Some 65 respondents believe Poland should ratify the EU reforming treaty. Only 15 percent believe otherwise, 19 percent have no opinion.
The poll was conducted by PBS DGA for Gazeta. Three days after President Lech Kaczyński's 'MTV-style' televised address directed by Jacek Kurski, the Law and Justice's controversial deputy, the polls asked respondents what they thought about its message.
In his 17 March address, President Kaczyński said that 'not all that comes from the EU has to be good for Poland'. Some provisions in the Charter of Fundamental Rights can trigger off a wave of German restitution or compensation claims for property left in the territories awarded to Poland after WWII, he said.
Those fragments of the address were illustrated with footage showing Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, talking friendly to Erika Steinbach, the German expellee leader, and a map of Greater Germany with what is now western Poland the former East Prussia marked black.
But Poles refused to fell for the social-engineering trick. Some 64 percent of respondents in the poll said they didn't think the treaty's ratification would result in the Germans taking over Poland's western territories. Only 21 percent think the threat is real.
The President also argued: 'For lack of a clear definition of the marriage as a contract between a man and a woman, the Charter's provision can violate Poland's long-established moral order and force our country to introduce institutions incompatible with the moral views of the vast majority of the public'.
Here, respondents don't agree either. Only 19 percent believe the treaty will result in the legalisation of same-sex marriages in Poland, with 69 percent believing otherwise.
Younger and Better Educated Respondents in Favour of Ratification The percentage of the treaty's supporters is proportional to respondents' education levels, growing from 55 percent for respondents with primary education, through 59 percent for those with vocational education, 70 percent for those with secondary education, to as high as 82 percent for respondents with tertiary education.
The treaty has fewest supporters among over-60-year-olds (63 percent opposed), and most among those aged 25-39 (67 percent in favour). But, it is worth noting, it is among respondents aged 60 and more that the percentage of those 'firmly in favour' is the highest (45 percent).
How does support for the Lisbon Treaty look like in terms of respondents' political sympathies? The treaty's ratification is supported by 93 percent Left and Democrats (LiD) voters, 81 percent Civic Platform (PO) voters, 78 percent Polish Peasant Party (PSL) voters, and 41 percent of Law and Justice (PiS) voters. It is precisely in the latter group that the number of undecided respondents is higher than elsewhere - one in four PiS supporters don't know what to think about the treaty.
They are not being helped by President Lech Kaczyński, who in his televised address criticised the document. Then he suggested he might choose not sign it if he didn't like the ratification bill passed by parliament. On the day the poll was conducted though, he said he believed Poland should ratify the treaty, which he himself had negotiated. And that he 'cannot imagine the treaty collapsing because of Poland'. He added he thought the ratification process shouldn't take longer to complete than the end of April.
Only 32 percent of respondents believe the President is in favour of the treaty; 44 percent say he doesn't want its ratification, with 23 percent unable to guess the President's intentions.
PBS DGA telephone poll, 20 March 2007, representative random sample of 500 adult PolesDo you think President Lech Kaczyński wants Poland to (percentage of replies)
ratify the treaty: 32
reject the treaty: 44
hard to say: 24
translated by Marcin Wawrzyńczak
