The Untold Story of Warsaw’s KDTPatricia Pawlakbyline‚ Aug. 06‚ 2009The KDT (Kupieckie Domy Towarowe) or in loose translation - Merchants’ Shopping Center – in the heart of Warsaw is history. Its closure registered in international headlines due to a formidable resistance of the tenant merchants against the incoming bailiffs and private guard. Polish media described the events as a “battle of a magnitude unseen since 1989.″ Indeed, the images of the struggle were reminiscent of the heydays of Solidarity, back when it was still a trade union free of political aspirations. The retailers of KDT barricaded themselves inside the halls, and fought to preserve 2000 jobs the loss of which is estimated to impact 8000 people. |