Polish President Cancels Senegal Trip After Police Enter Tribunal in Escalating Rule-of-Law Crisis
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President Karol Nawrocki cut short his flight to Senegal and returned to Warsaw after police entered the Constitutional Tribunal and its suspended president, Bogdan Swieczkowski, was removed from duties amid a deep political standoff.
Polish President Karol Nawrocki aborted his scheduled trip to Senegal on Friday, turning his aircraft around and stating on X that he must remain in Poland given the alarming developments at the Constitutional Tribunal. Police entered the tribunal’s premises after disturbances outside the building, including the throwing of dangerous objects, and the court announced on its website that its president, Bogdan Swieczkowski, had been suspended.
The suspension is the latest symptom of a long-running political conflict that has crippled the tribunal and left it largely unable to function. Earlier this year, Nawrocki, an ally of the former Law and Justice (PiS) government, declined to swear in three of six judges nominated by parliament, while Swieczkowski, a former deputy justice minister under PiS, refused to allow judges appointed by the current parliamentary majority to assume their duties.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk said restoring the rule of law is the government’s responsibility, adding that the process is “difficult, at times even painful, and requires decisive action.” Justice Minister Waldemar Zurek said he has asked for the lifting of immunities for Swieczkowski and his deputy for obstructing judges from performing their work. PiS politicians, including leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski, accused Tusk’s government of conducting a coup against the tribunal.