The document explores the collective identities and struggles for independence of Poland and India in the 20th century, highlighting the influence of key figures like Lech Wałęsa and Mahatma Gandhi. It discusses the impact of colonial rule, wars, and the subsequent fight for civil rights and democracy, emphasizing the role of women in these movements. The historical context reveals a shared experience of oppression and a universal pursuit of justice through nonviolent resistance.

1. The collective identity and public life of citizens of the two countries are based largely on the
memory of the struggle for independence and resistance movements against foreign
influence, which were crowned by success only in the second half of the 20th.
Poland became independent in 1918 as a result of the fact that the political map of Europe
altered significantly after World War I (1914 – 1918). After more than a 120-year period of
partitions between the three neighboring countries –Russia, Prussia (Germany) and Austria –
a country that was longing for freedom, was given its land back. The victory was, however,
paid by numerous uprisings pacified in a bloody way.
Since the beginning of the 18th century, India was under the colonial rule of the British.
Indians fought for their independence during the Indian Rebellion of 1857. It was then that
Indians united for the first time to cast off the foreign yoke. The rebellion did not succeed
and the British only tightened their control over the Indian subcontinent. Entering India, the
British brought modernization. The urban intelligentsia of India was educated according to
European standards, which enhanced national consciousness. Indians also wanted to rule
their country. An especially active forum for fighters for independence was the Indian
National Congress (founded in 1885).
In Poland, it was also members of intelligentsia that were leaders of change. During World
War II, however, most citizens who were well educated and brought up in a patriotic spirit
died or were mass-murdered during Nazi and Soviet special operations.
Not only did World War II caused spiritual and material damage in Poland, but also it took its
independence away again. The country was under the Soviet influence for the next 50 years.
World War II brought a radical change to India too. Great Britain, which suffered a lot during
the war, had to admit that it had no power to rule in the overseas empire. In order to avoid a
religious civil war, it was decided that the British India had to be separated into two countries
– Hindu India and Muslim Pakistan. The separation of India was accompanied by massacres
(death toll of 500 000) and relocations (10-14 million people).
Poland did not escape from Stalin’s and western governments’ partition of Europe either. The
USSR appropriated Poland’s eastern part only to grant it land to the west of its borders,

2. which had belonged to Germany. Mass relocations in both countries caused social instability.
Today, many citizens of Poland still feel they do not belong to their land.
The history of granting both countries independence in the 20th century has its key-figures.
For India, the symbol of the struggle for independence is Mahatma Gandhi, for Poland – Lech
Wałęsa.
The former was a lawyer that was educated in England. When after completing his studies,
he was thrown out of a train because he was traveling in the first class, which was allowed
only for white people, he realized that the British allowed him to receive his education in
order for him to be a slave and second-class citizen in his own country. He began nonviolent
resistance movement – Satyagraha. Mahatma called for boycott of the British institutions –
courts, offices, the revenue service – together with British products. He encouraged his
compatriots to wear khadi (made of homemade fabric) instead of British clothing. Thus, he
urged everybody to weave khadi to show support for the independence movement. Also, the
women wove khadi, which made them join a political movement for the first time in history.
In contrast with Gandhi, Lech Wałęsa did not come from a privileged family and knew the life
of common people very well. He worked as electrician in a big plant. At the end of the 1970’s
when the economic situation in Poland worsened and people were not able to buy even
basic products, Wałęsa realized that the communists in Poland acted against its citizens,
especially against workers. He was the leader of the nationwide ‘Solidarity’ movement,
which renounced the use of violence and focused on civil disobedience, which destroyed the
communist regime in the Eastern Europe peacefully.
Although Lech Wałęsa and Mahatma Gandhi represent different continents, cultures and
social groups, they have demonstrated that the striving for justice and respect of basic rights
constitutes human’s universal need and no matter what country it is, peaceful methods can
win freedom. Independence movements, especially the use of civil disobedience and
nonviolent resistance, allowed women to play an important part in the political life of the
two countries. The fact that women were fighting not at the war front, but in everyday life
allowed women to become important players in the changes that were taking place at the
time. What distinguishes both Indian and Polish heroines of the 20th century from other
women is their courage. Many times, they had to face situations in which they had to
demonstrate their inner strength. Thus, they are often admired for being noble people,
heroines of history – Indira Gandhi or Henryka Krzywonos certainly would not like their
achievements to be evaluated only on the basis of their sex. Our heroines’ courage consisted
also in pushing the limits as to what was appropriate for a woman to do, in breaking barriers

