Polish President Andrzej Duda vetoes government’s judicial reform
By
Clara Weiss
27 July 2017
On Monday, Polish President Andrzej Duda unexpectedly vetoed two key aspects of the judicial reform of the governing Law and Justice Party (PiS), which would have given the government virtually unrestricted control over the country’s judicial system.
Duda’s veto has temporarily halted two bills that would have led to the immediate dismissal of 83 top judges and given Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro complete freedom in the appointment of judges to the Supreme Court. Both chambers of the Polish parliament had agreed to the drafts after fierce disputes.
Duda agreed another bill authorizing the justice minister to appoint judges to the district and state courts.
The two draft laws vetoed by the president must now go back to parliament, which can only overturn the veto with a three-fifths majority. Since the PiS needs the support of the right-wing Kukiz ‘15 party, who have welcomed Duda’s veto, this is unlikely.
Hundreds of thousands of people have protested against the laws in the past days and weeks. In a survey, 55 percent of Poles declared that they wanted Duda to veto the laws. The European Union (EU) threatened to impose severe sanctions on Poland because of the judicial reform. German politicians have warned Poland of political isolation, and the US State Department also expressed concern about the so-called reform on Saturday.
Duda justified his decision by saying, “I think reform in this form will not strengthen the sense of security and justice.”
By claiming that a meeting with Zofia Romaszewska, one of his advisers, who had opposed granting new powers to the justice minister, had been decisive in making his decision, Duda is appealing to the ferocious…