France Gives Jaruzelski Back-Door Treatment

Gen. Wojciech Jaruzelski was forced to use the back door at the Elysee Palace on Wednesday and was snubbed by a Seine riverboat captain as thousands protested the Polish Communist leader’s visit to Paris.

Jaruzelski met for 80 minutes at the palace with President Francois Mitterrand. It was his first session with a Western head of state since he declared martial law four years ago in an attempt to crush the Solidarity trade union movement.

Before leaving for Tunisia, Jaruzelski told reporters that he discussed Poland’s $29 billion foreign debt with Mitterrand but that the question of Solidarity leader Lech Walesa did not come up.

Jaruzelski described his talks with Mitterrand as useful and sincere. “We are agreed on the development of Franco-Polish relations for the good of our peoples and peace in Europe and the world,” he said.

Critical of Rights Policy

French Premier Laurent Fabius told the National Assembly that the meeting in no way signified French approval of the human rights policy in Poland. Replying to criticism of the meeting, Fabius said France’s main objective in the discussions had been to press home its criticisms of this policy.

But, Fabius said, Mitterrand had agreed to receive Jaruzelski because he believed that “relations of state to state must exist between two countries such as Poland and France.”

Thousands of French trade unionists and exiled Polish Solidarity supporters noisily protested against the visit outside the Polish Embassy on the Left Bank of the Seine, but riot police turned them back when they tried to march on the Elysee Palace on the other side of the river.

The opposition-controlled Senate suspended its session for 10 minutes in protest against the Mitterrand-Jaruzelski meeting, which roused a storm of protest across the political spectrum in France.

There was no red carpet treatment for Jaruzelski, who flew here Tuesday night from Algeria. When Jaruzelski’s motorcade arrived at the main gate of the Elysee Palace, its way was blocked by the guard of honor.

Sent to Back Door

After several minutes of arm-waving discussions between French officials, the Poles were asked to back up, with Jaruzelski sitting impassively in the back seat of his French-built limousine. The motorcade was redirected down a side road to the palace’s rear entrance.

The Polish leader was met at the rear steps by the French minister of external affairs, Roland Dumas, and escorted inside to meet Mitterrand. Under normal protocol, the French head of state would have greeted his guest in the main Elysee courtyard.

Jaruzelski left the same way he entered and was not escorted outside by Mitterrand. However, the talks between the two heads of state lasted 20 minutes longer than the scheduled hour.

After the talks, Jaruzelski wanted to take a trip on the Seine, but he and his aides had reckoned without tour boat owner Jean Bruel.

Bruel, 69, said that he had first been approached by the Poles several days ago but learned only Wednesday that Jaruzelski was to be his client.

Rejects Client

“I refused to work for this Monsieur Jaruzelski or Monsieur Pinochet or anybody else,” he said, with a reference to Chile’s military leader, Gen. Augusto Pinochet.

“I have no desire to work for Soviet-Polish generals,” he said, adding that his employees shared his views.

Bruel said that Walesa had traveled on his boat when he visited Paris in October, 1981.

Polish officials eventually rented a smaller boat from another owner, and their leader duly took his cruise on the Seine.