Law and Justice (PiS) MP Paweł Herniak has submitted an interpellation to the Ministry of the Interior and Administration regarding actions targeting TV Republika. The politician argues that the wave of incidents constitutes “an attack on free media” and directed six specific questions to Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński.
For several days now, police officers have been entering the homes of TV Republika employees. The officers claim their interventions stem from reports concerning, among other things, threats to life.
One such incident was Friday’s entry into the apartment of the station’s CEO, Tomasz Sakiewicz. During the operation, police officers refused to identify themselves, handcuffed an assistant to the head of the Free Speech House, and searched the premises without a warrant.
Representatives of TV Republika stated that around 30 such incidents have already occurred.
Parliamentary inquiry to Kierwiński
The police intrusions and the authorities’ inaction in identifying those responsible for the false reports have sparked public outrage. The Ministry of the Interior and Administration has faced widespread criticism from public figures, including journalists and politicians. PiS MP Paweł Herniak is demanding explanations from Minister Marcin Kierwiński.
“I am submitting a parliamentary inquiry to Minister Kierwiński regarding forced police entries into the homes of TV Republika journalists. Even though the Government Security Centre (RCB) classified the reports as ‘cascading information of very low credibility,’ police officers handcuffed Sakiewicz’s assistant and conducted a search without a warrant. This is an attack on free media,”
the opposition politician wrote on X.
In the inquiry, Herniak points out that police actions at the homes of individuals connected with the Free Speech Zone media group included forced entries, the use of coercive measures, and searches. He described the operation at the home of TV Republika’s CEO as “the most outrageous.”
“According to the account of CEO Sakiewicz and recordings published by TV Republika: officers forcibly entered the apartment without presenting a court warrant and without identifying themselves; they handcuffed the CEO’s assistant, who was present on the premises (the apartment also serves as an editorial office); they searched the premises; and after determining that the report was false, they abandoned the previously handcuffed woman on the street,”
the PiS politician stated.
As Herniak notes, “the police confirmed the intervention, justifying it by citing ‘a real threat to a child’s life’ (a report concerning a person in emotional crisis), while simultaneously admitting that the alert turned out to be false and was most likely a deliberate provocation (so-called swatting).”
He added that similar interventions also affected other TV Republika journalists, including Adrian Klarenbach, and, according to reports, the director of MP Dariusz Matecki’s parliamentary office.
Herniak’s six questions to Kierwiński
Herniak addressed the following six questions to the Interior Minister:
1. Why, despite the Government Security Centre’s unequivocal assessment that the reports were “information of very low credibility,” did the police carry out excessive interventions, including forced entries into private residences and the use of handcuffs, instead of limiting themselves to telephone verification or minimal action?
2. On what legal basis, citing specific provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the Police Act, and relevant case law, did officers enter journalist Tomasz Sakiewicz’s private apartment without a court warrant, handcuff his assistant, and conduct a search? Was journalistic confidentiality breached in an apartment serving as an editorial office?
3. What specific operational measures have been undertaken since the first day of the series of false reports (ongoing for at least several days) to identify and detain those responsible for these provocations? Do the services possess information indicating an organized and coordinated nature of the campaign, given that all reports targeted one media environment critical of the government?
4. Why, after more than a dozen incidents (including 14 recorded by the Government Security Centre), has the public not been informed of any progress in the investigation, while the perpetrators continue to act with impunity? Does the Minister not see this lack of response as tacit permission for the harassment of independent media?
5. What steps is the Ministry taking to prevent further incidents and to protect the safety and freedom of journalists to carry out their work, including those whose views do not align with the government’s line?
6. Does the Interior Ministry’s lack of action regarding the described incidents amount to silent consent for actions that violate the standards of the rule of law, media freedom, and equal treatment of citizens regardless of their political or media views?