Search Results for: PIS

The Parliament of Poland constituted an inquiry committee which held its first meeting on Monday to investigate the illegal use of Pegasus, a spyware software, by the members of the last ruling government and state officers, including police and other fiscal authorities. The newly formed committee is exclusively involved in inquiring about the “legality, regularity, [...]

Polish President Andrzej Duda sent the 2024 budget to the Constitutional Court on Wednesday in the post-control mode to check its compliance with Poland’s Constitution. This decision was made due to doubts about the correctness of the adoption procedure, as two members of Parliament were unable to participate in the Sejm’s work on these acts. [...]

Every December 10th, international lawyers, governments, and advocacy groups commemorate Human Rights Day. This marks the day in 1948 when, improbably, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted in Paris by a nascent United Nations General Assembly under the leadership of Eleanor Roosevelt. This year, as the Declaration turned 75, I found myself in [...]

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled Tuesday that Poland’s failure to recognize same-sex couples violates its obligations to human rights. Przybyszewska and Others v. Poland involved several same-sex couples who had all attempted to obtain formal recognition of their relationships from the civil registry office and were denied by Polish authorities. The court [...]

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) released a judgement on Thursday, finding in favor of Poland’s former president and Nobel Peace Prize winner Lech Wałęsa. The court found that an appeals court created by a 2017 Polish judicial reform violated Wałęsa’s right to a fair proceeding because of the political influence exerted upon the [...]

It is Thanksgiving Day. The aroma of turkey; of dressing; candied sweet potatoes; green bean casserole; cranberry sauce; freshly baked yeast rolls; giblet gravy, and of pies emanating from the kitchen fills our nostrils. Home is the place to be today. But have you ever given thought to the law of the gobbler? This Day in [...]

A Polish government official Friday wrote on X that seven people have been arrested and charged by Poland’s Central Anti-Corruption Bureau (CBA) as part of an investigation into a scandal involving irregularities in the issuance of Polish visas. The scandal was reported by Polish news outlet Onet, who claims to have a Ministry of Foreign [...]

Polish Interior Minister Mariusz Kaminski announced Monday that the Internal Security Agency arrested two Russians on espionage charges. The Internal Security Agency alleges that the Russians distributed Wagner Group propaganda in Krakow and Warsaw. The activities of the Russian defendants may have violated Article 130 § 1 of the Polish penal code, which states, “Anyone [...]

Poland’s conservative ruling party Law and Justice (PiS) announced on Sunday the second question in its proposed nationwide referendum. The referendum, scheduled to coincide with the 2023 parliamentary election in October, will include multiple questions pertaining to issues facing Poland. The second question the referendum will pose to Polish citizens is: “Do you support the acceptance [...]

Polish lawmakers voted on Friday to approve amendments to a controversial law on Russian influence. The pre-amended law was heavily criticized by the EU and US, who emphasized that it undermines democratic standard. The lower house (Sejim) approved the law 234-213 with 4 abstentions. Duda only needs to sign the drafted amendments before the bill [...]