Zdzisław Bradel (21 June 1950 - 3 September 2020) was a Polish politician, poet and journalist, who served as Advisor to the

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a Minister (government), government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to th ...

from 1992 to 1993.

Biography

Zdzisław Bradel was born on 21 June 1950 in

Gdańsk Gdańsk is a city on the Baltic Sea, Baltic coast of northern Poland, and the capital of the Pomeranian Voivodeship. With a population of 486,492, Data for territorial unit 2261000. it is Poland's sixth-largest city and principal seaport. Gdań ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

. He was a graduate of the Faculty of Humanities at the

John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin (, , abbreviation KUL) is a university established in 1918. History :pl:Idzi Radziszewski, Father Idzi Benedykt Radziszewski founded the university in 1918. Vladimir Lenin, Lenin allowed the priest ...

. He was part of the Circle of Young Writers. In the years 1976-1977, Bradel provided assistance to the oppressed workers of Radom. From 1977 to 1979, he was co-editor of ''Meetings: Independent Magazine of Young Catholics'', and the author of ''Evangelical Considerations'', among other publications. In 1979, Bradel took part in the

hunger strike A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance where participants fasting, fast as an act of political protest, usually with the objective of achieving a specific goal, such as a policy change. Hunger strikers that do not take fluids are ...

at the Basilica of Our Lady in

Piekary Śląskie Piekary Śląskie () () is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. One of the core cities of the Metropolis GZM – metropolis with a population of 2 million. Located in the Silesian Highlands, on the Brynica river (tributary of the Vi ...

. He was part of the campaign to boycott the 1980 Polish legislative election. Since 1980, he was a member of the Movement of Young Poland. In 1981, Bradel became co-editor of the independent ''Information Solidarity Bulletin for Region Central-East'', in November 1981 assuming the role of

editor in chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The editor-in-chief heads all departments of the organization and is held account ...

. In 1982, he was imprisoned in

Iława Iława (; ) is a town in northern Poland with 32,276 inhabitants (2010). It is the capital of Iława County in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship. The town is located in the Iławskie Lake District, on the longest lake in Poland – Jeziorak.

. Following his release, Bradel was elected as the Chairman of Solidarity in Central and Eastern Poland. He was involved in the

Communion and Liberation Communion and Liberation (, often shortened to CL), since 1980 officially Fraternity of Communion and Liberation (), it is an international Catholic movement founded in 1954 by Fr. Luigi Giussani as Student Youth (), with the aim of presentin ...

movement. After 1989, he was, inter alia, editor of ''Catholic Social Weekly'', '' The Voice'', and ''Catholic Review'' as well as the industry publication of

Poczta Polska The Polish Post (, ) is the state postal administration of Poland, initially founded in 1558. The company is headquartered in Warsaw and employs over 67,000 people. It is the largest mail-handling company in the country, which additionally prov ...

. From 1992 to 1993, Bradel served as Advisor to the

. He was an

Otwock Otwock (Yiddish: אָטוואָצק) is a city in the Masovian Voivodeship in east-central Poland, some south-east of Warsaw, with 43,895 inhabitants (2024). Otwock is part of the Warsaw metropolitan area. It is situated on the right bank of the ...

City Counselor from 1994 to 1998, the President of the

City Council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough counc ...

from 1996 to 1998, and a Member of the

Otwock County __NOTOC__ Otwock County () is a unit of territorial administration and local government (powiat) in Masovian Voivodeship, east-central Poland. It came into being on January 1, 1999, as a result of the Polish local government reforms passed in 1998. ...

Commission In-Commission or commissioning may refer to: Business and contracting * Commission (remuneration), a form of payment to an agent for services rendered ** Commission (art), the purchase or the creation of a piece of art most often on behalf of anot ...

from 1998 to 2002. After 1990, Bradel was an activist with the

Party of Christian Democrats The Party of Christian Democrats (, PChD) was a political party in Poland. The party was considered a right-wing rival to the Christian-Democratic Labour Party, considered the "left wing" of Christian democracy in Poland. History The PChD was e ...

, the

Movement for Reconstruction of Poland The Movement for the Reconstruction of Poland (, ROP) was a conservative political party in Poland. History The party was formed in 1995 by former members of the Movement for the Republic and, previously, the Centre Agreement. Its leader was J ...

, and the

Christian National Union The Christian National Union (, ZChN)Maher (2004), p. 3458 was a Christian-democratic and nationalist political party in Poland. Established on 15 September 1989, the party traced its tradition to the Solidarity movement (both the trade union an ...

References

*
Polish bibliography 1988 - 2001
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bradel, Zdzislaw 1950 births 2020 deaths John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin alumni Polish politicians Polish male poets Polish journalists Polish anti-communists Polish democracy activists Polish trade unionists Polish Roman Catholic writers Politicians of Catholic political parties Politicians from Gdańsk