Minister of Justice Zbigniew Ziobro tried to silence us and violated the basic standards of the prosecutor’s office functioning – said prosecutor Ewa Wrzosek, who returned to work on Friday, in “Fakty po Faktach”. When asked what she had the greatest grudge against Ziobro, she replied that he “ruined the image of the prosecutor’s office as an office that upholds the law.”
Supreme Court reinstated Warsaw prosecutor Ewa Wrzosek. The Supreme Court revoked the suspension in her professional duties that had been applied to the investigator since December last year. This ruling of the Supreme Court’s Chamber of Professional Responsibility was made on Thursday by a three-person panel chaired by Judge Barbara Skoczkowska.
On Friday morning, Wrzosek showed up at work. “I feel enormous relief,” she said. As she later informed on social media, the prosecutor’s office management was absent that day. “All three of them are on sick leave. Is it some kind of virus?” – she wrote.
Wrzosek: I feel personal satisfaction
Prosecutor Ewa Wrzosek told “Fakty po Faktach” what her first day at work was like.
– Not only did I have nowhere to sit and was given a room instead, which happened to be free, I do not have access to a computer. Various types of certificates that I had expired, so my first day of work was very organizational, and I organized it myself – said Wrzosek. She added that she used this day to get acquainted with the prosecutor’s new headquarters.
When asked about the atmosphere there, she replied that it was “very positive.” – We, as prosecutors, are aware that we will finally be able to perform our duties reliably, without fear of explanatory or disciplinary proceedings or a punitive delegation, so there is hope for the future – she said.
She confessed that she felt “first of all relief”, but also “personal satisfaction”. – I also feel very motivated to work and responsible. Responsibility for the prosecutor’s office and for ensuring that no prosecutor ever finds himself in a situation like mine again, said Wrzosek.
Wrzosek: Minister Ziobro tried to shut us up
The host of the program pointed out that Ewa Wrzosek was not the only prosecutor who had problems with the Minister of Justice Zbigniew Ziobro.
– This is a situation that should never have happened and was clearly the result of the politicization of the prosecutor’s office and the fact that those prosecutors who kept their own opinions, who complied with the regulations, who spoke critically and publicly about all the bad things that happened in the prosecutor’s office over the last eight years, they were punished and disciplined for it – said Wrzosek.
She stated that Ziobro “tried to silence us, violated the basic standards of the prosecutor’s office and the standards of a prosecutor, even a European one.” She explained that “the so-called Charter of Rome, which defines the standards that a prosecutor should follow, grants him the right to speak on all important issues relating to the administration of justice.”
“I am not a court, I am a prosecutor. My roles are not confused”
Asked about the MEP’s statement PIS Dominik Tarczyński, who, speaking in the European Parliament in January, said that “it is a scandal for the prosecutor to publicly claim that the prosecutor general broke the law and should answer for it in the future.” – You are not in charge of Mrs. Wrzosek, you are wrong – said Tarczyński.
– I am not a court, I am a prosecutor. The prosecutor’s job is to bring charges and accusations, and I didn’t make a mistake, Ewa Wrzosek commented on TVN24 on Saturday. In her opinion, critical statements against her by representatives of the ruling camp were intended to “silence” her.
– I hope that there are hundreds, not to say thousands, of prosecutors who will finally, with courage and determination, without this political cloak, without danger, hold accountable people who should have been held accountable a long time ago – said Wrzosek.
Wrzosek: Ziobro ruined the image of the prosecutor’s office
– The biggest regret, but probably not only me, but all prosecutors, is that Zbigniew Ziobro has ruined the image of the prosecutor’s office as an office that upholds the law. Authority, trust in the justice system – said Wrzosek.
She emphasized that “an independent prosecutor’s office is in the interest of all of us.” – The prosecutor’s office cannot be political, she said.
When asked what she would like to say to the president today Andrzej Dudareplied that “it is also in his interest that every prosecutor upholds the law, respects the parties’ guarantees and procedures, because that’s what the procedures are for, that’s what these fuses are for, so that each of us goes to court or the prosecutor’s office with confidence.” and faith that the ruling will be fair and will take into account the law, not politics.
Suspension of prosecutor Wrzosek
Prosecutor Ewa Wrzosek was suspended from her duties in December 2022, disciplinary proceedings were also initiated against her and a request was submitted to the Supreme Court to waive her immunity. So far, Wrzosek has not faced any disciplinary charges and has not lost her immunity. These cases are still pending.
The basis for these applications were allegations made by the Regional Prosecutor’s Office in Szczecin regarding the provision of information from ongoing proceedings to unauthorized persons, failure to fulfill official duties and involvement in political activities. Wrzosek firmly denies these allegations, arguing that it is an attempt to intimidate her.
Main photo source: TVN24