Poland’s ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party is on a collision course with Brussels after the country’s lower chamber of parliament on Friday passed a bill penalizing judges who question the legitimacy of legal changes made by the government.
The measure has been criticized by the European Commission, the Council of Europe and the U.N’s high commissioner for human rights.
But PiS legislators ignored those warnings and the bill was raced through the full legislative procedure in only two days — MPs worked until 4 a.m. before reconvening later on Friday to complete work on the measure. Every amendment suggested by the opposition was rejected, and the final vote was greeted by cries of “shame” from opposition benches.
Polish Ombudsman Adam Bodnar said during the debate that the bill breaches the Polish constitution and will call into question Poland’s membership of the EU. “This is a direct path to a Polexit, to Poland leaving the European Union,” he warned.
The legislation now goes to the upper chamber, the Senate, which is under the control of the opposition. However, it can only delay legislation for 30 days. Even if the Senate rejects the bill, the lower house can override that with an absolute majority vote. The legislation then goes for signature to President Andrzej Duda, a PiS ally.
The new law penalizes judges who complicate the functioning of the justice system and call into question how judges were appointed.
Last year the government changed the composition of the council, and most members are now appointed by the PiS-controlled parliament.
The bill — which the opposition calls the “muzzle law” — is a direct response to a November ruling from the Court of Justice of the EU, which said Polish courts will have to determine whether a newly created disciplinary chamber for judges and the National Council of the Judiciary, which is responsible for judicial appointments, are “sufficiently independent.”
Last year the government changed the composition of the council, and most members are now appointed by the PiS-controlled parliament.
The EU court’s ruling has led to some Polish courts questioning whether judges appointed by the new council are legitimate or not — something the government says will cause legal chaos but which its opponents say is a direct result of PiS’s efforts to put the judiciary under tighter political control.
“Judges are usurping the right to determine who is a judge and who is not,” PiS MP Przemysław Czarnek said during the stormy debate over the bill.
I can’t hear you
Law and Justice acted despite calls from the European Commission and others to stop work on the bill.
Věra Jourová, a European Commission vice president, on Thursday sent a letter to Duda, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and the speakers of the two chambers of parliament, asking all the institutions “not to take forward the proceedings on the new draft legislation before carrying out all the necessary consultations.”
Jourová also suggested that the draft legislation should be discussed with the Council of Europe, the human rights watchdog that is independent of the EU.
Dunja Mijatović, the Council of Europe’s commissioner for human rights, urged the parliament to “discontinue work on bill currently being rushed through.”
Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki | Kenzo Tribouillard/AFP via Getty Images
The U.N. high commissioner for human rights issued a statement warning that the bill “risks further undermining the already heavily challenged independence of the judiciary in Poland.”
Earlier this week, Poland’s Supreme Court warned that the bill could result in Poland exiting the EU. On Wednesday, thousands of Poles took to the streets to protest against the legislation.
But Sebastian Kaleta, the deputy minister of justice, said during the parliamentary debate that judiciary reform is an internal matter for every EU country.
Government spokesman Piotr Müller told reporters that the Commission letter is “misguided.” He also stressed that amendments added to the bill “ended all doubts” that the measure is not in line with EU law, and said that the government has no plans to introduce further changes to the bill.
“I am deeply convinced that someone has told stories about things that are not happening in Poland to the European Commission,” he said.