Jaruzelski: I agonized for months over martial law

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Poland's last communist leader said Thursday that he had agonized for months before declaring martial law in 1981 to try to crush the Solidarity freedom movement knowing he would make enemies of his countrymen.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Gen. Wojciech Jaruzelski acknowledged his sins and those of his government in defending communism in the face of strikes and protests that eventually resulted in the fall of his regime. He says many fellow Poles continue to "spit on my name" although he helped the peaceful transition from communist state to free-market democracy starting with semi-free elections nearly 20 years ago on June 4, 1989. More...

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