Solidarity founder Lech Walesa sues Polish radio station for communist slur News
Solidarity founder Lech Walesa sues Polish radio station for communist slur

[JURIST] Solidarity [Wikipedia article] founder and former Polish President Lech Walesa [BBC profile; Lech Walesa Institute foundation website] said Monday he has filed charges against Radio Maryja [radio website in Polish], a radical Roman Catholic radio station in Poland, over comments made on the stations that he collaborated with Communist Party authorities in the 1970s. Walesa, who filed the charges with prosecutors in the northern port city of Gdansk last week, said the station accused him of signing secret agreements with Communists and also working as an informer for Poland's secret police. Gdansk prosecutors had started an investigation into the matter after Walesa brought the incident to the attention of the nation's justice minister. Walesa led the Solidarity union protests which is credited with helping to topple communism in Poland in 1989-90. In 2000, a special court set up to check the records of officials running for public office, had cleared Walesa of any Communist activity in the 1970s. AP has more.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Laws of Burgos put into effect

The Spanish Crown put the Laws of Burgos into effect on December 27, 1512. These laws governed the relationship of Spanish settlers with the indigenous peoples of the Caribbean. The laws established the encomienda system of labor, promoted conversion to Catholicism, and safeguarded the indigenous peoples from physical abuse.  However, historians argue that the laws were ineffective at protecting the rights of the indigenous population. Learn more from the Library of Congress.

Prohibitionist Carrie Nation carried out her first public bar smashing

On December 27, 1900, militant Prohibitionist Carrie Nation carried out her first public smashing of a bar, at the Carey Hotel in Wichita, Kansas. Nation argued that destroying bars was an acceptable means of battling the liquor trade since the Kansas Constitution prohibited alcohol. Learn more about Carrie Nation.

World Bank created

On December 27, 1944, the World Bank was created during the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, USA. Learn more about the history of the World Bank.