The Polish Beer-Lovers' Party (PPPP; pl, Polska Partia Przyjaciół Piwa, lit=Polish Party of Friends of Beer) was a satirical Polish political party that was founded in 1990 by satirist Janusz Rewiński. Originally, the party's goal was to promote cultural

beer Beer is one of the oldest and the most widely consumed type of alcoholic drink in the world, and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches, mainly derived from ce ...

-drinking in English-style pubs instead of

vodka Vodka ( pl, wódka , russian: водка , sv, vodka ) is a clear distilled alcoholic beverage. Different varieties originated in Poland, Russia, and Sweden. Vodka is composed mainly of water and ethanol but sometimes with traces of impuriti ...

and thus fight

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomi ...

. The humorous name and disillusionment with Poland's political transformation led some Poles to vote for the party.Bachman, Ronald D. (1992) Chapter 4 - Government and Politics "Poland - Beer-Lovers' Party" Library of Congress Country Studies, Call Number DK4040 .P57 1994
retrieved 6 October 2007. The nature of the party's appeal to its supporters was reflected in frequently-heard remarks that maybe with the PPPP at the helm "it wouldn't be better but for sure it would be funnier". Although it may have started as a prank, with time, its members developed a serious platform. Moreover, the idea of a political discussion in establishments that served quality beer became a symbol of freedom of association and expression, intellectual tolerance, and a higher standard of living. In the 1991 parliamentary elections the PPPP won 16 seats in the

Sejm The Sejm (English: , Polish: ), officially known as the Sejm of the Republic of Poland ( Polish: ''Sejm Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''), is the lower house of the bicameral parliament of Poland. The Sejm has been the highest governing body of ...

capturing 2.97% of the vote.wybory parlamentarne 1991r. (parliamentary elections in 1991)
, retrieved on October 6, 2007. The party soon split into Large Beer and Small Beer factions, despite Rewiński's claims that "beer is neither light nor dark, it is tasty". Eventually the PPPP was dissolved, in 1993. The Large Beer faction assumed the name Polish Economic Program. Losing its image of quirkiness, the Polish Economic Program became associated with the Democratic Union (UD). The Little Beer faction became associated with the Liberal Democratic Congress in a Coalition of liberal promarket parties, which supported the candidacy of

Hanna Suchocka Hanna Stanisława Suchocka (; born 3 April 1946) is a Polish political figure, lawyer, professor at Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań and Chair of the Constitutional Law Department, former First Vice-President and Honorary President of the V ...

as prime minister.

References

{{Reflist Political parties established in 1990 Defunct political parties in Poland

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

Beer political parties 1990 establishments in Poland Joke political parties in Poland

See also

References