SR0780 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0780 LRB096 22018 KXB 40307 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, On April 10, 2010, Polish President Lech Kaczynski, his wife, Maria, political and military officials, and several others died when their government airplane crashed in western Russia; and

WHEREAS, President Kaczynski and others were en route to a ceremony commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Katyn massacre, where 20,000 Polish officers and intelligentsia were executed by the Red Army; and

WHEREAS, Lech Kaczynski was born, along with his twin brother, Jaroslaw, on June 18, 1949, in Warsaw, Poland, to parents, Rajmund and Jadwiga, both strong patriots and participants in the Warsaw uprising of 1944 during World War II; and

WHEREAS, Lech Kaczynski graduated from Warsaw University in 1971 with a degree in law, and later earned his Ph.D. in the same field from Gdansk University, and continued to lecture at the University for the next twenty years; and

WHEREAS, He first became active in politics in 1977, when he joined the democratic opposition's organization, and was later elected senator; and

WHEREAS, Lech Kaczynski was elected Mayor of Warsaw in 2002 and took a tough stance on crime, spearheaded a fight to end corruption in the city and in national government, and supported the creation of the Museum of the Warsaw Uprising in 2004; and

WHEREAS, He was elected President of Poland in 2005, and he led the nation by focusing on economic security, ending corruption, and increasing national solidarity; and

WHEREAS, The State of Illinois has the second largest Polish population in the United States, and is greatly saddened by this series of tragic events, especially the passing of President Kaczynski; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we recognize the dedication and leadership of President Lech Kaczynski to the people of Poland; and be it further

RESOLVED, That it is with profound sadness that we mourn, along with President Barack Obama, other heads of state, and his surviving family and friends, the passing of President Lech Kaczynski.