The Disciplinary Chamber of the Supreme Court of Poland has refused to lift the immunity of judge Igor Tuleya. It ruled that he did not violate the law by allowing media to broadcast his hearing. In a short video clip, a grateful judge Tuleya addresses the legal community worldwide: ‘It should not make us less vigilant’.
Unprecedented disciplinary hearing for Polish judge
The controversial Disciplinary Chamber of the Supreme Court of Poland has scheduled an unprecedented hearing: Judge Igor Tuleya stands to lose his immunity and his freedom. The Polish Judges Association Iustitia calls on the public to stand up in defense of judicial independence on June 8th, the day before the hearing.
Please join the online event Europe for Poland (in English) on Monday 8 June at 16:00 CET on Facebook or YouTube.
The president of the International Association of Judges has also issued an official statement, representing 92 national associations of judges expressing their deepest concern about these proceedings.
Continue reading Unprecedented disciplinary hearing for Polish judge
Amnesty International: Hongaarse rechtspraak ondermijnd
Amnesty International Hongarije heeft op 6 april 2020 een uitvoerig rapport gepubliceerd over de situatie van de rechterlijke macht in Hongarije, onder de titel Fearing the Unknown.
Continue reading Amnesty International: Hongaarse rechtspraak ondermijnd
‘EU Court’s ruling on Polish Disciplinary Chamber has much broader effect’
‘The decision not only clearly prohibits the Polish government to illegally repress judges, by suspending the so-called Disciplinary Chamber, but has a much broader effect – it should close the way for abuse of the arbitrary recognition of the elections validity’, says the president of the Association of Polish Judges Iustitia professor Krystian Markiewicz.
Continue reading ‘EU Court’s ruling on Polish Disciplinary Chamber has much broader effect’
Nieuwsflits maart 2020
Vandaag is een Nieuwsflits verschenen met daarin:
- Movies that Matter Festival 2020 Online
- Verslag van zitting over ‘interim measures’ Polen
- Oproep voor hulp bij handelszaken in Suriname
Letter to Turkish authorities on ‘crisis parole’
The Turkish authorities have drafted an ‘early parole law’ in response to the corona virus crisis. The Platform for an Independent Judiciary in Turkey urges those responsible to consider judges and prosecutors on the same grounds as other prisoners – without bias or predefined restriction. Continue reading Letter to Turkish authorities on ‘crisis parole’
Verslag zitting ‘interim measures’ Polen
Op maandag 9 maart 2020 zat Katrien Witteman, rechter in de rechtbank Limburg, op de publieke tribune bij het Hof van Justitie van de Europese Unie in Luxemburg. Zij woonde met een aantal andere rechters uit Polen, België, Noorwegen, Turkije en Nederland de ‘interim measures’-procedure bij die door de Europese Commissie was aangespannen tegen de Republiek Polen in het kader van de inbreukprocedure C-791/19.
Polish magistrates: 5 years of repression
The Polish associations Iustitia (judges) and Lex Super Omnia (prosecutors) have published a report to give ‘some idea of the scale of the harassment that affects judges’ in Poland.
It lists dozens of judges and prosecutors facing investigations, disciplinary proceedings and so-called ‘soft repression’.
Judicial organizations: Polish situation ‘Chefsache’
The presidents of the judicial organizations in the European Union kindly request a personal meeting with president Ursula von der Leyen of the European Commission. They underscore that ‘any strategy which considers judicial independence a bargaining chip is completely mistaken’.
Continue reading Judicial organizations: Polish situation ‘Chefsache’
Polish Ombudsman: crime against judiciary
The developments in the Polish judiciary can be difficult to understand for the uninitiated. Polish Ombudsman Adam Bodnar therefore adresses nine popular opinions and possible responses in a recent article.
‘I believe that the internal sense of independence, professional integrity and decency of judges will be a source of effective defence against the attempts of the executive branch of power. However, an in-depth analysis should be continued of the factors that have made, and are still making, the crime against the Polish judiciary possible, and of how to prevent such processes in the future.’