Polish Embassy in Armenia marks May 3rd Constitution Day

On May 31, the Polish Embassy in Armenia celebrated an important public holiday - 3rd May National Holiday or May 3rd Constitution Day (Swieto Konstytucji 3 Maja). 

Polish Ambassador to Armenia Jerzy Marek Nowakowski said that the first Constitution of Poland is the oldest in Europe and the second oldest one after the US Constitution. "This holiday symbolizes democracy and the spirit of the country's independence," Ambassador Nowakowski said.     

"I have repeatedly stated that Armenia has historical relations with Poland. I should say that the present also connects our countries," he noted, pointing at the dynamic development of the foreign trade turnover between Armenia and Poland and the recent Armenian-Polish business forum held in Armenia by the Armenian-Polish Intergovernmental Commission. He said that the Polish companies seek to invest in Armenia, because they consider Armenia to be a partner country with huge prospects for the market.   

Jerzy Marek Nowakowski expressed hope that the promotion of the Armenia- EU cooperation, including the signing of the Armenia-EU framework agreement will give a fresh impetus to closer cooperation of the two countries and sooner visa liberalization. "Armenia and Poland are linked with centuries-old history, economy and culture," he said, expressing confidence that the countries will also boost cooperation within Eastern Partnership.         

3rd May National is a Polish national and public holiday that takes place on 3rd May. The holiday celebrates the declaration of the Constitution of May 3, 1791. Festivities date back to the Duchy of Warsaw early in the 19th century, but it became an official holiday only in 1919 in the Second Polish Republic. Delisted during the times of the People's Republic of Poland, it was reestablished after the fall of communism in modern Poland. The Constitution of May 3, 1791 is considered one of the most important achievements in the history of Poland, despite being in effect for only a year, until the Russo-Polish War of 1792.  Historian Norman Davies calls it "the first constitution of its type in Europe"; other scholars also refer to it as the world's second oldest constitution. The memory of the May 3 Constitution-recognized by political scientists as a very progressive document for its time-for generations helped keep alive Polish aspirations for an independent and just society, and continued to inform the efforts of its authors' descendants. In Poland it is viewed as a national symbol, and the culmination of all that was good and enlightened in Polish history and culture.