Lech Walesa Under Fire

Polish politicians and intellectuals defended former president Lech Walesa against allegations he was an informer for the communist secret police.

Former premiers Tadeusz Mazowiecki and Jerzy Buzek were among those who called for an end to the 'campaign of hate and slander' which they said was destroying Poland's 'national remembrance.

The allegations against the Solidarity union founder are due to be made public in a report by the Institute of National Remembrance, which investigates communist crimes committed in Poland. Media reports said the report lists new documents which show Walesa, 64, established contact with the communist secret service in the 1970s and acted as an informer under the code name Bolek.

The authors of the report claim Walesa tried to cover up embarrassing details about his past during his term as Poland's first democratically elected president from 1990-1995. Walesa has denied the allegations and threatened legal action against the authors of the report. The secret service began observing Walesa after he became involved in anti-communist protests as a young shipyard worker in Gdansk in 1970.