“Today’s court ruling in Warsaw is a great disgrace. Where is freedom of speech? Where are the European Commission and the Venice Commission? The Court of Justice of the European Union, the European Court of Human Rights? Why are they not protesting? At this moment, all of Europe should speak with one voice to condemn this verdict. This is no longer a fight between Donald Tusk and Waldemar Żurek and politicians. It is a fight against Polish identity and great authorities – people who have served Poland and are heroes,” said Mariusz Gosek, an MP from Law and Justice (PiS) and a member of the Sejm Committee on Justice and Human Rights, in a statement to the Niezalezna.pl portal, commenting on today’s court decision against Adam Borowski.
The head of the Warsaw Gazeta Polska Club and a legendary anti-communist opposition activist, Adam Borowski, has been sentenced to six months of unconditional imprisonment for criticizing Roman Giertych. The statement was made on TV Republika. Borowski is a stroke survivor and suffers from cancer. Today, Judge Katarzyna Bień at the District Court for Warsaw-Wola decided that Adam Borowski may serve his prison sentence.
“The court stated that I had the opportunity to apologize, but I did not take it (…) The prosecutor in this case requested a suspended sentence. The court remained unyielding,” Borowski said after leaving the courtroom. Earlier, during the hearing, the head of the Gazeta Polska Club emphasized that he would not apologize to Roman Giertych for his words.
“One does not apologize for the truth. I warned everyone when this lawlessness in Poland was beginning that the fight for freedom, the rule of law, and for truth sometimes comes at a cost, and we must all be prepared for repression,” Adam Borowski said today at the Warsaw court.
He announced that the moment he crosses the walls of a prison or detention center, he will immediately begin a hunger strike in protest.
“I believe this verdict is unjust and I do not agree with it,” he stressed.
“The fight against Polish identity and heroes”
“Today’s court ruling in Warsaw is a great disgrace. Where is freedom of speech? Where are the European Commission and the Venice Commission? The Court of Justice of the European Union, the European Court of Human Rights? Why are they not protesting? At this moment, all of Europe should speak with one voice to condemn this verdict,” Mariusz Gosek, an MP from Law and Justice (PiS) and a member of the Sejm Committee on Justice and Human Rights, commented in an interview with the Niezalezna.pl portal.
“This verdict shows how deeply the judicial system requires reform. The ‘thick line’ policy has resulted in major irregularities. The judiciary has not been cleansed of individuals appointed by the communist authorities. They still adjudicate and introduce destruction into the Polish judicial system,” he said.
“They undermine judges who were educated in a democratic state governed by the rule of law – judges who completed their training in a democratic country, who received their nominations from Presidents Andrzej Duda and Karol Nawrocki, and who were assessed by a properly constituted National Council of the Judiciary,” he added.
“The ‘thick line’ and the lack of accountability for the disgraceful period of communism and the Round Table have led to verdicts such as the one handed down today to a great legend of Solidarity, a man devoted to Poland. This is no longer a fight between Donald Tusk and Waldemar Żurek and politicians. It is a fight against Polish identity and great authorities – people who have served Poland and are heroes, such as Adam Borowski,” he continued.
“We have moved to another stage. From the stage of a ‘crypto-dictatorship,’ as described by Judge Dariusz Łubowski, we are now on the final straight before the abyss in the sphere of the judiciary. The situation of the Polish judiciary is critical. It is like a patient in the ICU, and saving it is becoming increasingly difficult. This is what two years of Donald Tusk’s government have led to,” he concluded.