Poles protest move of plane crash memorial cross

WARSAW (Reuters) - Supporters of Poland's late president Lech Kaczynski scuffled with police on Tuesday as they protested against the planned removal of a large wooden cross erected in front of the presidential palace in his memory.

Kaczynski, his wife Maria and 94 others, mostly senior political officials and military commanders, were killed in a plane crash in Russia on April 10 that plunged Poland into deep mourning and triggered an early presidential election.

Tens of thousands of Poles have left flowers, lit candles and prayed at the cross, which was erected by a scout group in front of the palace shortly after the accident four months ago and quickly turned into an ad hoc shrine to the crash victims.

Poland's new president, Bronislaw Komorowski, has ordered the transfer of the cross on Tuesday to the nearby Church of St. Anna, sparking anger among Kaczynski's Catholic, right-wing followers who see the move as an insult to his memory.

Some 500 protesters waved crucifixes, Polish flags and banners. Some have kept a round-the-clock vigil to prevent the cross being moved.

"First they finished Kaczynski off and now they want to hide the truth about it," said Katarzyna Zaluska, a 35-year old office worker, giving vent to a suspicion among some supporters of the late president that the Polish government shares responsibility for the tragic crash.

"I came here to see if there is anybody who dares to raise his hand against this cross," said Agnieszka, a retired economist who declined to give her surname.

Security guards briefly detained an elderly woman who tried to tie herself to the cross. Protesters also brought scores of new wooden crosses and said they would erect them at the site.

Police fenced off the site with metal barriers ahead of a planned religious service that Komorowski was due to attend.

Poland's powerful Catholic Church is split on the cross issue, with some wanting it moved because it has become overly politicized while others say it should stay where it is as a testimony to Poles' religious faith.

(Reporting by Agata Osinska, writing by Gareth Jones, editing by Noah Barkin)