Riot Police Deployed to Poland's Top Court Amid "Coup" Claims

Riot police were deployed to Poland's Constitutional Court on Friday, guarding its entrance as protesters gathered and chanted against Prime Minister Donald Tusk's government. The confrontation marks a dramatic escalation in the struggle between Tusk's centrist administration and the nationalist opposition over control of the country's judiciary.

The court's official X account denounced the intervention as a "coup d'etat" and asserted that its chief judge, Bogdan Swieczkowski, remained in office. The stand-off prompted President Andrzej Duda, who was on an official trip to Senegal, to abandon his flight and order his plane back to Warsaw.

Three people were arrested after attempting to enter the court complex. Supporters of the opposition Law and Justice party (PiS), which appointed Swieczkowski, protested his ousting. Some participants held rosaries and religious images while saying prayers.

Justice Minister Waldemar Zurek announced that he had requested the lifting of legal immunity for Swieczkowski and his deputy, Bartlomiej Sochanski, seeking criminal charges against them for refusing to allow judges elected by the current parliament to adjudicate. "This court has become private property; we must restore its proper functioning," Zurek stated.

Prime Minister Tusk justified the action on X, writing, "Restoring the rule of law is our duty. After years of PiS-led lawlessness, this is a difficult process, sometimes painful, and it requires decisive action. There is no other way."

Former PiS prime minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski addressed the demonstrators and urged President Duda to act.

Tusk's government has been attempting for weeks to remove judges appointed by the previous PiS government, which ruled from 2015 to 2023. The Constitutional Court under PiS frequently ruled in favor of Polish legislation over European Union law, leading the EU to accuse the court of being too close to the nationalist government of the time.

Tusk pledged to resolve disputes with Brussels after winning the 2023 election. However, President Duda, a right-wing independent backed by PiS, has blocked his nominations to the court, refusing to swear in five judges elected by parliament since March, citing concerns over their selection process. Anna Korwin-Piotrowska, who announced Swieczkowski's suspension and has been placed in temporary charge, is among these judges. The court's X account stated she could not assume the interim chief role without being sworn in by the president.

Earlier in October, the Venice Commission, an advisory body of the Council of Europe, recommended that Duda swear in the judges to allow them to take their seats.

The dispute's roots trace back to 2015 when PiS secured a majority on the court. Subsequent rulings by European courts found that three judges had been improperly elected to positions already filled by the previous parliament. These findings have been used by Tusk's government to justify its refusal to publish decisions from the Constitutional Court, which rulings suggested no longer met the standards of an independent and impartial tribunal.

However, efforts to reverse judicial changes made during the PiS era have been repeatedly blocked by presidential vetoes. With parliamentary elections scheduled for the following year, some Tusk supporters have called for more assertive measures to undo those changes.

Despite the government's actions, the intervention also drew criticism from individuals who oppose the PiS-era judicial overhaul. Law professor Marcin Matczak, who has characterized Swieczkowski as the court's worst president, reportedly told the BBC that there was no legal basis for his suspension. Matczak warned that the presence of armed police and the implication that a justice minister could unilaterally remove the court's president could damage the rule of law for years.

The Constitutional Court's official website was inaccessible on Friday evening. Amid the ongoing confusion, Korwin-Piotrowska emphasized the necessity of a constitutional court for protecting citizens' rights and freedoms in a democratic European state.