6 Solidarity Officials Reportedly Jailed in New Polish Move Against Unionists

WARSAW —  A dissident leader said Friday that police detained six officials of the outlawed Solidarity movement--the first roundup of union activists since an amnesty for political prisoners was declared in September.

Jacek Kuron, a prominent Solidarity figure, said the six were taken into custody after police found them holding a meeting at an apartment in the southwest city of Lublin.

“Three of them were taken to their own apartments where searches were conducted,” Kuron said.

The six officials are all members of the Lublin region Temporary Council of Solidarity, one of more than a dozen panels established around the nation after last fall’s amnesty as part of Solidarity founder Lech Walesa’s plan to openly conduct union activities.

Asked to comment about the new detentions, Walesa said: “It is hard to say whether this is a new trend of the authorities. We shall have to see when they are released.”

Reagan’s February Decision

Diplomats said the six were the first group of union activists to be detained since President Reagan’s Feb. 19 decision to lift remaining economic sanctions against Poland. They also marked the first detentions since the declaration in September of amnesty for 225 political prisoners, most of them Solidarity officials.

The diplomats also said it was the first time the authorities had taken action against a regional council of Solidarity. There have been a series of warnings that the groups should be disbanded.

Walesa’s aim in setting up the temporary councils was to pave the way for the revival of Solidarity, which was outlawed after martial law was imposed for 18 months in 1981.

The government, however, has ruled out any official recognition of Solidarity or of allowing it to resume operations. Authorities have created a Communist Party-controlled union, which held its first national convention in Warsaw last year.