Jesteśmy niezależnym, apolitycznym i samorządnym stowarzyszeniem polskich sędziów.
Naszą główną misją jest obrona wolności i praw obywatelskich, fundamentu demokratycznej Polski, należącej do Unii Europejskiej.
Działamy od ponad 25 lat, w tym w międzynarodowych organizacjach sędziowskich Skupiamy ponad 3 500 sędziów, najwięcej w Polsce.

The response of the Polish Judges Association Iustitia to the White Paper on the Reform of the Polish Judiciary presented to the European Commision by the Government of the Republic of Poland

link to document

Courts in Poland need good and stable legislation, informed reforms and public confidence. Judges in Poland do not question the importance of improving judiciary procedures and structures; on the contrary, they have urged politicians to make reforms for years.

The White Paper on Judiciary reforms presented to you by the Polish Prime Minister could have been a point of departure for an open and unfettered debate on the desirable reforms. Unfortunately, the content of the document suggests that it is not designed to lay down the facts that make the case for change in the enabling legislation and the structure of the judiciary. Facts must be based on the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Meanwhile, the White Paper does not present the whole truth; some facts and linkages are ignored; some facts may sometimes be true but suggest false impacts. Hence, the document has a different objective than the stated one. We believe it has been drafted to disguise a political attack against independent judiciary.

Therefore, we present our response to the White Paper (further also as WP) which seeks to:

• explain and present facts that have already occurred;

• defend the reputation of Polish judges, who are indeed European judges as well.

 

We cannot agree to be accused of the responsibility for the shameful rulings of the Communist courts in the 1950s. Most Polish judges started their careers in free and independent Poland.

The legislation that governs the judiciary has been gradually amended between 2015 and 2018. Change has accumulated and the single themes are now coming together to unveil a completely new perspective on the reform. Without changing the Constitution, the judiciary system and the status of courts within the three branches of government have been changed and exposed to political control. The judiciary is no longer a partner in the checks and balances mechanism. This marks the return of concepts that were known under Communism but were rejected in the Constitution of 1997. In Poland's history, the judiciary has hardly ever been respected and recognised by the political powers and this seems to be coming back now. When we raise our voice in defence of the independence of courts it is suggested that judges who turn against political authority will be ruthlessly eliminated through disciplinary proceedings (Deputy Minister of Justice Łukasz Piebiak).1 Similarly, the Irish court which has filed a query to the EU Court of Justice and expressed its concern about the meaning of the judiciary reform in Poland, has been described by Deputy Minister of Justice Marcin Warchoł as politically motivated.

While we have actively sought opportunities to debate issues we have not been given the chance to raise the topic of reforms with the Prime Minister or the Minister of Justice. Now, when the rule of law infringement procedure has been launched against Poland we feel saddened, hurt and embarrassed. However, we are open to discussion about the required reforms provided that the foundation, i.e. court independences of politicians, is preserved. We will support the Government in any change that respects this fundamental principle.

This response to the White Paper presented by the Polish government to the European Commission has been drafted by the Iustitia Association of Polish Judges and a panel of experts in order to provide a thorough and accurate portrayal of the reform of the Polish justice system that has continued over two and half years in Poland.

The response generally follows the structure of the White Paper. A separate chapter has been added about disciplinary proceedings to emphasise its importance and for reasons of methodology. The order of chapters has been slightly modified. We always match our specific points of our response with the relevant chapter. We hope this format is clear enough.

The Iustitia Association has presented its response to the White Paper compendium in a separate document.

Prof. UŚ dr hab. Krystian Markiewicz

Regional Court Judge in Katowice

President of the National Board of the Polish Judges Association "Iustitia"

link to document

Komunikaty

Media