Poland: Free courts, free people, judges standing for their independence

The judiciary in Poland is under assault. Since late 2015, the government of Poland has adopted and implemented a set of legislative and policy measures with a clear goal in mind: to undermine the independence of the judiciary. The authorities have achieved this by exerting political influence over judicial appointments, giving exclusive power to the Minister of Justice to dismiss and appoint Presidents and Vice-Presidents of Courts, forcing Supreme Court judges to retire, and weaponizing disciplinary proceedings to unjustly target some judges. In today’s Poland, the government rewards, disciplines, punishes and silences judges and prosecutors as it wishes.

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