14/05/2007 (Agence Europe) - The President of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert Pöttering, has welcomed the decision of the Constitutional Court of Poland which, on 11 May, largely invalidated the law of de-communisation, including the article which forced politicians, magistrates and managers of State-run companies to declare, on pain of losing their job, whether or not they had collaborated with the communist secret police. It is on the basis of this article that the Polish government wished to withdraw the mandate of MEP Bronislaw Geremek, who refused to sign this declaration (EUROPE 9414 and 9415). The Court has taken a “wise decision” by making clear that a directly elected member cannot be deprived of his mandate for not providing such a declaration, stated Mr Pöttering in a press release. (hb)