Poland: president turns his plane around and returns home over Constitutional Tribunal crisis

Warsaw — Polish President Karol Nawrocki cut short his flight to Senegal and returned home amid the crisis triggered by the suspension of the Constitutional Tribunal's president, a move by the pro-European government that sparked protests outside the court's headquarters.

Police secured the Constitutional Tribunal on Friday as dozens of protesters gathered to demonstrate against what they see as the wrongful suspension of its president. Police said three people were detained after some protesters breached the tribunal's fence and others threw objects at officers.

“At a moment like this, the President must be in Poland. I am cutting short my flight to Senegal. I am returning,” Nawrocki wrote on X.

Information about the suspension of Constitutional Tribunal President Bogdan Święczkowski was published on the court's website at around 6:00 p.m. local time. Soon after, the tribunal's website went down, so The Associated Press could not independently verify the official reasons given for his suspension.

Poland's top judicial bodies, including the Constitutional Tribunal, have been a major bone of contention between the current pro-European government and the main opposition party, the national-conservative Law and Justice (PiS). Critics in Poland and the European Union accuse PiS, which led the country between 2015 and 2023, of imposing political control over key judicial institutions, including the Constitutional Tribunal.

Donald Tusk's pro-European government came to power in 2023 with a promise to restore judicial independence, but its efforts have since been blocked by vetoes from two successive PiS-aligned presidents, including Nawrocki. Tusk has accused Święczkowski, appointed under the PiS government, of blocking judges elected by the parliamentary majority from taking up their posts at the tribunal.

“Restoring the rule of law is our obligation,” Tusk wrote on X on Friday evening. “After years of lawlessness under PiS this is a difficult process, sometimes painful and it requires decisive action. There is no other way.” PiS politicians, currently the largest opposition force, criticized the suspension: former Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro called it a “blatant, criminal attack on the constitutional order.”

Photo: CNN

Source: CNN