IPN was created by special legislation on 18 December 1998 . IPN is governed by the chairman . This chairman is chosen by a supermajority ( 60 % ) of the Polish Parliament ( Sejm ) with the approval of the Senate of Poland on a request by a Collegium of IPN . The chairman has a 5-year term of office . The first chairman of the IPN was Leon Kieres , elected by the Sejm for five years on 8 June 2000 ( term 30 June 2000 – 29 December 2005 ) . The second chairman was Janusz Kurtyka , elected on 9 December 2005 with a term that started 29 December 2005 until his death in the Smolensk airplane crash on 10 April 2010 . Franciszek Gryciuk was acting chairman from 2010 to 2011 , when the current chairman , Łukasz Kamiński , was elected by the Sejm
Smolensk airplane crash
2010 Polish Air Force Tu-154 crash
Institute of National Remembrance