Polish strikers seek solidarity

AS the week-old strike of workers at the Lenin shipyard spreads to the steel industries in the southern part of the country, a strike committee representing more than 120,000 workers along the Baltic coast has ordered an end to separate talks with government officials, accusing the Communist regime of using "capitalist policy" to try to break the strike.

Dissident sources also report that part of the steelworks in nowa Huta, near Krakow, was shut down and production halted. It is one of Poland's biggest steel mills, with more than 20,000 employees.

Strikes are also occurring in Szczecin, and the state radio has reported panic buying conditions in food stores. The broadcast appealed for calm and promised the residents of Szczecin there would be adequate food. More than 30, 000 people were reported out of work in the Baltic port, and reports from the region near the East German border said at least 21 state enterprises were shut down.