Poland’s dispute over its Constitutional Tribunal has widened into a confrontation between the government and the presidency, with both sides claiming to defend the country’s constitutional order. Prime Minister Donald Tusk says he will continue efforts to restore judicial independence, while President Karol Nawrocki has accused the government of taking control of a constitutional institution by force.
The court’s website announced on Friday that judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska had suspended tribunal president Bogdan Święczkowski and deputy president Bartłomiej Sochański for one month. Korwin-Piotrowska said she had assumed the court’s leadership during that period. Tusk’s government argues that the previous leadership obstructed judges elected by parliament from taking office; opposition figures dispute the legality of the suspension.
Nawrocki cut short a trip to Senegal and returned to Warsaw. Hundreds of protesters gathered outside the tribunal for a second night, and police said three people had been detained after demonstrators threw objects at officers and tried to breach a security fence. Legal experts remain divided over whether the suspension has a valid legal basis.
The standoff is rooted in a decade-long dispute over judicial appointments and the court’s independence, which has also strained Poland’s relationship with the European Union. The confrontation could deepen political divisions ahead of next year’s parliamentary election and make efforts to restore confidence in the judiciary more difficult.
