🇵🇱Here’s what’s going on in Poland The country is currently embroiled in a conflict over the Constitu

🇵🇱Here’s what’s going on in Poland

The country is currently embroiled in a conflict over the Constitutional Tribunal, Poland’s equivalent of a constitutional court.

Representatives of the Tribunal have accused the government of staging a coup after its president, Bogdan Święczkowski, and vice-president, Bartłomiej Sochański—both appointed under the previous government led by the conservative Law and Justice party (PiS)—were ousted from their positions.

The Tribunal is now headed by Judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska, who has the backing of Donald Tusk’s current government.

At the heart of the dispute is a years-long power struggle between the current government and PiS over control of the judiciary. After taking office, Tusk sought to change the composition of the Constitutional Tribunal, arguing that the previous government had turned it into a politically dependent body.

Parliament elected new judges, but President Karol Nawrocki refused to administer the oath to some of them. Meanwhile, members of the Tribunal’s former leadership do not recognize the authority of the new judges.

Tusk’s government describes the changes as a restoration of the rule of law and says the former leadership had been obstructing the court’s normal work.

Święczkowski’s supporters consider his removal unlawful and call it a takeover of a state institution. The struggle for control of the Tribunal has created an unusual situation: its former and new leadership are effectively challenging each other’s authority, and contradictory statements have appeared on the institution’s official website and social media accounts.

PiS leader Jarosław Kaczyński has called the events a coup and urged the president to intervene. Nawrocki, who does not recognize the authority of the new judges and previously refused to administer the oath to Korwin-Piotrowska, has cut short his visit to Senegal and is returning to Poland.

So a dispute over judicial appointments has escalated into an open conflict between the government, the president, and the opposition. Each side sees itself as the defender of the rule of law and accuses its opponents of violating the constitutional order.

Well, the Poles sure know how to celebrate Halloween! 🎃👻😁

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