Rival protesters take to Warsaw's streets

Thousands of people have gathered in the Polish capital, Warsaw, in rival demonstrations in support of the Government and against it.

Polish police say about 11,000 people joined a rally organised by the main opposition centre-right Civic Platform (PO) party, which is calling for early elections.

A rally in support of the Government appeared to draw about 6,000 people.

Efforts by Poland's Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski to shore up his governing coalition were thrown into disarray last month, when a secret film was broadcast of his chief aide apparently trying to buy the support of an Opposition MP.

PO leader Donald Tusk has called on Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski to call a new election in front of a protest of mainly young people from around Poland.

"Mr Kaczynski, we are here today to say enough. Enough!" he said.

"Poland needs new elections. We want a better life, a better Poland."

Meanwhile, at the square in front of the Palace of Culture, PiS supporters were mainly older people, many of them clutching rosary beads and photographs of the late John Paul II.

Poland's hardline Catholic Radio Maryja had called on its listeners to turn out for the PiS rally and defend "the country in danger, threatened by liberal and post-Communist attacks".

The PiS faithful sang patriotic songs and 1970s Polish hits and listened as the Prime Minister warned them of the evils of liberalism.

"We want to defend our Government because it is good for Poland," he said.

"The liberal alternative would destroy our country."

The ruling Law and Justice party (PiS) had promised to form a coalition with the liberal, business-friendly PO after winning government last month.

But coalition-building talks fell apart after a few weeks and PiS eventually allied itself with the far-right League of Polish Families (LPR) and the populist Samoobrona party.

The rallies have been staged staged two weeks after Poland was plunged into yet another political crisis after one year under PiS.

At the end of last month, the Prime Minister fired one of his deputies, Andrzej Lepper of the populist Samoobrona party, robbing his Government of its parliamentary majority.

Days later, a key PiS official was caught on film allegedly trying to coax a Samoobrona law maker into defecting to the conservative ruling party.

That scandal prompted PO to introduce a motion for Parliament to vote on its own dissolution, which would lead to early elections.

- AFP