Tyranny
has arrived in
Poland and
this time it’s
real
In
today’s
Poland, no
power since
1989 has
teetered so
perilously
close to
actual tyranny
as the current
regime, writes
political
commentator
Rafał Woś
The time for
tyranny has
arrived, and
this time,
it’s
unfortunately
real. No
government in
Poland since
1989 has come
as close to
sliding into
actual tyranny
as the current
one, nor has
any other
given itself
such broad
permission to
become
tyrannical.
Moreover, none
have been as
effective in
practically
eliminating
the safeguards
that constrain
them.
Let us start
with a few
questions.
Firstly, if
the Law and
Justice (PiS)
party governed
recklessly,
what do we
call the
actions of
their
successors?
Super-reckless?
Turbo-reckless?
Mega-turbo-reckless?
Secondly, if
PiS
disregarded
all
“safeguards”
or “minority
rights,” where
do ministers
like Culture
Minister
Bartłomiej
Sienkiewicz,
responsible
for the attack
on public
media, and
Justice
Minister Adam
Bodnar stand
on these
issues?
Serious
suggestions
only, please.
Thirdly, the
previous
regime was
accused daily,
both
domestically
and
internationally,
for eight long
years of
harboring an
“authoritarian
gene.” It was
said that PiS
would never
relinquish
power once
gained, that
they would not
respect the
election
results, that
they would
imprison
opponents, and
strip the
opposition of
its last media
strongholds.
Those who do
not remember
should remind
themselves,
read up, watch
again. How
then, against
the backdrop
of these
accusations,
should we
describe those
who govern
now?
How can we
even comment
on
declarations
like: “We are
restoring
constitutionality
and looking
for a legal
basis to do
it,” by Adam
Bodnar? Or
“Lawful is
what we
understand as
lawful” by
Donald Tusk?
Or “The
constitution
is a trap that
PiS sets for
democracy,” as
the academic
lawyer and
staunch PiS
critic
Wojciech
Sadurski was
kind enough to
comment?
How can the
constitution,
the anchor of
democracy,
especially in
its liberal
interpretation
as advocated
by Sadurski,
become a trap
for democracy?
It would be
different if
PiS had
changed the
constitution,
stripping it
of its power,
sanctity, and
authority.
But that
didn’t happen.
It’s the same
fundamental
law that
Sadurski
himself cited
just a few
months ago in
his fight
against PiS.
Yesterday, it
was his shield
in the battle
against
democracy’s
enemies.
Today, it
evidently
chafes him
(and the
entire ruling
camp). So,
politicians
circumvent it,
and lawyer
Sadurski
loudly
applauds them
for it.
There are two
options to
consider: Are
these people
truly
“democrats” as
they have long
pretended to
be? Or did
they only
invoke
democracy when
it suited
them? If so,
who are they
really?
The good news
is that time
will answer
this last
question. In
the next few
years, we will
learn the true
stance of the
aforementioned
individuals on
democracy,
rule of law,
human rights,
and freedom of
speech. We
will know them
by their
fruits. That
is for sure.
Now, there
are, broadly
speaking, two
potential
scenarios. The
first is an
optimistic
one. In this
scenario,
disenchanted
sympathizers
of the
so-called
democratic
camp console
themselves
with the
thought that
this is just
political
theater — a
reaction to
years of
humiliation.
They hope that
eventually,
reason will
prevail. The
public
television
TVP, the
Constitutional
Tribunal and
other PiS
institutions
will be
cleansed, and
all will be
well. Right
now, it might
not look
pretty, but
peace will
return to our
land. And the
current
situation? At
worst,
Sienkiewicz,
Bodnar, and
the
unfortunate
liquidators of
public media
will serve as
scapegoats, to
be replaced by
newer models.
Unfortunately,
there’s also a
second, more
likely
possibility. I
hope I’m
wrong, but I
fear that the
current rulers
won’t be able
to stop their
anti-PiS
crusade. The
path of force,
revenge and
reckoning will
be too easy,
and the
conviction of
their moral
righteousness
too
intoxicating.
Then, it will
be too late.
There is no
turning back
from a web of
lies, as one
falsehood
leads to
another,
creating
increasingly
complex
structures
where removing
one element
then threatens
a collapse and
loss of
credibility.
They must keep
going and
certainly not
back down. On
the contrary,
full steam
ahead.
This is
already
evident.
Doubts about
their media
policy within
their own camp
are covered up
with bold
offensives on
other fronts:
the war
against a
president
signaling
readiness to
compromise, or
intrigues
against the
National Bank
of Poland
President Adam
Glapiński.
It’s an old
and tested
method,
especially
characteristic
of
authoritarian
environments.
There’s always
some “last
unconquered
village of
Gauls” to
conquer before
laying down
their arms.
But not
before, oh no!
There’s always
some PiS
remnant
threatening a
resurgence of
PiS-ism. And
so, the cycle
continues.
Until the end.
This second
path is all
the more
likely because
the new power
faces almost
no oversight.
PiS had
powerful
foreign
adversaries:
the European
Union, liberal
Western media,
Soros’s
network. At
home, they
faced a strong
opposition,
media friendly
to it, and
opinion-forming
elites.
Paradoxically,
this served
PiS. It kept
them in check,
ensuring that
even if they
had an
authoritarian
gene, it would
be constantly
fought
against, never
taking full
control.
