Quotes By Lech Walesa

The hope of the nation which throughout the nineteenth century had not for a moment reconciled itself with the loss of independence, and fighting for its own freedom, fought at the same time for the freedom of other nations.

I use many different gadgets connected with computers; I use PCs, laptops and a Palm Pilot. I also use the Internet to visit websites, especially within Polish-language Internet. I usually go to political discussion groups and sites - of course, as I use my real name, people never believe that they are chatting with me!

I have more than 100 honorary Ph.D.s.

What until then seemed impossible to achieve has become a fact of life. We have won the right to association in trade unions independent from the authorities, founded and shaped by the working people themselves.

I had my own battle tactics.

Dictators and oppressors should continue to fear me because I will be here for a long time.

Authority must be respected and chosen wisely.

It is hardly possible to build anything if frustration, bitterness and a mood of helplessness prevail.

The fall of the Berlin Wall makes for nice pictures. But it all started in the shipyards.

The politicians always told us that the Cold War stand-off could only change by way of nuclear war. None of them believed that such systemic change was possible.

Our national history has so often filled us with bitterness and the feeling of helplessness.

In myself I am nothing. It all comes from God and the Virgin Mary.

I realize that the strivings of the Polish people gave rise, and still do so, to the feelings of understanding and solidarity all over the world.

We shall not yield to violence. We shall not be deprived of union freedoms. We shall never agree with sending people to prison for their convictions.

I cannot stand for more than half an hour in one place.

I risked my life.

I belong to a nation which over the past centuries has experienced many hardships and reverses. The world reacted with silence or with mere sympathy when Polish frontiers were crossed by invading armies and the sovereign state had to succumb to brutal force.

Now is the era of intellect, information and the Internet.

When I recall my own path of life I cannot but speak of the violence, hatred and lies. A lesson drawn from such experiences, however, was that we can effectively oppose violence only if we ourselves do not resort to it.

I most sincerely wish that the world in which we live be free from the threat of a nuclear holocaust and from the ruinous arms race. It is my cherished desire that peace be not separated from freedom which is the right of every nation. This I desire and for this I pray.

My country is in the grips of a major economic crisis. This is causing dramatic consequences for the very existence of Polish families. A permanent economic crisis in Poland may also have serious repercussions for Europe. Thus, Poland ought to be helped and deserves help.

You have riches and freedom here but I feel no sense of faith or direction. You have so many computers, why don't you use them in the search for love?

I hope to work harder than ever to help people around the world.

Lying at the root of the social agreements of 1980 are the courage, sense of responsibility, and the solidarity of the working people. Both sides have then recognized that an accord must be reached if bloodshed is to be prevented.

I will talk and act, not on my knees, but with prudence.

People always ask me, 'Lech, aren't you afraid of being killed?' And as an answer I shrug my shoulders.

I can't imagine the right wing trying to unite without my participation.

We hold our heads high, despite the price we have paid, because freedom is priceless.

There is something of the warrior in me.

My youth passed at the time of the country's reconstruction from the ruins and ashes of the war in which my nation never bowed to the enemy paying the highest price in the struggle.