Rady Narodowe — jednolita władza państwowa i zaprzeczenie idei samorządności jako przejaw autorytaryzmu w okresie PRL
National Councils — Unified State Power and the Denial of Self-Government as a Manifestation of Authoritarianism in the Polish People's Republic

Summary/Abstract: This article presents a legal characterization of the representative bodies of the Polish People’s Republic (PRL)—the National Councils, from the perspective of their essence, constitutional position, and the realization of the concept of self-governance. Employing linguistic-logical, axiological, and historical methodologies, the article analyzes the idea of territorial self-government, which in democratic systems constitutes the foundation for the decentralization of power and civic participation. The significance of territorial self-government for the democratization of state structures and the prevention of authoritarian tendencies is also subjected to rigorous analysis. The National Councils, as public authorities established by the Act of March 20, 1950, on territorial organs of unified state power, were introduced into the PRL’s constitutional framework as the basis for local socialist democracy, representing a reception of Soviet state model. In the contemporary literature, the National Councils were characterized as organs of socialist territorial representation, intended to serve as a sui generis equivalent to territorial self-government and its inherent values. This article juxtaposes the stance of socialist administrative law literature with the reality that emerged following the enactment of the above-mentioned act, as well as with literature made after the democratization of the Republic of Poland. This analysis incorporates historical context, illustrating the evolution of the PRL’s state system and examining the influence of the doctrine of unified state power on the shaping of the role and position of the National Councils. The issue of the National Councils as a manifestation of increasing authoritarianism is contrasted with the concept of territorial self-government as an expression of opposing (democratic) tendencies. The article provides a negative response to the question of whether the National Councils and the entire apparatus of unified state power in the PRL fulfilled their stated objectives related to socialist democracy and the representation of society within the structures of that power. The article also addresses both the former stances of administrative law doctrine and modern perspectives that challenge the historical achievements of administrative law and theory of administration, highlighting the instrumental treatment of the National Councils by the centralized state authority. Consequently, this article aims to demonstrate the National Councils as a territorial instrument of unified state power rather than as an organ realizing the idea of self-governance, which is characteristic of the PRL’s authoritarian system. The article further examines how the adopted state system influenced the limitation of the National Councils’ autonomy and their capacity to represent the interests of local communities. Additionally, the analysis includes a comparison of the National Councils with the system of territorial self-government that was reinstated in Poland after 1989, thereby elucidating the distinctions between these two models of local governance.

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