What's happening in Poland: "coup d'état" or "restoration of the rule of law"

Polish Minister of Justice Waldemar Żurek, who also serves as the Prosecutor General, informed journalists that he had submitted a request for the lifting of judicial immunity from the chairman of the Constitutional Tribunal, Bogdan Święczkowski, and his deputy, Bartosz Sahajdowski (who were appointed to their positions during the previous government of the right-wing Law and Justice party), in order to subsequently bring criminal charges against them.

"This court has become a private property; we must restore its proper functioning," AFP quoted Żurek as saying.

Prior to this, it became known that the senior judge of the Constitutional Tribunal, Hanna Korwin-Piotrowska, had dismissed Bogdan Święczkowski from his duties and assumed leadership of the court, Reuters reported.

In protest against this decision, people began to gather near the tribunal building. Some demonstrators tried to break through police barriers, AFP reported. Police reported that three individuals who attempted to enter the tribunal's complex were detained.

Donald Tusk's government has been trying for several weeks to dismiss judges appointed by the previous Law and Justice (PiS) cabinet, which was in power from 2015 to 2023.

Special police units were dispatched to prevent demonstrators from entering the courthouse.

The Constitutional Tribunal itself stated that the two judges whom the government intends to prosecute remain legally appointed highest judges of this body of power.

"All persons participating in these actions are committing a crime — a coup d'état," the tribunal's statement reads.

Donald Tusk wrote on social media: "Restoring the rule of law is our duty. After many years of lawlessness that prevailed under the Law and Justice party, this process proves difficult, sometimes painful, and requires decisive action. There is no other way."

Karol Nawrocki, who is supported by the Law and Justice party, turned his plane, which was en route to Senegal for the Youth Olympic Games, back to Warsaw.

The government formed by the Law and Justice party came to power in 2015 and promptly appointed its own judges to the Constitutional Tribunal to secure a majority there, as this body has the power to determine the legality of adopted normative acts.

Subsequently, leading European judicial institutions — the European Court of Human Rights and the Court of Justice of the European Union — ruled that PiS had unlawfully selected three judges, as they filled positions already lawfully filled by the previous parliament.

European courts concluded that the Polish Constitutional Tribunal had ceased to be an "independent and impartial organ of justice." Donald Tusk's government, relying on these decisions, halted the publication of the tribunal's rulings.

After coming to power in 2023, Tusk promised to depoliticize the judiciary, but he failed to overturn the changes adopted under PiS. This was partly due to Nawrocki and his predecessor, Andrzej Duda, also supported by PiS, using their presidential veto power to block his initiatives.

In addition, Nawrocki refused to swear in five judges of the Constitutional Tribunal selected by parliament in March of this year, citing alleged irregularities in their selection procedure.

One of these judges is Hanna Korwin-Piotrowska, who dismissed Tribunal Chairman Święczkowski and stated she would perform his duties.

Earlier this month, Karol Nawrocki received a recommendation from the Venice Commission, an advisory body of the Council of Europe on constitutional matters, to swear in the judges so they could begin their work on the court.

Minister of Justice Żurek stated that criminal proceedings should be initiated against Święczkowski and his deputy because they are obstructing judges from administering justice.

Some of Tusk's supporters criticize him for a lack of decisive action aimed at reversing the reforms carried out during the "PiS" era.

Parliamentary elections in Poland are scheduled for next year, and some view the current steps as an attempt to boost Tusk's popularity among voters.

However, his actions have also drawn criticism. In September, Tusk nominated politician Maciej Berek, a lawyer who served as a minister in his government, as a candidate for a tribunal judge.

Lawyer Marcin Matczak, a critic of the "PiS" era judicial reforms, who previously stated that he considered Święczkowski the worst court chairman in its history, said that Święczkowski's dismissal had no legal basis "for a million reasons."

"In my opinion, today's actions against the Constitutional Tribunal put an end to both this body and the issue of the rule of law for the next two decades," Professor Matczak wrote on social media.

"Armed police units and legal interpretations according to which the Minister of Justice can dismiss the chairman of the Constitutional Tribunal by his decision will have serious consequences, directed against the rule of law, for many years to come," he added.

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