The wave of reprivatization threatens Poland

A wave of reprivatization petition is threatening us. On Thursday, the bill, under which almost 300 thousand former owners has signed, is heading to the government. They are demanding the return of the property worth 85 billion zloty. Not only Poles, but also Jews fight for the compensation which accounts for around 20 percent of requisitioned properties. Their request is supported by Ronald Lauder, head of the World Jewish Congress. On Wednesday he induced Prime Minister Tusk to accept the claims. Jewish environment threaten that they will sue Poland in international courts. – That is how it is going to be if the government does not meet our expectations - says, to "Poland" Andrzej Zozula from the board of the Association of Jewish Religious Communities. Fulfilling the demands of the former owners mean a disaster for the Polish budget. In comparison, the entire NFZ budget in 2008 amounts to 48.9 billion zloty, and all hospitals debts amount to about 10 billion zloty. For the former owners claims more than 2 thousand km of motorways could be built. – We will reduce our country to beggary - says Miroslaw Szypowski, president of the Polish Union of Property Owners, bluntly. One month ago the government proposed a settlement for the former owners that amounts to 20 percent of the current value of the property, estimating that the entire assets to repay is worth around 150 billion zloty, 30 billion zloty is provided for the compensation. Owners not only rejected this offer, but also claimed that the government, on purpose over-declared the amount of their claims just to shock Poles of the scale of the problem and to arouse their reluctance. And they want one hundred percent of the property compensation.