The anti-PiS
doesn’t have
any of these
checks on its
power. They
won’t be
watched by
foreign powers
or liberal
media in
conjunction
with filmmaker
Agnieszka
Holland. And
after taking
over public
media from
PiS, there
will be even
fewer
safeguards.
This is the
tragedy of our
new rulers.
This is their
curse. It
already makes
them tyrants —
real tyrants
and not the
imagined ones
they projected
onto PiS. It
also makes
them extremely
dangerous.
https://rmx.news/poland/tyranny-has-arrived-in-poland-and-this-time-its-real/
The
coup against
public media
in Poland:
Where’s
President Duda
when Tusk is
destroying
democracy and
the rule of
law?
President
Andrzej Duda,
instead of
hosting Tusk
during the
National
Security
Council
meeting,
should take
action against
Tusk’s coup,
put those
responsible in
jail, and
outlaw those
parties that
have backed
it, writes
Stanisław
Janecki
The new Polish
PM Donald Tusk
and his hitman
culture
minister,
Bartłomiej
Sienkiewicz,
have trampled
on the
constitution
and the rule
of law,
flushing them
down the
toilet.
Sienkiewicz,
who was an
officer in the
intelligence
services, has
misled the
public by
saying that
the commercial
code was
enough for him
to dismiss the
CEOs of public
media, whereas
public media
actually
operate on the
basis of
special
legislation,
and their
managing
bodies are
chosen by the
National Media
Council.
The law in
Poland
stipulates
clearly how
public media
is managed and
does not allow
governments to
arbitrarily
dismiss the
management of
public media.
However, at
the time when
public media
were being
taken over,
President
Andrzej Duda
was chairing a
meeting of the
National
Security
Council in
which Tusk and
others
responsible
for this coup
were taking
part. Duda
should have
demanded Tusk
stop these
actions at
once and
suspended the
meeting.
As head of
state, Duda
has the right
to ask the
constitutional
court to
outlaw
political
parties that
break the
constitution.
Since they all
backed today’s
coup against
public media,
this is
something that
he should have
at least
considered.
If a political
party chooses
to participate
in a coup
against the
constitution,
it should be
made illegal.
We cannot
count on EU
institutions
to do anything
about it, as
they support
Tusk as they
once supported
Putin.
The new
government did
not even try
to change the
law in order
to change the
management of
public media.
This means
they willfully
broke the law
and the
constitution.
It is the
president’s
job to bring
them to
justice and to
stop the coup,
even if it
means that the
instigators of
it be sent to
prison.
https://rmx.news/poland/the-coup-against-public-media-in-poland-wheres-president-duda-when-tusk-is-destroying-democracy-and-the-rule-of-law/
Despite his
claims, Donald
Tusk does not
want neutral
media
Donald Tusk
says that he
wants a
pluralistic
and neutral
public media,
but the way he
treats TVP
journalists
reminds of how
he treated the
media when he
was last in
power, writes
editor of
conservative
news outlet
wpolityce.pl
Marzena Nykiel
In a letter to
parliament
speaker Szymon
Holownia,
Polish
President
Andrzej Duda,
an ally of the
conservative
Law and
Justice (PiS)
party, said
that any
changes to
public media
must be
carried out in
line with the
constitution.
“Without
questioning
the right to
introduce
changes by the
parliamentary
majority, it
should be
emphasized
that a
political goal
cannot
constitute an
excuse for
violating or
circumventing
constitutional
and statutory
regulations,”
he wrote.
Duda was
reacting to
moves by the
parliamentary
majority which
in a
resolution
demanded
action by the
government and
other public
bodies to
urgently make
changes in
public media
and called the
National Media
Council, the
body which by
law appoints
and dismisses
the management
of public
media,
“illegitimate
and
unconstitutional.”
Prime Minister
Donald Tusk
has been
saying that he
wants to see
public media
return to
being neutral
and
pluralistic.
However, when
he was last in
power, the
media in
Poland was far
from being
either.
Tusk treats
TVP
journalists
with contempt,
saying they
are not real
journalists,
threatening
them with
legal
sanctions, and
stopping them
from having
access to
public
buildings and
government
press
conferences.
They were also
denied
accreditation
for his latest
trip to
Brussels.
Now that
parliament has
passed its
resolution
calling for
state action
against public
media, we can
expect that
force will be
used. The man
responsible
for public
media, Culture
Minister
Bartłomiej
Sienkiewicz,
who was
interior
minister in
the last Tusk
government,
has experience
concerning the
use of force.
The security
forces he
supervised
provoked
demonstrators
during
independence
marches and
stormed the
premises of an
independent
magazine when
it refused to
reveal sources
for its
publications
based on
illicit
recordings of
public
officials.
Purging public
media is,
however, one
of the few
election
promises that
Tusk is keen
to carry out,
but this has
nothing to do
with
pluralism. It
is about
ensuring that
all electronic
media is
singing from
his
government’s
hymn sheet.
All media is
to give him
coverage and
transmit his
message. If
they don’t,
they will be
treated with
contempt and
vilified as
TVP
journalists
are
experiencing
today.
https://rmx.news/poland/despite-his-claims-donald-tusk-does-not-want-neutral-media/
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