Long-form name: Republic of Poland

Type: democratic state

Capital: Warsaw

Administrative divisions: 49 provinces (wojewodztwa, singular--wojewodztwo); Biala Podlaska, Bialystok, Bielsko-Biala, Bydgoszcz, Chelm, Ciechanow, Czestochowa, Elblag, Gdansk, Gorzow Wielkopolski, Jelenia Gora, Kalisz, Katowice, Kielce, Konin, Koszalin, Krakow, Krosno, Legnica, Leszno, Lodz, Lomza, Lublin, Nowy Sacz, Olsztyn, Opole, Ostroleka, Pila, Piotrkow, Plock, Poznan, Przemysl, Radom, Rzeszow, Siedlce, Sieradz, Skierniewice, Slupsk, Suwalki, Szczecin, Tarnobrzeg, Tarnow, Torun, Walbrzych, Warszawa, Wloclawek, Wroclaw, Zamosc, Zielona Gora

Independence: 11 November 1918, independent republic proclaimed

Constitution: the Communist-imposed Constitution of 22 July 1952 will be replaced by a democratic Constitution before May 1991

Legal system: mixture of Continental (Napoleonic) civil law and Communist legal theory; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

National holiday: National Liberation Day, 22 July (1952) will probably be replaced by Constitution Day, 3 May (1794)

Executive branch: president, prime minister, Council of Ministers (cabinet)

Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament (Parlament) consists of an upper house or Senate (Senat) and a lower house or National Assembly (Sejm)

Judicial branch: Supreme Court

Leaders: Chief of State--President Gen. Wojciech JARUZELSKI (since 19 July 1989, Chairman of Council of State since 6 November 1985); Head of Government--Premier Tadeusz MAZOWIECKI (since 24 August 1989)

Political parties and leaders: Center-right agrarian parties--Polish Peasant Party (PSL, known unofficially as PSL-Wilanowska), Gen. Franciszek Kaminski, chairman; Polish Peasant Party-Solidarity, Josef Slisz, chairman; Polish Peasant Party-Rebirth (formerly the United Peasant Party), Kazimirrz Olrsiak, chairman; Other center-right parties--National Party, Bronislaw Ekert, chairman; Christian National Union, Urrslaw Chnzanowski, chairman; Christian Democratic Labor Party, Wladyslaw Sila Nowicki, chairman; Democratic Party, Jerzy Jozwiak, chairman; Center-left parties--Polish Socialist Party, Jan Jozef Lipski, chairman; Left-wing parties--Polish Socialist Party-Democratic Revolution; Other--Social Democracy of the Republic of Poland (formerly the Communist Party or Polish United Workers' Party/PZPR), Aleksander Kwasnuewski, chairman; Union of the Social Democracy of the Republic of Poland (breakaway faction of the PZPR), Tadrusz Fiszbach, chairman

Suffrage: universal at age 18

Elections: Senate--last held 4 and 18 June 1989 (next to be held June 1993); results--percent of vote by party NA; seats--(100 total) Solidarity 99, independent 1; National Assembly--last held 4 and 18 June 1989 (next to be held June 1993); results--percent of vote by party NA; seats--(460 total) Communists 173, Solidarity 161, Polish Peasant Party 76, Democratic Party 27, Christian National Union 23; note--rules governing the election limited Solidarity's share of the vote to 35% of the seats; future elections are to be freely contested

Communists: 70,000 members in the Communist successor party (1990)

Other political or pressure groups: powerful Roman Catholic Church; Confederation for an Independent Poland (KPN), a nationalist group; Solidarity (trade union); All Poland Trade Union Alliance (OPZZ), populist program; Clubs of Catholic Intellectuals (KIKs); Freedom and Peace (WiP), a pacifist group; Independent Student Union (NZS)

Member of: CCC, CEMA, Council of Europe, FAO, GATT, IAEA, IBEC, ICAO, ICES, IHO, ILO, ILZSG, IMO, IPU, ISO, ITC, ITU, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, Warsaw Pact, WIPO, WMO

Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Jan KINAST; Chancery at 2640 16th Street NW, Washington DC 20009; telephone (202) 234-3800 through 3802; there are Polish Consulates General in Chicago and New York; US--Ambassador-designate Thomas SIMONS, Jr.; Embassy at Aleje Ujazdowskie 29/31, Warsaw (mailing address is APO New York 09213); telephone p48o 283041 through 283049; there is a US Consulate General in Krakow and a Consulate in Poznan

Flag: two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red--a crowned eagle is to be added; similar to the flags of Indonesia and Monaco which are red (top) and white

NOTE: The information regarding Poland on this page is re-published from the 1990 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Poland Government 1990 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Poland Government 1990 should be addressed to the CIA.