“I decided to return to the Sejm, that is, to veto, the act on the Supreme Court and the act on the National Council of the Judiciary,” said Andrzej Duda in a statement on Monday. He announced he would submit his own drafts of these acts. We have selected the most important statements in the President's speech.
1. “I also said [in the presidential campaign – ed.] that the President of the Republic of Poland must serve two great entities. He should serve the Polish people, the nation, and he should serve the Polish state. It is very hard to separate these two jobs, and especially these two entities.”
2. “The judiciary branch in Poland certainly needs reforms, on many levels. It needs reforms on the procedural level, it needs reforms on the formal level, but, regrettably, it also needs reforms on the ethical level. In many cases.”
3. “It is a disgrace when representatives of the judiciary branch say that judges are the most important, the highest caste. It is a disgrace when important representatives of the judiciary say that 10,000 zloty, which is a decent wage in Western Europe, and an excellent wage in Poland, is hardly sufficient to get by.”
4. “The change must not cause a split within society and the state. Such a split would take place if people felt that the judiciary branch was a source of injustice, and also if the state became oppressive and when people feared their own state.”
5. “Zofia [Romaszewska – ed.] told me something that struck me the most. [...] She said to me: Mr President, I lived in a state, in which the attorney general had incredible power, and in principle could do anything. I would not want a return to such as state.”
6. “The attorney general has never had any oversight power over the Supreme Court. Of course, he had oversight power – sometimes greater, sometimes smaller – over common courts. Anyone who read the election manifesto of the Law and Justice party knows that increasing the oversight power over common courts was part of the program. But not oversight power over the Supreme Court. No such claim was made. Neither was there a provision that the attorney general would decide to a large extent who could be a judge of the Supreme Court and who could not. Neither was it stated that, by setting rules for the Supreme Court, the attorney general would largely decide how the Court worked and what regulations it followed.”
7. “I want to state very clearly: there is no tradition in our country for the attorney general to intervene in the work and operation of the Supreme Court as an institution. Not to mention the judges. I agree with all those who say that it should not be so, and that we must not allow this to happen.”
8. “I regret that the draft law on the Supreme Court had not been presented to me as the President of the Republic before it was submitted to the Sejm. Because of this, I could not take part in the consultations, and neither could most other interested parties.”
9. “I said it was unacceptable that judges should be elected to the National Council of the Judiciary by a simple majority. Unfortunately, in the present state they would be. And I, as President, expressly reject this. Poland needs a reform of the judiciary very much. And I am absolutely in favor of a wise reform, one that will ensure efficient operation of the judiciary branch and will increase the sense of justice in Poland.”
10. “I, as President, feel deep in my soul that this act in its present form will increase neither the sense of security, nor the sense of justice, and therefore I made my decision accordingly and take responsibility for it.”
11. “This was a quick decision, without procrastination. The anxiety and agitation are clearly very great. […] I do not want this situation to escalate, because it would lead to a deeper split within society. Poland is a single country, and it needs peace. I feel co-responsible for this as President.”
12. “A state which is rocked by disturbances. A state which is torn apart by political war cannot make progress, as it would if there was peace. Therefore, I appeal for this peace and reason to the lawmakers, those who are the majority in parliament today, as well as to politicians of the opposition.”
13. “The only way to overthrow a government is through elections, never in the street. One may use the street to demonstrate, to show one's dissatisfaction.”
14. “The act on the Supreme Court and the National Council of the Judiciary will not become part of the Polish legal system. These acts must be fixed, so that they can be accepted. They must be acceptable to everybody, including those who will not be perfectly happy with them. While it is impossible to write laws that will make everybody perfectly happy, no law should inspire so much controversy. This is absolutely unacceptable.”
15. “I want to fix these laws, taking advantage of the presidential legislative initiative. So that the Polish judiciary branch and life in Poland in this respect can improve. So that Poland becomes a better country, more friendly to its citizens, and at the same time the state becomes stronger, but also just, secure and one in which people can feel comfortable. This is my responsibility as President.”
Źródło: tvn24.pl/tłumaczenie Intertext.com.pl