66. CONGRESS OF CHAIRS & DEPARTMENTS OF CONSTITUTIONAL LAW - DAY ONE

The 66th Congress of Chairs and Departments of Constitutional Law entitled "Constitutional determinants of public finance in Poland and political practice" began with optional events for participants, who could take part in attractions provided by the organisers, like visiting the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland, the Jasna Góra Monastery and a walk along the Avenue of the Blessed Virgin Mary (NMP) in Częstochowa. More about the event (programme in PL).

The inauguration of the Congress took place in the Bastion of St. Barbara at Jasna Góra. The participants of the 66. Congress of Chairs and Departments of Constitutional Law were welcomed by the Vice-Rector for Research, Prof. Bogusław Przywora. The official inaugural part began with a minute of silence in memory of the late Professor Kazimierz Działocha, an outstanding specialist in constitutional law, judge of the Constitutional Tribunal.

The place of the inauguration was not chosen by accident – it was here that Polish kings and the most important personalities arrived centuries ago, and the walls of the Jasna Góra fortress were not conquered by any invader. For centuries Jasna Góra has been a destination of pilgrimages for millions of people from all over the world, and Częstochowa has been the spiritual capital of Poland for years.  

For Jan Dlugosz University and the Faculty of Law and Economics, the organisation of the Congress for the first time is a great honour.  

The opening of the inauguration was graced by the Rector prof. Janusz Kapuśniak - the host of the event. In addition, the President of the City of Częstochowa Krzysztof Matyjaszczyk, the Deputy Marshal of the Silesian Voivodeship Grzegorz Boski, the Chairman of the National Electoral Commission, Judge of the Supreme Administrative Court dr Sylwester Marciniak and the Deputy Commissioner for Human Rights prof. Wojciech Brzozowski were also present.  

During the speeches, important words were spoken, among others, that it is impossible to practice constitutional law in isolation from human rights and that it is here, at the Congress of Chairs and Departments of Constitutional Law, that the heart of constitutional law in Poland beats.  

After the inaugural session, the participants were honoured by the presence of prof. Jerzy Bralczyk, an outstanding linguist and media expert, who explained the meaning of the word "constitution". Professor has been linguistically involved in the work on the text of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland.  

This was followed by the inaugural discussion panel entitled "On the genesis of public finance regulations", moderated by prof. Maria Kruk-Jarosz (Lazarski University), with the participation of panelists: prof. Jerzy Jaskiernia (UJK) and prof. Ryszard Piotrowski (UW). The participants learned about the perspective of public finance regulations in the Constitution of the Republic of Poland from two key figures – a parliamentarian at the time and an expert in constitutional law.  

After the scientific part of the inauguration, there was a wonderful artistic performance in the form of an accordion recital, performed by Prof. Ewa Grabowska-Lis, Dean of the Faculty of Arts of JDU in Czestochowa, and prof. Daniel Lis, Head of the Accordion Department at the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice, as the Amalgalis Duo.  

During this special evening, the participants of the Congress heard compositions by Antonio Vivaldi, Johann Sebastian Bach, Aram Khachaturian and Astor Piazzolla.  

All those willing had the opportunity to participate in the Holy Mass at 8:00 pm in the Chapel of the Miraculous Image of Our Lady, celebrated by Archbishop Wacław Depo in the intention of the deceased constitutionalists.  

The culmination of the first day of the Congress was an evening meeting with dance music in the Torii restaurant in Częstochowa.