{"id":27115,"date":"2024-10-25T10:33:18","date_gmt":"2024-10-25T10:33:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/z6frttwr.ordoiuris.io\/aktualnosc\/a-year-of-violations-of-the-rule-of-law-and-democratic-principles-by-donald-tusks-government-in-poland\/"},"modified":"2025-10-29T09:55:41","modified_gmt":"2025-10-29T08:55:41","slug":"a-year-of-violations-of-the-rule-of-law-and-democratic-principles-by-donald-tusks-government-in-poland","status":"publish","type":"informacje","link":"https:\/\/ordoiuris.pl\/en\/press-newsdesk\/a-year-of-violations-of-the-rule-of-law-and-democratic-principles-by-donald-tusks-government-in-poland\/","title":{"rendered":"A year of violations of the rule of law and democratic principles by Donald Tusk\u2019s government in Poland"},"content":{"rendered":"

Following the Polish parliamentary elections of October 15, 2023, a new Council of Ministers appointed by an alliance consisting of the center-left Civic Coalition, the center-liberal Poland 2050, the agrarian Polish People\u2019s Party, and the Left was appointed on December 13, 2023, following eight years of rule by the more conservative United Right coalition led by Law and Justice (PiS). The new Polish government headed by Donald Tusk, acting on the basis of ad hoc resolutions passed by the parliamentary majority it controls, informal \u201cguidelines,\u201d and the opinions of friendly lawyers then took numerous unlawful actions over the following ten months that were aimed at physically eliminating the opposition from the public space. These actions have harmed the foundations of the democratic state of law, leading to a revolutionary order of \u201ctransitional justice\u201d and \u201cmilitant democracy.\u201d<\/a> Below we shall present a summary of the most important examples of such measures:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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1. Attacking the independence of judges<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Included in the draft regulation of the Minister of Justice, which is aimed at amending the Rules of Procedure of the Common Courts and dated December 14, 2023 (the day after the new government took power in Poland), was an attempt to introduce a so-called \u201cindependence test\u201d which would allegedly assess the impartiality and independence of the more than 2,500 judges who were appointed to their positions after the National Council of the Judiciary\u2019s rules were changed under the previous government. This idea has recently returned in a draft law intended to regulate the status of judges<\/a>. Judges would be expected to submit to \u201cactive repentance\u201d \u2013 that is, to make a statement in which they admit that they went astray by applying to a constitutional body for promotions in an official capacity while the previous political camp was still in power. As Justice Minister Adam Bodnar stated at the press conference where it was announced, \u201cWhen they make a statement saying that they had made a mistake, they will then voluntarily return to the court where they previously adjudicated, but nothing more will happen with respect to them.\u201d These judges will thus be \u201cabsolved.\u201d Those who do not actively repent can expect sanctions.<\/p>\n

The Venice Commission issued an opinion on this on October 14, 2024, in which it stressed that the evaluation of the judges\u2019 work must always be conducted on an individual basis and that group dismissals are not possible. In addition, any negative evaluation must be subject to judicial review at the request of the person concerned. The evaluation should also be carried out by an institution that is independent of the executive branch of government.<\/p>\n

Solutions that allow the status of some judges to be questioned based on undefined criteria constitute a blatant violation of the guarantees of judicial independence and the independence of the courts. According to Article 178(1) of the Polish Constitution, judges, in the exercise of their office, are independent and subject only to the Polish Constitution and laws. In turn, Article 180(1) of the Polish Constitution stipulates that judges are irremovable, which is a fundamental guarantee of judicial independence.<\/p>\n

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For more details on this, see:<\/p>\n