Police guarded Poland's Constitutional Tribunal as protesters opposed Bogdan Święczkowski's suspension. The confrontation deepened a long-running dispute over judicial independence and constitutional authority.The latest confrontation is part of a prolonged dispute over judicial independence in Poland, particularly the composition and functioning of the Constitutional Tribunal. (Credits: Reuters)A court under police guard, protesters challenging the government's move and a president abandoning an overseas trip midair - Poland's latest constitutional showdown had all the makings of a political crisis.At its centre is a bitter struggle over who controls the country's judiciary, pitting Donald Tusk's pro-European government against the opposition Law and Justice (PiS) party.Riot police were deployed after some demonstrators breached the court's perimeter fence and others threw objects at officers.
Police said three people were detained during the confrontation.The dispute intensified after Justice Minister Waldemar Zurek sought to strip wiczkowski and the tribunal's Vice-President Bartomiej Sochnaski of their immunity from prosecution to initiate criminal proceedings against them. The government's action has drawn strong criticism from PiS leaders, who accused Tusk's administration of undermining the country's constitutional order.
Polish President Karol Nawrocki, who is backed by PiS, also cut short his trip to Senegal to return to Warsaw amid the developments. Nawrocki was travelling to attend the Summer Youth Olympic Games in Dakar when he announced that he was turning back."At a moment like this, the President must be in Poland.
I am cutting short my flight to Senegal. I am returning," he wrote on X.
According to his chief of staff, Nawrocki later entered the Constitutional Tribunal.- Ends