The film "Corpus Christi" by Jan Komasa has been shortlisted for an Oscar. It was chosen as one of ten films, out of 91, for Best International Feature Film.

The Polish 1970 strikes have become a symbol for Poles. Tuesday marked 49 years since the militia fired shots at workers on the Polish seaside. Of these 49 were killed and more than 1.000 wounded.

Thirty years ago, Leszek Balcerowicz unleashed the "shock therapy" that put Poland on the path to rapid economic growth after decades of communist rule. Business boomed, the economy expanded and the former finance minister and central bank chief won plaudits in the West for his reforms. But after three decades of economic progress, Balcerowicz says Poland's ability to keep catching up with the wealthier West is threatened by the policies of the ruling nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party.

"It’s unacceptable. Unacceptable. That’s why the European Commission has already launched a sanction procedure against Poland for violating the rule of law principle, that of separation of powers, and of independence of courts. These are fundamental principles of European democracy," said the head of the Paris Bar Association, Marie-Aimée Peyron in an interview for TVN24. The French lawyer was referring to a legislation submitted to parliament on December 12 by Poland's ruling PiS party, under which judges could be sacked if they question the legitimacy of its judicial reforms. The bill also says judges must inform their superiors of past membership of political parties and of any activity in non-governmental organisations and on social media.

Poland could end up leaving the European Union because of plans by the ruling nationalists that would allow judges to be fired if they question the legitimacy of the government's judicial reforms, the Supreme Court said on Tuesday.

The EU Parliament has spoken on Polish judicial reform. In Strasbourg a debate was held on the rule of law in Poland and Hungary. Law and Justice MEPs tries to defend the changes, but failed to convince their counterparts.

For the moment there will be no more adoptions of animals. The shelter in Bełchatów has suspended them. This means that people will not be able to bring a new pet home for the holidays. The shelter has perfectly good intentions for making this decision.

Olga Tokarczuk donated her Nobel Prize replica to the 28th Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity. It was hand-made with silver and covered in gold and has already gone to the auction. The grand finale will take place on the 12th of January.

The oldest was 48, the youngest - 19, and there was 9 of them in total. They all died from militia bullets, whereas 23 were injured. Monday marked the 38th anniversary of the bloody pacification of miners at the "Wujek" coal mine by the military and militia.

There was no veto from the Polish prime minister, so the EU climate neutrality goal will still include Poland. Organisations that deal with climate politics note that the only thing Mateusz Morawiecki brought back from Brussels was a 6-month delay in an unchangeable decision. This means that Europe would be the first continent to achieve climate neutrality, and for the moment, the only one.

Questions are being asked of the Supreme Audit Office (NIK) President - on huge sums of money, on how he had 200.000 zlotys at his home, on why he didn't put 2 million zlotys on his asset declaration. "Dziennik Gazeta Prawna" poses these questions about Marian Banaś' assets. Meanwhile, the Central Anti-Corruption Bureau has doubts on the issue. The prosecutor is investigating, and the head of Law and Justice admits that the party hopes the NIK president will be guided by common sense and resign.

Representatives of Allies countries and Germany gathered in Bastogne - a small town in the Belgian Ardennes - on Monday (December 16) to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge, the bloodiest single engagement for U.S. forces in World War Two.

The European Union should bypass national governments that flout democratic standards and deal directly with municipalities as they can perform "miracles" in areas such as climate change, the mayors of four eastern European capital cities said on Monday.

The European Commission said on Monday it would closely examine whether a new Polish draft law undermines the independence of the judiciary, amid tensions between Brussels and Warsaw over democratic standards.

Poland's main opposition group, the centre-right Civic Platform (PO), picked a party veteran - Małgorzata Kidawa-Błońska - known for building consensus on Saturday as its contender to unseat nationalist ally Andrzej Duda in a presidential election next year.

"Discriminatory, illegal and against the constitution" - this is what the Commissioner for Human Rights had to say about resolutions passed by some local governments that targets the "LGBT+ ideology". Adam Bodnar has sent the list of objections and complaints to the administrative courts.

The 13th of December marks the 38th anniversary of martial law in Poland. Former Polish President Lech Wałęsa, and Mayor of Gdańsk Aleksandra Dulkiewicz placed flowers at the memorial for those who lost their lives.

Polish judges could be sacked if they question the legitimacy of judicial reforms, under draft legislation that the nationalist government has introduced, in a move set to deepen a row between Brussels and Warsaw over democratic standards. Many Polish judges and legal experts protest against the planned reforms and dismiss them as further violation of the constitution and EU law.

A cave that has become a huge trash heap has now been deemed a health hazard. Spelunkers from the Cave Patrol decided to test dust and particles from the Jaskinia z Filarami in the Sudetes. Unfortunately, the worst fears were confirmed. Among the waste there's mainly asbestos, possibly several tonnes of the dangerous material.

Poland sees limited room for diplomacy and dialogue with Russia, a senior Polish official said, despite attempts by French President Emmanuel Macron to persuade Warsaw to rethink its relationship with Moscow. European Union leaders meeting in Brussels have agreed to extend their main economic sanctions against Russia for six months to the end of July 2020.