Court for money

Poland is trying to roll back the reforms of the judicial system that have begun in the country, criticized the EU. But the opposition considers adjustments insufficient, and Brussels is in no hurry to defrost the means

Last week, the Polish Parliament approved the amendments to the law on judicial reform - the one that caused the discord of Warsaw and Brussels and blocking the European Commission about 36 billion euros laid for Poland in the EU Foundation “NEXTGENERATIONEU”. The funds were frozen according to the same scheme as in the case of the EU conflict with Hungary: Brussels believes that Warsaw violates the principles of the rule of law, sharply lowering the independence of the judicial branch of power as a result of the reforms that began in the country in 2021. Now Poland is trying to roll back part of the changes back, and thereby get unlocking the EU funds.

Journalist Esther Zalan for the publication EuoBSERVER talks about why the changes proposed by the government were criticized by both the opposition and the allies by the ruling coalition, and whether Warsaw has a chance to restore the independence of the judicial system. The editors of Novo-Europe thanks colleagues from Euobserver for the opportunity to translate and publish this material with minor reductions.

The Polish bill, designed to correct problems with the judicial system in the country, was approved by the lower house of parliament on January 13. The project was proposed by the ruling party “Law and Justice” (PIS) and after its approval [in the Sejm] went to the upper house - the Senate, in which the opposition has an insignificant advantage in the number of votes.

Deputies from opposition parties on voting in the lower ward mainly refrained, arguing that the bill introduced by the PIS did not solve the main problem of politicization of the judicial system, for which Warsaw criticized the EU.

In addition, on the last Sunday, 13 public organizations of Poland immediately sent a letter to the Senate with a request to provide an urgent conclusion from the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe under the bill introduced by the PIS, claiming that he [still] violates the constitutional principle of separation of powers. And even the president, a supporter of PIS, expressed doubts about the amendments.

Not a crisis, but a break

One of the changes contained in the bill under discussion implies that disciplinary cases against Polish judges should now consider the Supreme Administrative Court, and not specially created according to the original version of the reform, the Disciplinary Chamber at the Supreme Court of Poland.

It was the question of disciplinary affairs and the process of removing judges and prosecutors from the posts that caused the greatest criticism of Warsaw from Brussels in 2021. The EU Court ( European Court of Justice) recognized this part of the reforms contrary to the laws of the European Union, ordered to suspend the activities of the disciplinary chamber of judges created in Poland, [as well as cancel the decisions of the dismissal of individual judges who criticized the PIS and judicial reform]. In 2022, the Disciplinary Chamber was dissolved at the Supreme Court, and instead of it the so -called "Chamber of Professional responsibility" was created.

Nevertheless, the Polish Committee of Justice Protection (KOS), created by the above thirteen public organizations, insists that the proposed PIS change in the current bill does not solve the problem. A third of the judges in the Supreme Administrative Court is held by people appointed at the proposal of the National Council of the Judiciari (NCJ)), which is considered a politicized body [and, in fact, controlled by the ruling party - PIS].

Laurent Pekh, a professor of law at the University College of Dublin, believes that today Poland needs to be considered as a country that has encountered "not with the crisis of the supremacy of law, but with its large -scale breaking." The Pah claims that the new bill is “like a dead pink”, and clearly ignores the conditions put forward by the European Commission to Poland.

In the morning - the law, in the evening - money

[In order to force Warsaw to fulfill the requirements of the EU], Brussels froze part of the funds from the EU funds that Poland had to receive to restore the economy after the pandemic Covid-19. The recovery plan proposed by Poland (“Recovery and Resilience Plan”) was approved in the EU, but the funds under the program were allocated until Warsaw solves the problem with the rule of law.

In early January, the European Commission said that the bill introduced by the PIS is an “important step” for Poland in fulfilling the obligations taken by it as part of the recovery plan. “We will continue to carefully monitor the further steps of the process of considering the bill, and then we will analyze its final version,” said the European Commission, Christian Vigand. He added that the European Commission continues negotiations with the Polish authorities to make sure that Polish legislation will fully comply with European laws. " “It is important that the finally adopted law increases the independence of the judicial system,” added Vigand.

Unlocking 35.4 billion euros frozen by Brussels - this is the key to the ruling PIS party can keep the majority in the upcoming elections this fall.

“We look east [Russia], we look to the west [Brussels], and we want to end the dispute in the West, because the real enemy is in the east, and I believe that all the Poles understand this perfectly,” said Polish Prime Minister and PS Party Mateustsky, on the eve of the consideration of the bill of the Sejm.

But in addition to opposition parties, the PIS bill refuse to support even the Coalition of the Euro -Speech Poland (Solidarna Polska), which is parting in the Pis Coalition. The head of this party and the Minister of Justice Zbignnev, Zoblnev said that the bill was damaged by Poland’s interests, because it shows that Warsaw succumbed to blackmail from Brussels. “We will take all the necessary steps so that the law does not enter into force,” says Zobly.