The National Day of Silesian Uprisings has been added to the calendar of Polish public holidays. President Andrzej Duda on Tuesday signed a bill in that regard into law. The holiday is to be celebrated on June 20. As the Chancellery of the President informed earlier, it will not be a bank holiday.
The law on introducing the National Day of Silesian Uprisings is an initiative put forward by President Andrzej Duda. The legislation was approved by the lower house of parliament on May 12, and on May 18 by the Senate (upper house).
The Chancellery of the President informed in a reply to TVN24 Biznes inquiry that the new holiday, which will be celebrated on June 20, will not be a bank holiday.
President Duda signed the bill in Katowice, which is the capital of the Silesian Voivodeship.
The Silesian Uprisings were a series of three uprisings from August 1919 to July 1921 in Upper Silesia, which was part of the Weimar Republic at the time.
After Poland regained independence in 1918, Polish national sentiment in the region was on the rise, but it was being quashed by German army and administration. This led to mass protests and eventually to the outbreak of the uprisings.
Following the conflict, the area was divided between the two countries. The rebellions have subsequently been commemorated in modern Poland as an example of Polish nationalism.
Źródło: TVN24 News in English, PAP