Amid the difficult upheaval situation in Poland, Justice Minister Buschmann visited the neighboring country. He confirmed that he would strive for closer cooperation again – but also tried not to add fuel to the fire.
Justice Minister Marco Buschmann was the first member of the federal government to travel to Poland to visit the new government. The FDP politician was welcomed in the capital Warsaw by his Polish counterpart Adam Bodnar.
“The entire German government finds it very impressive how committed and determined Poland is to return to the center of Europe,” says Buschmann, referring to the change of government in the neighboring country. He had agreed with Bodnar to “restart close cooperation.” There was also discussion about shared responsibility for Ukraine.
Upheaval in Poland
Poland is currently in a situation of upheaval. In mid-December, after eight years, the center-left government with its Prime Minister Donald Tusk replaced the national-conservative PiS government, which had repeatedly stirred up sentiment against Germany and the EU.
In the new government, Bodnar has perhaps the most difficult job: The 47-year-old constitutional lawyer, who was Poland’s Commissioner for Human Rights until 2021, is supposed to reverse the controversial judicial reform of the voted PiS government. Because of this reform, Poland was at loggerheads with the EU Commission for years.
The nomination of judges should be decoupled from politics
Bodnar has announced that the nomination of judges should be decoupled from politics again. In 2018, the PiS government introduced a reform according to which 15 of the 25 members of the State Judicial Council were appointed by parliament. The State Judicial Council is the body that nominates judges for vacant positions; previously judges had determined the majority of members. After the reform in 2018, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) criticized that there were considerable doubts about the independence of this body.
According to the new reform presented by Bodnar, the judges alone will in future decide on the composition of the State Judicial Council. However, a corresponding law must first pass the two chambers of parliament and then be signed by President Andrzej Duda. This comes from the ranks of the PiS and could torpedo the project.
No comment from Buschmann
Bodnar said in an interview with “Zeit Online” this week that the Polish Constitutional Court was being used “to enforce certain political goals.” He added: “I hope we can change that one day, but we’re not there yet.”
When asked by journalists about the power struggle in Poland, Buschmann said he did not want to comment on Polish domestic politics. The new government has “made many, very courageous decisions, with the absolute conviction of strengthening the rule of law.”
Per-Palestinian Protests during speech
During his lecture in a lecture hall at the Law Faculty at the University of Warsaw, Buschmann was greeted with loud protests from pro-Palestinian students. Shortly after his speech began, about a dozen students stood up and unfurled posters protesting the Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip. They carried placards with slogans such as “We demand a permanent ceasefire to save the lives of civilians” and “End Germany’s unconditional support for the Israeli government.”
Buschmann rejected the students’ accusations of “genocide” against Israel and called on the protesters to listen to him. They continued to shout at each other and finally left the hall. Buschmann was then able to continue his lecture.