Tag: freedom of expression

The New Supreme Court Chamber Ultimately Acquits Belchatow Judge of Absurd Charges – Over the Letter from Polish Judges to OSCE. The Chamber ruled that judges have the right to speak out. This verdict is a failure for the local disciplinary spokesperson, who was the sole prosecutor against judges for this letter.

The ban on recording columns was issued by Przemyslaw Radzik, Minister Ziobro’s man for prosecuting independent judges and his nominee in Poland’s largest court. Radzik did not like it that Tuleya wanted to record columns about courts and the rule of law for the civic Halo.Radio.

The Minister of Justice Zbigniew Ziobro’s disciplinary commissioner is prosecuting Krzysztof Parchimowicz for criticizing the management of the prosecution service on Twitter. He is also under threat of disciplinary action for supporting a colleague who was being prosecuted.

Jarosław Kaczyński: “there is indeed a problem in Poland with the rule of law, but the main sources of this state of affairs are court judgments contra legem. It is our duty to ensure that these judgments made in conflict with the law are swiftly revoked and the judges who issue them held accountable on disciplinary charges and, consequently, removed from the profession.”

While the freedom of expression of public officials can be sometimes restricted with a view to protecting the impartiality and independence of institutions, in the event of a breach of the rule of law, judges and prosecutors can be seen as having a moral duty to speak out – says the report.

We write to speak out and to stand up for freedom of speech