“The countersignature granted by the Prime Minister for the nomination of a new judge for the chairmanship of the Chamber of the Supreme Court deepens the legal chaos and makes it difficult to restore the rule of law,” said the associations and legal organizations in a joint statement. Earlier, Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated that “an error occurred” in the matter of the countersignature of the president's decision.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk countersigned the decision of President Andrzej Duda on appointing a neo-judge as the chairman of the assembly of judges of the Civil Chamber of the Supreme Court, which selects candidates for the position of president of the Civil Chamber. This caused an uproar in the judicial community, which indicates that such a move does not go hand in hand with the announced repair of the justice system.
On Wednesday Tusk said that when it comes to his signature, “there was an error”. – The official responsible for preparing for the signing did not notice the political nature of the document, which constituted the nomination of a new judge by the president – he said. At the same time, the head of government assessed that “the practical consequences of this signature are not particularly significant”. – If I had not signed, the new judge majority would have achieved the things they intend to do anyway – he stated.
“The main goal of those in power must now be to restore the rule of law”
Also on Wednesday, associations and legal organizations issued a joint position on the countersignature. It stated that “in a state of law, the authorities' decisions should be prudent and serve the common good.”
“The common good is the stability of the legal system. Thanks to it, people know what is good and what is evil. They can peacefully build their lives and be sure that political power is limited by law,” it was written, adding that “a legally functioning Supreme Court is the guardian of the law.”
The statement reads that “in the period of destruction of the rule of law after 2016, the Supreme Court was taken over by defectively nominated individuals, the so-called neo-judges”. “The main goal of the government must now be to rebuild the rule of law. This is the basic obligation of the government towards Polish citizens and the European community. Poland has committed itself to this within the framework of European structures” – it was recalled.
“We are deeply moved and disappointed”
Meanwhile – the community assessed – “the countersignature granted by the Prime Minister for the nomination of a new judge for the chairman of the Chamber assembly in the Supreme Court deepens the legal chaos and makes it difficult to restore the rule of law”.
“The countersignature means the assumption of responsibility by the Prime Minister. No political goal can justify the assumption of responsibility for violating constitutional and European standards,” it added.
“We declare that we are deeply moved and disappointed by this decision of the Prime Minister. We will continue to do everything in our power to protect the rights of Polish women and men. However, rebuilding the rule of law without cooperation between the executive and legislative authorities and the judiciary will be difficult and long-term. Society expects new standards of action by politicians. Dialogue and transparency of key decisions regarding the judiciary are needed,” it was written.
The position was signed by: the Association of Polish Judges “IUSTITIA”, the Judges' Cooperation Forum, the Polish Association of Judges of Administrative Courts, the Council of Lay Judges of the Supreme Court, the Association of Prosecutors “LEX SUPER OMNIA”, the Association of Judges “THEMIS”, the Association of Family Judges “PRO FAMILIA”, the Association of Family Judges in Poland.
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