Polish leaders defy international claims of attack on courts

POLAND’S ruling party yesterday dismissed a growing wave of criticism from abroad that its judicial reform would undermine the independence of the courts and propel the country towards an autocracy.

In the early hours yesterday, senators of the Right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) party approved a bill that would end all the terms of supreme court justices except those hand-picked by the justice minister. The legislation, which the government says is necessary to improve the efficiency and accountability of courts in Poland, now just needs the signature of Andrzej Duda, the Polish president, to become law.

Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Warsaw and cities across Poland for candlelit vigils as the law passed, chanting “free courts” and demanding that Mr Duda veto the bill.

Adrian Jechowicz, a chemistry student from Warsaw, was too young to vote in Poland’s last general election that sent the Law and Justice party into power with a majority. He is part of a new generation of political Poles who have been forced to the fore by a government they feel is becoming increasingly autocratic and nationalistic.

“Yes, we, the young, are becoming more political, in fact it’s hard not to be political now,” he said outside the Polish parliament as crowds gathered for yet another protest against the legislation. “In the past, people of my age didn’t really see how politics changed our lives but right now we are seeing it.

“We are seeing that it is more dangerous on our streets because anti-democracy, anti-equality groups are getting stronger.

“I feel it in Warsaw, and even in small towns people who are racist and xenophobic are stronger because they feel the government is with them.”

Whether this shot of youthful vigour will help opponents to the government remains unclear.

The European Union’s executive has given Poland a week to shelve the reforms or risk sanctions. The US, Poland’s most important ally in Nato, has urged Warsaw to make sure that any changes respect the constitution.

But even the threat of sanctions from the EU appears to have had little effect on a government determined to push through with its reforms, and few expect the president, a former Law and Justice member, to veto the bill.

Viktor Orban, Hungary’s prime minister, has joined the fray, vowing to defend Poland against what he called an “inquisition” from Brussels, using “all legal options in the European Union to show solidarity with the Poles”.