Robert Obaz of Wiosna and Piotr Borys of Civic Platform on abortion and elections

During the live discussion, viewers will be able to ask our guests questions. They can also post them in the comments; selected questions will be raised during the discussion.

Piotr Borys:

• A lot of work awaits us. In two years, there could be double elections taking place at the same time.
• I call for strengthening Civic Platform and the Civic Coalition.
• Allocating 7% of GDP to healthcare is the most important goal.
• Decentralization and support for local governments are important.
• We are united by the values of a democratic state and free media.
• Unity makes sense. We must convince the entire opposition to support it.
• Public television has become the television of one party—a party television station.
• We want to abolish TVP Info and the television licence fee and create a television service modeled on the BBC, with independent journalists.
• Over six years, 6 billion zlotys was allocated to TVP. That is equal to the debt owed by hospitals.
• Public television must receive subsidies and have a public-service mission: culture, education and patriotic elements, but it must also be competitive and support itself partly through advertising.
• The Large Family Card should also include discounts and benefits for families at the local-government level.
• I personally support women at the protests. Abortion must always be a woman’s choice.
• No restrictive Law and Justice provision will stop abortions.
• A new social contract is needed: sex education and access to contraceptives.
• Regarding abortion, politicians should respect the will of the people. A referendum on this issue should be considered.

Robert Obaz:

• The Left is visible in Bolesławiec, as it is throughout Lower Silesia.
• The pandemic took us by surprise. It is not possible to organize a unification congress (SLD and Wiosna).
• Two years ago, at Warsaw’s Torwar, we spoke about allocating 7.5% of GDP to healthcare. At that time, other parties laughed at us.
• Too little funding is allocated to Lower Silesia.
• There are issues that distinguish us (Wiosna and Civic Platform) in our programs, including our approach to abortion.
• The 500+ program gave Law and Justice its victory. The opposition must show that it can create a similar program.
• If we abolish the television licence fee, we will have to consider how to finance public television.
• At present, 2 billion zlotys a year is allocated to propaganda.
• The Left does not believe that abortion is acceptable. It should always be a woman’s choice. We should not force a woman to give birth to a child.
• The Left stands firmly with women.
• I believe that a referendum on abortion would bring no benefits. I find it strange to hold a referendum on human rights.
• The people in the streets were not shouting vulgar slogans only at Law and Justice. It was a cry directed at everyone in power.
• The opposition must start working together in local governments.

Robert Obaz was born on March 8, 1973, in Jelenia Góra. In 2010, he founded and became president of the Goduszyn Association, a local neighborhood organization operating in the Goduszyn district of Jelenia Góra. He was active in the Democratic Left Alliance and served as secretary of the party’s county organization. In 2014, he won a seat on the Jelenia Góra City Council. In 2019, he joined Wiosna. In the parliamentary elections, he ran for the Sejm on the Democratic Left Alliance list in the Legnica constituency. He won a seat as an MP in the ninth term of the Sejm, receiving 4,205 votes.

Piotr Borys was born on January 11, 1976, in Bolesławiec. He belonged to the Freedom Union and the Democratic Party. In 2006, he joined Civic Platform. In the European Parliament, he became a member of the delegation for relations with Afghanistan, the delegation for relations with Central Asia, the Legal Affairs Committee and the Culture and Education Committee, as well as a member of the European People’s Party group. In 2018, he returned to the Lower Silesian regional assembly. In the 2019 elections, representing the Civic Coalition, he won a seat as an MP in the ninth term in the Legnica constituency, receiving 35,034 votes.