Brussels, 04/01/2016 (Agence Europe) - The President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, has decided to include the question of respecting the principles of the rule of law in Poland at the meeting of the College of Commissioners on Wednesday 13 January.
This news was confirmed on Monday 4 January by Commission Spokesperson Margaritis Schinas. The Polish government has just passed a law on the media, which the European Commissioner for the Digital Economy, Günther Oettinger, believes is “contrary to European values”.
In an interview to the German Frankurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper on Sunday 3 January, the Commissioner even threatened Poland with proceedings covered by the mechanism on the rule of law and adopted by the Commission at the beginning of 2014. This contains a warning system when there is a risk to fundamental rights in a member state.
This procedure can issue preventive recommendations, with the ultimate option being the activation of Article 7 of the Treaty, which can lead to the suspension of the member state's voting rights at the Council of Ministers. Schinas explained, however, that the debate on 13 January would just be “an orientation debate” and not the launch of this “rule of law mechanism” procedure.
The European Commissioner for the Digital Economy criticised Poland on Sunday for having adopted a law that submitted public media to the control of the Conservative Party in power (Law and Justice, PiS). Oettinger stated “many things suggest that we activate the 'rule of law mechanism' and that we place Warsaw under surveillance”.
On 31 December, the Polish Senate, dominated by the Conservatives from the party of Jaroslaw Kaczynski, approved a controversial law hurriedly pushed through the previous day by MPs. It will now be up to the Treasury Minister to appoint and dismiss new public heads of media. Hitherto, they were chosen according to a procedure overseen by the National Audiovisual Council (KRRiT), explained the AFP.
On 31 December, the First Commission Vice President, Frans Timmermans, also sent two letters to the Polish government. One focused on the reform of the way in which the Constitutional Court operated and the other focused on the law on the media. With regard to the latter, Timmermans explained that “the freedom of the media and pluralism are crucial in pluralist societies of member states that respected the common values upon which the Union is founded”.
The European Parliament is expected to hold a debate during its forthcoming plenary session on Tuesday 19 January regarding the situation in Poland. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)