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Pruszków. They were going to a women's strike and the police stopped them. The prosecutor's office returns to the investigation

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The prosecutor's office announced on Monday that the proceedings related to the police arrest of trade unionists going to the women's strike in the fall of 2020 “have been resumed.” It concerns the abuse of powers and failure to fulfill duties by officers. One of the detainees reported that they were pulled out of the car and handcuffed. She also said that later, without providing any grounds, they were taken to the police station and released only after a few hours.

The District Prosecutor's Office in Warsaw published a communiqué on Monday in which it announced that it was resuming the investigation into the “excess of powers and failure to fulfill duties by police officers” on October 30, 2020 “by incorrectly carrying out detention of identified persons, which was to the detriment of the public and private interest “.

It's about detention of five representatives of the National Trade Union “Inicjatywa Pracownicza”who were going from Poznań to Warsaw. It happened on the A2 highway near Pruszków. Trade unionists were scheduled to take part and speak at a huge protest organized by National Women's Strike after the decision of the Constitutional Tribunal chaired by Julia Przełębska to tighten the abortion law.

>> It was one of the largest protests in the recent history of Warsaw <<

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The police pulled the trade unionists out of the car

The cars they were traveling in were checked three times, the last time near Pruszków. – The first time we were registered, the second time we were registered, our car was inspected and the content of the banners was verified. The third time, the traffic police called for reinforcements, which intervened. They pulled us out of the car, handcuffed us behind our backs and took us to the police station in Pruszków – Marta Rozmysłowicz from Initiative told us then.

READ ALSO: Tear gas, telescopic batons. Controversial police interventions against protesters

They were going to a strike and the police stopped them. “They let us go without any paperwork”01/11TVN 24 Poznań

The union representatives spent several hours at the headquarters and then were released. – They released us without any paperwork, without a detention report, as if it didn't exist at all. They did not provide any basis or reason, Rozmysłowicz said then. Trade unionists were also denied the opportunity to consult a lawyer.

The union published a video of the arrest on social media. It shows police officers pulling passengers out of the car.

“There is a need for further clarification of the circumstances of the case”

In a statement on Monday, the Warsaw prosecutor's office recalled that activists “due to irregularities in the arrest procedure, submitted (…) a report on suspicion of committing a crime by the police officers carrying out the arrest.”

She also informed what happened later in this case. “On December 8, 2021, the prosecutor of the District Prosecutor's Office in Warsaw issued a decision refusing to initiate an investigation,” it was reported. However, this decision was annulled on May 24, 2022 by the District Court in Pruszków. Therefore, the district prosecutor's office initiated an investigation. However, in November 2023, it was canceled.

However, this was not the end of the matter. The injured party's representative filed a complaint in this case, and on July 18 this year, the Regional Prosecutor's Office in Warsaw decided to take it into account and repeal the contested decision to discontinue the case.

“In the justification, the superior prosecutor found that there was a need to further clarify the circumstances of the case, and in particular to determine who was the decision-maker in issuing the order for actions carried out by officers of the Road Traffic Department of the Capital Police Headquarters, consisting in detaining the victims,” ​​we read in the press release of PO in Warsaw .

As it was added, “the Head of WRD KSP, questioned as a witness, testified that he received the order to detain the victims from an unidentified person from the Headquarters of the Police Operation 'Autumn 5'”. As “Gazeta Wyborcza” wrote, this staff was established in response to mass protests after the Constitutional Tribunal's decision on abortion.

“Due to the above, the proceedings have been resumed and are being conducted at the District Prosecutor's Office in Warsaw,” the prosecutor's office explained.

It was added that “procedural activities indicated by the Regional Prosecutor's Office are in progress.” “The planned date of completion of the investigation is the turn of December 2024 and January 2025.” – we read.

The court has already found the detention unjustified

In addition to reporting the suspected crime, the trade unionists also filed a complaint against the detention.

As OKO.press writes, this case was dealt with in January 2021 by the court, which ruled that the measures of direct coercion used, transport to the police station and detention there were actually detention.

“The court also noted that the conditions necessary for detention had not been met – there was no justified suspicion of committing a crime, no fear of escaping, hiding or covering up one's traces, or posing a threat to human health, life and property. Moreover, the officers did not fulfill the obligations to prepare a report, inform about the reasons for the detention and the rights of the detained. The court found that the detention was illegal, unjustified and incorrect,” the portal reminds.

The police defended their actions

The police assured that the detention was lawful.

– The intervention of police officers from the Road Traffic Department was based on information indicating that there were people in the vehicle who could disrupt the protest. Taking into account its progress so far, it was necessary to verify it. As we can see in the recording, the intervention was accompanied by a lot of emotions. These, among other things, influenced the course of activities and the police officers rightly decided to continue them at the Pruszków police station – explained Commissioner Karolina Kańka, press officer of the police in Pruszków, to “Gazeta Wyborcza” in October 2020.

According to her, the decision to use handcuffs was preceded by an “individualized assessment of the appropriateness of using this measure.” – The police took into account the clear agitation of the people who were to be taken to the police station and the emotions these people showed. In the officers' opinion, their behavior did not guarantee calm during the journey and could have evolved into a situation threatening the policemen's safety – argued Kańka.

As she said, the police's actions “lasted as long as they should have.” She also admitted that after being brought to the police station, the information regarding the threat posed by these people was negatively verified.

tvn24.pl, Gazeta Wyborcza, OKO.press

Main photo source: Employee Initiative



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