Status: 10.10.2021 8:34 p.m.
All over Poland people have taken to the streets to protest against a ruling by the Polish Constitutional Court. The judges had ruled that EU law violated Polish law in part.
Tens of thousands of people across the country demonstrated against a controversial ruling by the Constitutional Court and for their country to remain in the European Union. In Warsaw, the demonstrators gathered in Palace Square. They waved Polish and European flags and shouted: “We are staying” and “We are Europe!”. There were also protests in Gdansk, Poznan, Szczecin, Krakow and many other cities.
Tens of thousands of people in Poland are protesting across the country against the controversial ruling of the Constitutional Court
Demian von Osten, ARD Moscow, daily news 8:00 p.m., 10.10.2021
The court gives national law priority over EU law
The country’s Constitutional Court recently ruled that certain elements of EU law violated the Polish Constitution. This gave national law priority over EU law. This decision is fueling the conflict between the EU Commission and Warsaw over the reform of the Polish judicial system. Critics accuse the national conservative ruling party PiS of being on the way out of the EU. This rejects the allegations.
France and Germany asked Poland to comply with EU rules. Foreign Ministers Heiko Maas and Jean-Yves Le Drian declared that membership in the EU goes hand in hand with “full and unrestricted adherence to common values and rules”. Respect for these and their observance must be shown by each Member State. This also applies to Poland, which has a very central place within the EU.
Right-wing national counter-demonstrators
Former EU Council President and Polish opposition leader Donald Tusk called for the Sunday protests. During his appearance in Warsaw, he said that the PiS was no longer talking about wanting to lead the country out of the EU. “Poland’s place is in Europe,” stressed Tusk. “We will win because we are more!” Both Tusk and other speakers were repeatedly interrupted by loud interjections and chants from a counter-demonstration by right-wing national groups.
Majority of Poles for EU membership
According to a recent survey, a good 88 percent of Poles see their country’s membership in the EU as positive, only a good nine percent rate it negatively. The PiS government has been restructuring the judiciary for years. Critics accuse her of putting judges under pressure. Due to the reforms, the EU Commission has already opened several infringement proceedings against Warsaw and filed suits with the European Court of Justice.