Polish Senate adopts controversial judicial reform laws
The Senate of Poland (upper house of parliament) has adopted, without amendment, two controversial laws on changes in the country’s judicial system that will affect the Supreme Court and the National Council of Judicial Proceedings, reported TVN24.
60 senators voted in favor of the law on the National Council of Judicial Proceedings, while 26 voted against it; one abstained. The law on the Supreme Court was supported by 58 senators; 26 voted against it, and three abstained.
There were shouts of "shame!" from the opposition during the voting in the session hall. "This is a fatal, unconstitutional act," declared one opposition MP, Bogdan Borusewicz, prior to the vote, stressing that the speaker should not put it up to vote.
According to Borusewicz, the law will allow the ruling party to control the courts. He also noted that the senators had voted just a few minutes earlier.
Earlier this week, drafts of the legislation were approved by the Polish Sejm (lower house). They must now be signed by President Andrzej Duda, who authored the documents.
On Monday, the deputies also approved a bill that will change the supervision of magistrates (judges) as well as alter the definition of the Prosecutor's activity to exclude the word "independent."
The European Commission will begin procedures against Poland next week, which could lead to the deprivation of the country's voting rights in the European Union.
The procedure will be launched by the European Commission on Wednesday in accordance with Art. 7 of the Treaty, according to which all member countries of the European Union must respect the common values of the European Community, including rule of law.