Conference of Ministers Kamiński and Błaszczak. Controversy surrounding the presented photos. The court wants an investigation – justification

It is about press conference of September 27, 2021 with the participation of the Minister of National Defence Mariusz Blaszczakthe head of the Ministry of the Interior and Administration Mariusz Kaminskithe spokesman for the Minister of Special Services Coordinator Stanisław Żaryn and the Commander-in-Chief of the Border Guard Tomasz Praga.

At that time, they informed that the materials presented at the conference came from the mobile phones of the detained immigrants and indicated their possible terrorist activities or links with paramilitary organizations. In addition, the services examining the identity and credibility of persons staying in guarded centers were to identify evidence of pedophilic activity and evidence of bestiality.

The OKO.press portal later reported, referring to one of the leaked materials, that the photograph of a man copulating with an animal, shown at the conference, was in fact a shot from an old recording available on the Internet.

After the conference, the Center for Monitoring Racist and Xenophobic Behaviors filed a report on suspicion of committing a crime by the ministers, reminds “Wyborcza”. OMZRiK argued that “there were calls to discriminate against people because of their origin, but also to disseminate pornography, including prohibited pedophile and zoophilic materials, in a way that imposes their reception on people who do not want it.”

“However, the District Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw refused to initiate proceedings. So the center filed a complaint against this decision, but the prosecutor’s office refused to accept the complaint, because those operating in it ‘have no right to feel aggrieved’, and therefore have no right to file a complaint” – describes “GW”.

Therefore, OMZRiK filed a complaint against the refusal to accept the complaint, and in December last year, the District Court in Warsaw decided that the Center had the right to file a complaint.

“A few days ago, the Warsaw district court (Judge Andrzej Krasnodębski) fully recognized the merits of the Center’s complaint and ordered the prosecutor’s office to conduct an investigation into the matter,” writes “Wyborcza”.

Journalist of “Gazeta Wyborcza” Maciej Chołodowski reached the written justification issued by the Warsaw court. “In the Court’s opinion, the decision of the District Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw to refuse to initiate an investigation was at least premature” and “appears to be too superficial and expressing only a subjective assessment,” wrote the judge quoted by “GW” in the introduction.

According to the judge, one of the photographs presented by the ministers “despite being censored by placing a black rectangle covering the sexual organs of the man depicted in it, is undoubtedly pornographic”.

“Referring to the other two, he states that ‘although one of them was censored by placing a black rectangle covering the genitals of the child depicted in it, the juxtaposition of these photos by the people organizing this conference indicates their pornographic nature'” – he writes diary.

“The Prosecutor’s statement contained in the challenged decision that the photographs presented during the presentation do not constitute pornographic content raises reasonable doubts” – assessed the judge.

The judge also pointed out that “the photographs in question were undoubtedly presented publicly, as this was the nature of the press conference on September 27, 2021, as well as its extensive coverage on the website of the Ministry of the Interior and Administration, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and in public television, including the TVP INFO website and social media belonging to TVP INFO”.

The justification also reads that “the prosecutor should obtain evidence in the form of testimonies of the former President of TVP SA Jacek Kurski and responsible members of the TVP INFO editorial staff”.

“If the photographs presented at the press conference contained pornographic content, the prosecutor conducting the proceedings should determine whether their presentation at the press conference on September 27, 2021 by public officials exceeded the powers of the Minister of the Interior and Administration, the Minister of National Defense and the spokesman of the Minister Special Services Coordinator and acting to the detriment of the public interest,” added the judge.

According to the court, the prosecutor’s office should investigate whether “incitement to hatred based on national, ethnic, racial or religious differences” was not allowed during the conference. “The photographs presented at the conference were presented as possessed by foreigners: a citizen Iraq Hasanaina SA i Afghanistan Sabrullah S. and that they were obtained from their devices. The country of origin of both foreigners and their names were to indicate their foreign racial origin and religion, the judge noted.

“If the purpose of the conference of September 27, 2021 was to present the threats to the security of the Republic of Poland posed by people crossing the Belarusian-Polish border illegally, highlighting their country of origin and names indicating their ethnic origin and religion was unnecessary and pointless” – he justified .

The court also noted that at the time of presenting the materials at the press conference at the border with Belarus, it was in force state of emergencywhich, in turn, prevented the media from reporting. In this regard, ministers “should be guided by particular prudence and responsibility.” “When providing information, they should take into account that it may be the only information about the state of affairs that will reach the public and it will not be possible to verify it by independent media,” the judge said.

“When conducting proceedings in this regard, the Prosecutor should question as witnesses the persons reporting the possibility of committing a crime, as well as Mariusz Kamiński, Mariusz Błaszczak, and Stanisław Żaryn,” he added.