Polish Democracy Trampled, Yet Brussels Remains Silent

Donald Tusk has played an active role in the return of political persecution in Warsaw.

Polish PM Donald Tusk (Photo: NurPhoto via AFP)

Last fall, when Peter Szijjarto, Hungary’s minister of foreign affairs and trade, spoke at the meeting of the National Assembly’s foreign affairs committee, he discussed - among other things - the often contrived and specifically Hungary-targeted obstacles that Hungary - a country unyielding when it comes to defending its sovereignty - must overcome to adequately represent its position. FM Szijjarto's comments have sparked considerable outrage not only within Hungary, but also abroad. At the time, critics argued that the foreign minister of the Orban government had once again gone too far, distorting facts solely to mislead European public opinion.

In the days following the session, some Brussels politicians arguing in favor of the "inviolability of European political rules" and the "uniform framework applied equally to all member states," described Mr. Szijjarto's remarks as entirely unacceptable. Specifically, they objected to his statement that "there is a clear European political approach: if liberal parties govern a country, it is guaranteed to be considered a democracy, and whatever happens there is deemed acceptable. In contrast, if non-liberal parties govern a country, it is immediately labeled as undemocratic."

However, if we take stock of the unjust attacks that targeted Hungary even before Budapest assumed the EU's rotating presidency, and if we examine the lenient treatment the European elite has shown to Poland’s presidency, which began this January, 

even as political persecution has become a daily occurrence in Warsaw, all evidence points to the validity of Mr. Szijjarto’s observations.

So, what's the evidence? Firstly, more than a year before it was even proposed that Hungary might take over the EU presidency after Belgium, the European Parliament adopted a political resolution advocating for Hungary to be stripped of its right to hold the rotating presidency. Ostensibly, this resolution referred to democratic deficits and rule-of-law concerns, but its real target was the Hungarian government’s pro-peace position and approach. Not only was the resolution without precedent in its nature, but its objective was equally exceptional. Because even the very drafting of the document signaled a blatant breach of existing EU treaties, although this "contradiction" failed to gain any attention in Brussels.

Likewise, there was no scrutiny of why, in previous years, other countries holding the rotating presidency—such as Sweden and France, facing challenges with mass migration; or the Czech Republic, marked by political and underworld corruption—were not subject to similar objections. Despite severe shortcomings in their rule-of-law and human rights records, the majority of MEPs have raised no issues whatsoever concerning these countries.

However, if all this is still insufficient to validate the Hungarian foreign minister’s political diagnosis regarding Brussels’ double standards, it is worth taking a brief look at the various rule-of-law crises generated by the Polish left, regarding which Brussels - for some peculiar reason- has shown an unprecedented éevel of indifference.

Regarding, for instance, the independence of the Polish judiciary, it can be said without exaggeration that the leftist coalition government under PM Tusk went much further than simply dismantling guarantees derived from institutional autonomy. Through the appointment of Adam Bodnar as attorney general and justice minister, Mr. Tusk actively contributed to the situation where conservative circles in Poland are now again speaking of a return to the era of political persecution in Warsaw. The gravity of these claims is evidenced not only by the unfortunate case of Marcin Romanowski, the former deputy minister, who was recently granted political asylum in Hungary after being arrested unlawfully despite his immunity, but also by numerous other excesses linked to Justice Minister Bodnar.

As is known, precisely a year ago, in January, two former government officials were arrested at the Polish presidential palace, despite both having received presidential pardons. Mariusz Kaminski, Poland's former interior minister, and Maciej Wasik, the former deputy interior minister, were subjected to disgraceful treatment, with several opposition politicians calling the events a coup, while former PM Mateusz Morawiecki spoke of a return to one of the darkest periods in Poland’s history, describing his fellow party members as “political prisoners.”

Finally, beyond the personal vendettas against various conservative politicians and former government officials, the Tusk government also restructured the state's functioning based on rule of law in line with its own preference. 

As part of this, among other things, the parliament and government deliberately ignored the decisions of the Constitutional Court, violating the principles of the separation of powers and the rule of law; it discriminated against judges appointed after 2017, which runs counter to the Polish Constitution; and law enforcement agencies - in line with the ruling political will - were instructed to disperse opposition protests in an excessive and violent manner.

In light of all this, the Hungarian foreign minister’s previous comments become not only clearer but almost timelessly valid, as they aptly reflect Brussels’ long-standing approach based on double standards — which is nothing short of the unethical application of political discrimination. The only question is when the Western European elite, which continues to lose both competitiveness and political influence, will recognize the true risks of this game. Especially considering that, while political stability is under strain in Germany and France, a new political era will begin across the Atlantic in just a few days.

The author is a lead analyst at the Szazadveg Public Knowledge Center Foundation