Clashes Erupt at Polish Constitutional Tribunal as Chair Suspended

A crisis around the Constitutional Tribunal of Poland has escalated. On Friday evening, clashes broke out outside the tribunal building, with law enforcement officers and demonstrators who had come to the building facing off against each other. The information is being reported by Polish media.

The situation became tense after an order by judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska was published on the tribunal's website. On its basis, the tribunal's chair, Bogdan Święczkowski, and his deputy, Bartosz Szczański, were suspended from their powers.

Later, a statement was circulated on X on the tribunal's page, saying that the website had been hijacked and that Chair Święczkowski continues to perform his duties.

Poland's Minister of Justice and Prosecutor General Waldemar Żurek said the tribunal had submitted five motions to remove immunity from judges, including Chair Święczkowski.

Prime Minister Donald Tusk wrote on social media that the situation was caused by the former ruling party, "Law and Justice". In his words: "Restoring the rule of law is our duty. After the illegality during the rule of Law and Justice, this is a difficult, sometimes painful process that requires decisive action. There is no other way".

Jarosław Kaczyński, leader of the Law and Justice party, accused Tusk's government of seizing the Constitutional Tribunal by force.

The conflict around the tribunal began in 2015, when a dispute over the appointment of judges arose between the then government and the previous parliamentary majority. In October 2015, the then majority elected five judges to the tribunal. Shortly afterward, Law and Justice came to power, annulled the appointments and elected new candidates. Then-President Andrzej Duda appointed four new judges, which led to a prolonged institutional crisis.

After coming to power in 2023, Donald Tusk pledged to restore the rule of law and reform the judicial system. The crisis deepened at the beginning of the year when President Karol Nawrocki refused to appoint three of the six judges nominated by parliament. Chair Święczkowski, for his part, stated that he would not grant powers to judges elected by the current majority.