The episode recalled the early 1980s, when Solidarity, the independent trade union, wielded its strike weapon to extract concessions from Poland's Communist leaders. Faced with a threatened 15-minute nationwide walkout called by the now banned labor organization, the government of General Wojciech Jaruzelski last week postponed planned food-price hikes averaging some 12%. Unlike the old days, both sides claimed victory. The authorities attributed their decision not to Solidarity's walkout plans but to actions by the officially sanctioned All-Poland Trade Union Alliance, which had also come out against the price rises. The government thus sought to turn its retreat into a success...
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