Marek Maciej Siwiec (born 13 March 1955 in Piekary Slaskie) is a Polish politician and journalist.

Biography

Marek Maciej Siwiec studied physics at the

AGH University of Science and Technology AGH University of Science and Technology in Kraków, (abbreviated as ''AGH UST'') is a public university in Kraków, Poland. Founded in 1913, its inauguration took place in 1919. The university focuses on innovation, innovative technologies, its ...

(1980) and completed Post-Diploma Study of Journalism in 1989at the Academy of Social Sciences – Centre for Education of the Foreign Service. He is married to Ewa, with whom he has two children.

Journalism career

Between 1985 and 1987 he was Editor-in-chief of the bi-weekly 'Student', then weekly magazine 'ITD' (1987–1990) and the daily newspaper 'Trybuna'.

Political career

From 1991 until 1997 he was a member of Parliament of the Polish Republic (Sejm) for the Kalisz Constituency. In years 1993-1995 he was also Member of National Broadcasting Council. In 1996 he was appointed as a secretary of state in a Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Poland,

Aleksander Kwaśniewski Aleksander Kwaśniewski (; born 15 November 1954) is a Polish politician and journalist. He served as the President of Poland from 1995 to 2005. He was born in Białogard, and during communist rule, he was active in the Socialist Union of Poli ...

. One year later (1997) he took over as a Chief of the

National Security Bureau (Poland) National Security Bureau ( pl, Biuro Bezpieczeństwa Narodowego, BBN) is a Polish government agency executing the tasks given by the President of the Republic of Poland regarding national security. The Bureau serves as the organizational support ...

. He held that position until 2004, when he was elected Member of the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...

from

Greater Poland Voivodship Greater Poland Voivodeship ( pl, Województwo wielkopolskie; ), also known as Wielkopolska Voivodeship, Wielkopolska Province, or Greater Poland Province, is a voivodeship, or province, in west-central Poland. It was created on 1 January 1999 o ...

. From January 2007 to June 2009 he served as Vice-President of the European Parliament. He also chaired the Delegation to the EU-Ukraine Parliamentary Cooperation Committee. He was an observer of several elections in

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

between 2004 and 2014. In December 2011-April 2012 he was vice-chairman of

Democratic Left Alliance The Democratic Left Alliance () was a social-democratic political party in Poland. It was formed in 9 July 1991 as an electoral alliance of centre-left parties, and became a single party on 15 April 1999. It was the major coalition party in Po ...

, polish social-democratic political party. During his tenure in European Parliament he also served as a coordinator of the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats for the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly. He was member of the Board of Yalta European Strategy foundation, President of

European Friends of Israel European Friends of Israel (EFI) was a Brussels-based organization of European Parliament, European parliamentarians whose stated mission is "forging a stronger political relationship and a deeper understanding between Europe and Israel." History Es ...

, and member of Global Leadership Council of Colorado State University. In 2016 he was appointed as a Chief Executive Officer of Babi Yar Holocaust Memorial Center, a non-governmental organization with its mission to respectfully commemorate the victims of the

Babi Yar Babi Yar (russian: Ба́бий Яр) or Babyn Yar ( uk, Бабин Яр) is a ravine in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv and a site of massacres carried out by Nazi Germany's forces during its campaign against the Soviet Union in World War II. The fi ...

and to promote the humanization of mankind through the memory preservation and study of the history of the

Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...

. Since 2019, he has served as a Senior Public Affairs Advisor for the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

Career timeline

* 1981–1982: Assistant at the Electronics Institute of AGH (1980–1982), traineeship with the

Gas and Fuel Corporation of Victoria The Gas and Fuel Corporation of Victoria (G&FC) was a government-owned monopoly supplier of household gas in Victoria, Australia. It was established in 1950 and took over two of the three main gas utilities in Melbourne – the Metropolitan Gas C ...

, Australia * 1985–1991: Editor-in-chief of the bi-monthly 'Student' (1985–1987), weekly 'ITD' (1987–1990) and the daily 'Trybuna' * 1991–1997: Member of Parliament of the Polish Republic (Sejm) * 1993: Spokesman for the Democratic Left Alliance (SLD) Parliamentary Party * 1993–1996: Member of the National National Broadcasting Council * 1993–1996: Member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the

Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold European Convention on Human Rights, human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. ...

* 1996–2004: Secretary of State at the Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Poland * 1997–2004: Chief of the

* 1997–2004: Vice-Chairman of the Consultative Committee of the presidents of Poland and

* Secretary of the National Security Council (2000–2004) head of the Polish Association of Friends of the

Peres Center for Peace The Peres Center for Peace, located in Jaffa, Israel, is an independent non-profit, non-governmental, and non-political organization founded in 1996 by Nobel Peace Laureate and former President of Israel Shimon Peres. Its aim is to further Pere ...

* Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Foundation to Counter Terrorism and Biological Threats * Member of the National Administration of the SLD * Head of the national delegation to the

Party of European Socialists The Party of European Socialists (PES) is a social democratic and progressive European political party. The PES comprises national-level political parties from all member states of the European Union (EU) plus Norway and the United Kingdom ...

in the EP

Awards and recognition

* Order of Gedymin (1997, LT), Cavaliere di Gran Croce (1997, I), Ordem do Merito (1997, P), Ordre de Leopold (1999, B) * National Order of Merit (2000, F) * Ubique Patriae Memor (2002, BR) * Grand Cross of the Order of Merit (2003, LT) * Virtutea Militară (2003, RO) * Royal Victorian Order (2004, GB) * Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, 4th and 3rd Class (1997, 2004, UA)

Controversy

During presidency campaign in 2000 a film was published revealing Marek Siwiec, then the chief of National Security Bureau, allegedly parodying a gesture of then pope John Paul II (making a cross sign in the air on arrival). In November 2007 Institute of National Remembrance (Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation), revealed that in 1986 he was registered as a Secret Collaborator until January 1990. Marek Siwiec denied those claims. On 26 March 2009 Institute of National Remembrance, after its own investigation, decided about discontinuance of the proceedings due to lack of evidence about collaboration.Cezary Gmyz: Koniec lustracji Siwca

Rzeczpospolita (newspaper) ''Rzeczpospolita'' () is a Polish nationwide daily economic and legal newspaper, published by Gremi Media. Established in 1920, ''Rzeczpospolita'' was originally founded as a daily newspaper of the conservative Christian National Party during in ...

(9 May 2009)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Siwiec, Marek People from Piekary Śląskie 1955 births Living people Members of the Polish Sejm 1991–1993 Members of the Polish Sejm 1993–1997 Democratic Left Alliance MEPs MEPs for Poland 2004–2009 MEPs for Poland 2009–2014 Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana, 2nd Class Your Movement politicians