3. and limits. In the end, women turned out to be important not only when fighting for
independence and democracy, but also for building them.
Glossary
Alcoholism – one of the biggest social problems in Poland. The addiction mainly affects
males and indirectly – their families. The highest consumption of alcohol was observed in
1979 and 1980, when an average citizen of Poland had 8,5 liters of pure 100% alcohol.
Bengal – a region in the Bay of Bengal, which in 1947 was divided between two countries:
India (western part) and Pakistan (eastern part). In 1971, the Indian army entered eastern
Bengal supporting the fight of the Bengalese for independence from Pakistan. A year later,
the independent Bangladesh was formed.
Caste – a closed group, community in the traditional Indian society, originally connected with
people’s jobs. One belongs to a caste from the moment one is born. It is fairly uncommon for
people from different castes to get married. The current constitution of India prohibits
discrimination on the basis of caste.
Concentration camps from World War II – during World War II, Germany implemented its
extermination plans of the Polish intelligentsia and Jews. Thus, they concentrated people in
closed camps, where the prisoners had to face diseases, hunger, exhaustion and finally,
death.
The Emergency – a period of the state of emergency in 1976-1977, which was introduced by
Indira Gandhi in order for her to rule in India by means of decrees and orders without the
Parliament.
The Independence of India – The inhabitants of modern India have always been
characterized by collective identity. However, only with modernization that was imposed by
the British in the 19th century, were the modern Indian nationalism and the will to build an
independent country born. The Indian Independence Act was signed in 1947.
The Indian National Congress – a political party established in 1885, a party which at first
assembled only well-educated Indians. After the Great War, it was opened up to different
people and became representative of the whole Indian society that fought for Indian
independence. Its spiritual leader was Mahatma Gandhi, who was supported by another
great politician, later Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru.
Indigenous people – native tribes of India that lived there before what we call today the
Indian civilization was created 3000 years ago. There are approximately 70 million people in
India who belong to indigenous tribes. The tribes usually live in the central forests of India,
they have their own cultures and often speak endangered languages.

4. Intelligentsia – a social class that was the main carrier of national culture and patriotic force.
Intelligentsia usually consisted of impoverished aristocracy and freelancers.
Karnawał Solidarności (‘the Carnival of the Solidarity Movement’) – a period of great social
arousal and freedom that was palpable in the Polish public life, which followed the successful
strike of the Solidarity movement in August 1980. It lasted until the Polish authorities
imposed martial law in December 1981.
Misalliance – marriage with a person belonging to a lower social class, e.g. a marriage of a
nobleman and a peasant woman was regarded as unequal and inappropriate.
Pakistan – a country created in 1947 when the British divided colonial India into India and
Pakistan. The Muslim Pakistan consisted of the former Indian Sind province, Balochistan, part
of Punjab and eastern Bengal, which was separated from the rest and soon became
independent Bangladesh. Since then, India and Pakistan have had hostile relations.
Political prisoners – after World War II, Polish prisons were filled by Poles who, according to
the new communist regime, conspired against the country. In reality, these were fighters for
independence, often former prisoners of the Nazi concentration camps. They were
incarcerated in order for the communist authorities to reign in Poland against the will of the
majority.
Poverty – one of the biggest social problems in India. One third of the poorest people in the
world live in India. According to the World Bank’s reports, 32.7% of Indians live below the
poverty line, i.e. for under $ 1.25 a day.
Quit India – a campaign for independence. In 1942, the Indian National Congress passed a
resolution concerning India’s independence and came out against the British authorities
calling to Quit India. At the time, the British authorities arrested Gandhi, Nehru and other
activists. In 1945, however, India joined the UN.
Socialist controlled economy – economy of the socialist countries was based not on the
market laws of demand and supply, but on political plans. This kind of economy was the
reason for the constant lack of basic products all over Eastern Europe.
The Solidarity movement – a nationwide anti-communist movement in Poland in 1980-1989,
a movement that allowed Poland to become independent again and indirectly, led to the
collapse of the USSR.
Tiranga – or triranga, a three-color flag of India, a symbol of Indian independence. Its design
was proposed by Mahatma Gandhi during Indian Congress Committee in 1921.
World War I – also known as the Great War, 1914-1918, conducted all over Europe, which
radically changed the situation on the continent. Many small countries became independent
at that time.