Who was the “Spanish journalist” with whom Waldemar Żurek allegedly communicated in 2016? When TV Republika asked the Minister of Justice about it, he reacted nervously. Therefore, Law and Justice (PiS) MP Paweł Jabłoński submitted an official parliamentary inquiry.
In an interview given on May 19, 2016, shortly after Law and Justice won the parliamentary elections, Waldemar Żurek – then a judge at the Kraków District Court and a member of the National Council of the Judiciary (KRS) – appeared on the TOK FM radio station.
After PiS came to power, a new law concerning the Constitutional Tribunal (TK) was passed, introducing, among other things, the requirement to reelect some of its judges. That was the main topic of the TOK FM conversation.
At the time, Żurek thundered that he agreed with the actions of European institutions reacting to the situation around the Constitutional Tribunal. He stated that “as soon as the bill proposed by PiS appeared, I immediately received a call from Spain from an important journalist.”
Shortly thereafter, an article appeared on the Spanish (Basque) website naiz.eus, written by what was then described as a Spanish journalist, about “Polish democracy being in trouble.” Who authored it? A man well known in Poland under two names – Pablo González, also known as Pavel Rubtsov – a Russian spy. The question thus arises openly: was it him that Waldemar Żurek spoke to?
A question from a TV Republika journalist infuriated Żurek
Yesterday, during a press conference, the Minister of Justice in Donald Tusk’s government received two difficult – from his perspective – questions. The first concerned his recommendation of Belarusian spy Tomasz Szmydt for the Voivodeship Administrative Court, a matter reported by Niezalezna.pl back in July this year. To this, Żurek replied: “Mr. Szmydt, like many thousands of judges, went through the nomination process in the KRS. If you can tell me what the so-called ‘promotion’ of Mr. Szmydt was supposed to consist of, then please tell me where.”
However, as his reaction showed, it was the second question that struck a deeper nerve – it referred to his contacts with the “Spanish journalist.”
The head of the Ministry of Justice refused to provide the journalist’s name. “In my phone, it’s saved without a name, just as ‘El País.’ I can give that number to the security services,” he claimed.
“You’re making an assumption in your question. I’d like you to show me in which year and in what way I supposedly contacted the person you’re referring to. When the constitutional crisis reached its decisive phase, many people reached out to the National Council of the Judiciary. In my phone, I have a journalist from El País; I have no evidence of any contact with the person you’re mentioning. I know this is a planned distraction from the lifting of Zbigniew Ziobro’s immunity,” he responded.
As for his alleged contact with Rubtsov, Żurek stated directly: “I have no such data, so I assume there was no such contact. These claims are made up out of thin air.” He also warned that any accusations made without evidence would be subject to legal action.
“I will cooperate with the security services, but certainly not with you,” Żurek snapped at the TV Republika journalist. “This is a Republika affair and a smear campaign driven by certain people. I will not inform you about actions that are legal proceedings,” he added.
But it didn’t end there. Żurek began to issue threats.
“You’ve said a few sentences too many, and I’d advise you to think twice,” the TV Republika journalist heard from Waldemar Żurek. And as further questions followed, the visibly irritated minister concluded on his way out: “I’ll answer you when we have a joint trial. Goodbye.”
Jabłoński: I’m submitting a parliamentary inquiry
This morning, Law and Justice MP Paweł Jabłoński announced his next steps regarding the potential Żurek-Rubtsov contacts.
“I didn’t quite believe that Waldemar Żurek really had contact with Rubtsov – but his nervous reaction at yesterday’s press conference and his evasion of the journalists’ questions about this matter are… very interesting. Because if it wasn’t Rubtsov , he could have just given the journalist’s name, right?” he wrote on x.com.
The MP also added: “I’m sending an official parliamentary inquiry on this matter – there should be no room for doubt.”
That inquiry contains two questions: one about the name of the “Spanish journalist,” and another about whether Żurek had any contact with Rubtsov – and if so, under what circumstances.