the 1940s. I know that the president of the Polish Association in New Zealand Eric Lepionka and the association’s members are feeling this tragedy very deeply. We extend our sympathies to them and to the Polish Ambassador and her family. 
I acknowledge that this comes against a background of suffering by people in Poland who for centuries have been the victims of oppression by large countries to their west and to their east. I acknowledge also the courage of the Polish people in their fight for democracy and freedom. The one positive thing that may come from this tragedy is the warming of the relationship between the people of Russia and Poland as they together mourn the loss of the people who were killed. Our sympathy and our thoughts are with the Polish people today. 
Dr RUSSEL NORMAN (Co-Leader—Green) 
: 
 The Green Party extends its deepest condolences to the people of Poland for the loss of their President Lech Kaczynski in this terrible accident. Mr Kaczynski was an important leader for his people and his country and will be sadly missed. 
This tragedy seems particularly cruel in that the people of Poland have lost not only their President but also their First Lady and many outstanding individuals who served in the Polish Government. Such sudden and tragic loss of life is hard to comprehend and we support the people and the Government of Poland as they come to terms with what has happened. 
We send our thoughts to Polish New Zealanders and others here with close connections to Poland and acknowledge the impact that this event will have had on them and to the families and loved ones of all 96 people who lost their lives we send our sincerest aroha and love. Kia kaha. Kia ora. 
Hon RODNEY HIDE (Leader—ACT) 
: 
 On behalf of the ACT Party I rise with the other parties in this Parliament to extend our condolences to the people of Poland to Polish people everywhere and to the families who lost loved ones. Lech Kaczynski made it his life’s work to fight for the thing we value most in this place: democracy. 
Does my voice sound like it is in a bottle? 
Hon Ruth Dyson 
: Yes it does. 
Hon RODNEY HIDE 
: I will hand over to the Maori Party and will wait to see whether the sound system can be fixed. I do not want to drive everyone nuts. 
Hon TARIANA TURIA (Co-Leader—Maori Party) 
: 
 The Maori Party stands to share in the collective sorrow of the House as we pay our respects to the people of Poland in their homeland and to the many who have come to call Aotearoa home. This was a national tragedy beyond all proportion. The death of top Polish political and military officials including the President Lech Kacyznski his wife Maria and 94 others has been described as Poland’s worst tragedy since World War II. 
There is poignant irony in the fact that the fatal journey taken by those senior leaders was en route to the 70th anniversary of another severe tragedy in that nation’s memory. As the news filtered through of the tragic plane crash associations were quickly made to the events of 70 years ago when an estimated 22000 prisoners held in Soviet internment camps were murdered under the instruction of Stalin. The senior members of the Polish bureaucracy and the President were travelling to a memorial service in the Katyn Forest to remember and mourn for the lives of those lost 70 years prior. 
There has been no question of the depth of the nation’s grief as we observe the streets of Warsaw lined with thousands of mourners the candles flickering and the simple placards with photographs of the 94 victims who lost their lives. Each simple wreath of flowers reminds us of the personal dimensions to this tragedy. We feel a close association in our own world through the simple placement of a condolence book in Parliament. We have seen the people come to cry to pay their respects and to remember. 
And so our statement is simply one of peoples reaching across the world to others. We pay our respects to the families the children taken before their time families who were robbed of parents and grandparents. May they all rest in peace. 
Hon PETER DUNNE (Leader—United Future) 
: 
 United Future joins with the other parties that have spoken in this debate to express sympathy and sorrow on the death of President Lech Kacyznski and his party on route to the Katyn massacre commemorations in western Russia recently. 
It is very hard for us to comprehend the magnitude of a tragedy that takes out in one fell swoop as it were virtually the entire infrastructure of a nation. The looks of grief that my colleague referred to and the shock and horror on the faces of the people of Warsaw and other cities as they have come to grips with that bring home I think the enormity of what has happened the high regard in which the president was held by his people and in many senses the historic suffering of the people of Poland. In this country we have our own history with the Pahiatua children the Prime Minister referred to. 
Poland in many senses has always been at the forefront of international suffering; the irony of the massacre being that it took place on the day on which this tragedy occurred. The president played an important part in Poland’s liberation from communism in the early 1980s. All these things add up to an image of a country that was starting to flourish as a centre of culture and democracy and a real haven for its people in a way that perhaps had not been the case for a long period of time. So the tragedy is a doubly serious one for the people. I simply want to put on record my condolences and my sympathy with the people of Poland the Polish community in New Zealand and all those who have been affected by this tragedy. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Before I put the question I must apologise to members that their ability to speak in the House has been compromised by the sound system playing up. I apologise to members. I take it very seriously when a member’s ability to speak is affected. 
Motion agreed to.