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- Karol Nawrocki claims Constitutional Tribunal was forcibly taken over, warns of threat to Poland's internal security amid confrontation with government
UPDATES WITH TWO POLISH AMBASSADORS RESIGNED, STATEMENT FROM FOREIGN MINISTER
By Jo Harper
WARSAW (AA) - Polish President Karol Nawrocki called emergency talks with parliamentary parties Saturday, declaring that Poland's constitutional order had been violated following an overnight confrontation at the Constitutional Tribunal in Warsaw.
"Tonight, there was a violation of the constitutional order of the Republic of Poland and a forcible takeover of a constitutional state body," Nawrocki said.
The president made the statement after spending several hours inside the disputed court building. He cut short an official visit to Senegal and returned to Warsaw late Friday as tensions over control of the tribunal escalated.
He warned that the confrontation posed a threat to Poland's internal security.
"In connection with the threat to the internal security of the Republic of Poland, I am convening urgent consultations today with representatives of parliamentary forces in order to stabilize the political situation and restore constitutional order," he said.
After returning to Warsaw, Nawrocki met with First President of the Supreme Court Zbigniew Kapinski before traveling to the Constitutional Tribunal around 1 am.
Inside the building, he confronted Anna Korwin-Piotrowska and other judges whose status he and the tribunal's previous leadership reject.
"We are judges of the Constitutional Tribunal," Korwin-Piotrowska told him.
"You are not judges of the Constitutional Tribunal," Nawrocki replied, according to video recorded inside the building.
The president remained at the tribunal until shortly before 5 am.
He later called for police to leave the court grounds and said he has enabled Bartlomiej Sochanski, whom he recognizes as the tribunal's lawful vice president, to enter the building.
- Dispute over control of Constitutional Tribunal
The confrontation marked an escalation in the dispute between Nawrocki and Prime Minister Donald Tusk's government over the legitimacy and control of Poland's Constitutional Tribunal.
The standoff erupted Friday after Korwin-Piotrowska announced the temporary suspension of Tribunal President Bogdan Swieczkowski and Sochanski.
The tribunal's official account on US social media platform X, controlled by the previous leadership, rejected the move and claimed its website had been unlawfully taken over.
It also accused those involved of committing a "coup d'état."
Police were deployed around the tribunal but said they did not enter the building.
Tusk defended efforts to change institutions shaped during the eight years of government by the Law and Justice party, saying restoring the rule of law required "decisive action."
Justice Minister and Prosecutor General Waldemar Zurek, meanwhile, criticized Nawrocki's conduct inside the tribunal and called for prosecutors to examine the incident.
- 2 Polish ambassadors resign amid crisis
The political crisis also prompted the resignation of two Polish ambassadors.
Pawel Soloch, Poland's ambassador to Romania and a former senior official in President Andrzej Duda's administration, resigned Saturday.
Soloch said the "attempted unlawful takeover of the Constitutional Tribunal" meant he could no longer continue in his post.
His resignation followed that of Poland's ambassador to China, Jakub Kumoch, late Friday.
The government, meanwhile, defended the change of control at the tribunal. Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said in a statement on Saturday the "most senior judge of the new majority took control of the Tribunal building and asked police for protection.”
He said the “populist opposition unfortunately does not want to accept the loss of control over the Tribunal” and added: “The democratically elected government will continue to uphold the Constitution.”
