Green Party LGBT News

Green Solidarity with Polish voters in London	22 October 2007
Summary Greens support massive turnout for the right of every Polish vote to count. Historic turnout against the reactionary and homophobic government of the Kaczynkis

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Tens of thousands queued for hours to vote in yesterday's general election in Poland. Amid reports of a historically high turnout the Green Party of England and Wales supported the thousands who turned up and queued around the block to vote at the Polish Consulate in London.



Clare Dimyon, a Green activist from Brighton and Hove Green Party, paid for an eco-double decker bus to enable Brighton & Hove Poles to cast their vote so that they could play their part in these historic elections.



Clare was outraged by the voting arrangements which still mean that only around 10% of the Polish electorate in the UK were actually able to vote. Clare featured on Polish television singing the Polish National Anthem with Polish voters. She also read out, in Polish, a translation of a statement of support from Caroline Lucas, MEP, who is also standing as Green Party candidate for Brighton Pavilion in the next UK General Elections.



The Green Party talked to voters who had been in queues for hours without facilities but our intervention ensured that pregnant women and people with young children were moved to the front of the queues. Greens distributed biscuits and Polish newspapers and told voters to report the time they had had to wait to maximize pressure for the new Polish Government to reform the Polish voting arrangements as a matter of urgency. Dr Joseph Healy, who is the International Officer of the LGBT Group and the International Coordinator of the Green Party was among
them:



"Yesterday, I stood with the Chair of the London Green Party outside the Polish consulate in London to support the right of every Pole to cast their vote. These stunning people queued for up to four hours to exercise their democratic rights and to vote for a new Poland. "



"Today the results of the Kaczynski Govt are clear to see. This reactionary and homophobic regime, which made Poland a living hell for its LGBT citizens has been thrown into the dustbin of history as a two year disastrous experiment, which we can only hope will never again be repeated in any democratic country in the European Union. "



"The Greens, both in the UK and across Europe, have played their part in that victory, and the role of the Polish Green Party has been particularly heroic, supporting the beleaguered Polish LGBT community in its darkest hour. I salute the decision of the Polish people to vote for a more tolerant and progressive Poland and look forward to a Poland where its LGBT citizens are treated with equality and respect."




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