The fifth edition of MEGA, under the slogan “The Right Path”, took place in Warsaw coinciding with the inauguration of the new president, Karol Nawrocki. August 5 to 7, speakers from 23 countries, mostly European, but with the presence of a large group of Hispanic Americans and Americans and even South Koreans, discussed relations between the European Union and the United States, the role of the conservative movement in the face of current challenges, the Nawrocki effect, and how democracy and common sense can be preserved.
Arrival at the Bellotto hotel, where the event was to take place, was not easy. The streets were taken over by thousands of demonstrators who, waving Polish flags, had come to the inauguration of the new president. However, we arrived in time to witness Karol Nawrocki’s speech to the Sejm, the Polish parliament. You didn’t need to understand the language to see the effect of his speech, eliciting loud applause from the Polish right, while Prime Minister Donald Tusk squirmed in his seat like Greta Thunberg in front of a gasoline engine. Joking aside, Karol Nawrocki’s speech was impeccable and for many, the best speech delivered at the Sejm. He spoke for 25 minutes, without a single leaf in front of him, only with energy, historical erudition and determination to put an end to the anarchy generated by Donald Tusk’s progressive government.
“It was the choice of a free nation that today puts me before you, against the propaganda, lies, political theater and defamation that I suffered during the election campaign,” Nawrocki noted, recalling the infamous smear campaign used against him in the presidential election. “This day today is our joint victory. It is a victory for Poland, a free, sovereign, independent and ambitious Poland,” stressed the new president, who also left a clear message to Prime Minister Tusk and his anti-democratic maneuvers to “save democracy”: “Dear Prime Minister, Minister of Justice, I will not promote or appoint those judges who undermine the constitutional order, the law of the Republic of Poland”.
The MEGA conference was organized to be able to participate in the inauguration events, and so, at four o’clock in the afternoon, a good part of the attendees went to Pilsudski Square, where an hour later the inauguration of the armed forces by the new president was to take place. The procession was led by AUR President George Simion, who, to the surprise of many of us who accompanied him, is well known in Poland for his support of Nawrocki during the elections and received the applause and greetings of many of the citizens present in the vicinity of the square. Of course, the presence of such a large group of foreigners wearing blue MEGA caps also surprised the Poles favorably.
In a square full of people and national flags, Karol Nawrocki reviewed the troops, knelt to kiss the banner of the Polish army, whose motto is “God, Honor, Fatherland”, and knelt again to pray at the tomb of the unknown soldier. Before the new president addressed the troops, Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz, deputy chairman of Tusk’s government, attempted to give a speech amid whistles and shouts of “down with communism,” “go to Berlin,” or “go with Tusk.” Kosiniak-Kamysz is the president of the Polish People’s Party (PSL), also known as the Peasant Party, an organization that defines itself as conservative, but is part of the coalition of the current progressive government. A support that could cost them dearly, since in the latest polls their party only reaches 1.4% (in the 2023 elections, it obtained 5.5%).
“I will never give you the order ‘forward’, but always ‘follow me’… During my term every soldier will be a hero of the present,” Nawrocki emphasized, claiming that Poland “will have the largest army in Europe.” He also left a message for Putin: “We will be ready to face the Russian empire”. After the ceremony, the troops left the square parading through the nearby streets, while the congregation applauded and thanked them. A true display of patriotism.
The following day, MEGA’s conferences were marked by the enthusiasm of the presidential inauguration and optimism about the beginning of a new era for Poland. MEP Ryszard Czarnecki presented a panel on the “Nawrocki effect”, highlighting the change that his victory represents not only for Poland, but for Europe as a whole. Czarnecki also highlighted the importance that MEGA is having for the international conservative movement: “Sixteen months after its first conference in Bucharest, MEGA has become an international right-wing alternative to the left-liberal mainstream. MEGA is going to war with the international left, an intelectual, cultural, civilizational and organizative war, but it also forces unity between the previously divided right”. George Simion was in charge of closing this new edition of MEGA: “Our family, our network, must provide the right tools to prevail in the battles ahead of us”. Simion, who is also vice-president of ECR, stressed the importance of MEGA, which brings together more and more conservative movements, because “unity is strength”. Karol Nawrocki’s victory is an example of the need for unity to confront those who want to weaken the West, whether they are in Brussels, Beijing or Moscow, and this MEGA event in Warsaw is a confirmation that this is The Right Path.
