The Sejm has rejected attorney Zuzanna Rudzińska-Bluszcz's bid to stand at the helm of the Office of the Commissioner for Human Rights. She was the only candidate running for the office. Deputy Speaker of the lower house Ryszard Terlecki announced the whole procedure of appointing a new ombudsman would start from the scratch.
In Thursday's vote, 237 MPs were against Zuzanna Rudzińska-Bluszcz becoming the new ombudsman, 201 were in favour, and 9 abstained.
Deputy Speaker of the Sejm Ryszard Terlecki said that the whole procedure would be launched once again. He scheduled a deadline for submitting candidates for Commissioner for Human Rights until October 27.
Rudzińska-Bluszcz enjoys support of many NGOs, and in August she received backing from Civic Coalition and The Left parliamentary groups.
In early October, the Sejm Justice and Human Rights Committee issued a negative opinion regarding Rudzińska-Bluszcz bid to become the Commissioner for Human Rights. The first vote on her candidacy took place on September 17. At the time the committee rejected her bid, but the vote was later nullified.
Zuzanna Rudzińska-Bluszcz was the sole candidate for human rights commissioner.
The 5-year term of the current ombudsman Adam Bodnar ended on September 9, however, in accordance with the law regulating his office, he keeps fulfilling his duties until a new commissioner has been appointed.
Delay in appointing a new Commissioner for Human Rights "may hamper the continuity and effective functioning of this important constitutional body" - Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatovic wrote in a letter to Poland's Minister of Foreign Affairs Zbigniew Rau.
Źródło: TVN24 News in English, PAP