Poland’s parliament has appointed two former members of the PiS National Conservative ruling party as new judges at the Constitutional Court.
The lawyers Krystyna Pawlowicz and Stanislaw Piotrowicz, known as ideological hardliners of the government camp, were elected to their posts yesterday with the votes of the PiS. The new constitutional judge will be the Danzig Jusprofessor Jakub Stelina, whose candidature was less controversial.
Known for anti-German attitude
The 67-year-old law professor Pawlowicz sat until the parliamentary elections in October for the PiS as a member of the Sejm. She is known for her verbal attacks on political opponents as well as for her anti-German attitude and her criticism of the refugee policy of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who accuses her of Islamizing Europe.
The 67-year-old Piotrowicz, together with Justice Minister and Attorney General Zbigniew Ziobro, was in charge of restructuring the Polish judicial system, which the PiS has been operating since 2015. The Constitutional Court was at that time the first institution where the PiS made changes.
Several procedures are running
In the meantime, the EU Commission has filed several lawsuits against Poland before the European Court of Justice because of doubts about respect for the rule of law.
Judicial organization Justice criticized the election of new constitutional judges. „When active politicians are called to constitutional judges, the court’s confidence and credibility diminish to a point where it is no longer perceived as an institution of justice, but as the third chamber of parliament,“ said Justice spokesman Bartlomiej Przymusinski.
