Andrzej Lepper

Andrzej Zbigniew Lepper was a Polish farmer, trade unionist and politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Agriculture, and the leader of Self-Defence of the Republic of Poland. Known for his radical rhetoric and aggressive farmers' protests, Lepper was considered a far-left populist and an agrarian social-traditionalist, compared to left-wing figures such as José Bové, Hugo Chávez, Evo Morales, and Juan Perón. He left a long-lasting impact on Polish politics, emerging as the "defender of the oppressed and (...) all working people, the weak, and the needy." He was particularly known for his Balcerowicz must go slogan, which he coined to protest the neoliberal Balcerowicz Plan that had deregulated and privatized the Polish economy. Lepper considered the capitalist transition "economic genocide".