2024-12-23 12:49 update: 2024-12-23, 12:55
Photo PAP/Paweł Supernak
Former deputy justice minister and member of the main opposition Law and Justice (PiS) party Marcin Romanowski, subject to an EU Arrest Warrant, has outlined conditions for his return to Poland from Hungary.
He posted the list of conditions on the X platform on Monday in the form of a letter addressed to the Polish Justice Minister Adam Bodnar.
Romanowski vowed to return to the country within six hours if the government steps back from the "illicit actions" listed, including: 1. The publication of all Constitutional Tribunal rulings illegally blocked by Prime Minister Donald Tusk for several months; 2. Recognition and full compliance, without exception, with all decisions issued by judges of each chamber of the Supreme Court.
These two demands, however, were only a part of the list. Romanowski also called for the reinstating of the dismissed judges at the Warsaw Appeal Court and the Warsaw District Court. In addition, he sought the reappointment of Dariusz Barski, a former deputy prosecutor general, along with other regional prosecutors dismissed in early 2024.
Romanowski sees meeting his conditions as a guarantee for a fair trial based on legal principles rather than ministerial assurances. He added that, as a falsely accused person, he wishes to prove his innocence in an open trial.
Hungary granted him asylum, citing concerns over Poland’s rule-of-law crisis. Romanowski's lawyer confirmed that he is protected under the 2007 asylum law, adding that the politician faces violations of his rights and political interference in the investigation in Poland.
Romanowski is under investigation and facing 11 charges for his control over the Justice Fund, a special-purpose reserve aimed at helping victims of crimes. Prosecutors accuse Romanowski of being part of an organised crime group and awarding contracts financed by the Justice Fund to selected bidders, which resulted in defrauding PLN 107 million (EUR 25 mln) and an attempt to defraud a further PLN 58 million (EUR 13.6 mln). The list of indictments might become longer after Poland's National Prosecutor, Dariusz Korneluk, announced seeking approval for seven more charges on Friday.
Since the 2023 transfer of power, the PiS party has been accused of having politicised several state authorities while in power in 2015-2023. According to Poland's pro-EU parties, judicial circles, NGOs and the European Commission, the politicised bodies include the Constitutional Tribunal (TK), the Supreme Court, the National Council of the Judiciary (KRS) and the prosecution service, which have all former PiS members and loyalists in its line-up.
The current government aims to reverse this, says the TK's rulings are not binding which has sparked a dispute over the functioning of Poland's justice system. (PAP)
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