Now one can observe what’s been predictable, but one could also have had some illusions that the machine would not have moved with full force. It is about reforming the judiciary in Poland and the response to it of the European Commission, the European Parliament, the Venice Commission, various legal bodies both national and international, and the ruling politicians in individual countries.

But the machine moved, because it had been designed to do so. After Law and Justice took over the power in Poland, the courts were to be the last instance protecting the interests of the opposition in the country; the interests of foreign states, international organizations and corporations, interest groups, lobbies, pressure groups and all those who wanted to get some slice of the cake in Poland. The courts were to prevent the reconstruction of Poland in accordance with the will of the parliamentary majority. And Law and Justice were aware of that and therefore decided to change the judiciary.

But all the above mentioned forces immediately reacted to it, so that Poland would not get out of their nets. Because the courts, as the power that has the last word, are really able to stand in the way of all changes. It is also the Court of Justice of the European Union that, in the last instance, can withdraw Polish judicial reforms, if lawyers, politicians and interest groups in Poland fail to block them first.

It is now obvious that any comprehensive reform of the judicial system would have triggered exactly the same reactions that we have been observing for many months. Niggling nuances are irrelevant.

The united right wing had struck at the instance that guaranteed the status quo ante, which is why it had been attacked and rebuffed. And this is a non-negotiable situation. One can, of course, conduct various talks, make concessions, but if you block the function of the judiciary as a guardian of the previous order and domination in Poland of all those who have been comfortably settled in the past 30 years and profited enormously, it will all be stonewalled. All of those things are happening before our very eyes.

The fact that the Constitutional Tribunal has been changed is actually a miracle, but the Supreme Court has already become a line beyond which the main rule is: no pasaran! Poland must not be allowed to free itself from the court’s grip, because it would be a very dangerous precedent, and above all, Poland would become truly sovereign. Not all the lawyers rebelling in Poland, especially judges, need to be aware of what is going on, but the leaders of these circles are fully aware.

Those leaders in the pre-reform period had had full control over the other authorities, even if they did not use their abilities to the fullest. But when there was a confrontation, they decided to use it. Maintaining control over Poland by all the forces that have an interest in it, through the courts, is extremely cheap for those involved. And it is very easy to persuade legal environments that are not aware of the wider context of this game, to become resistant, by referring to ideals and independence, and on the other hand, by presenting Law and Justice as a deadly threat to the extraordinary caste, its social position, its interests, its advantages and immunities (not only in a literal sense) that they use. This means that many lawyers may play in this conflict a very useful role being at the same time totally unaware of it.

The leaders of the legal resistance movement in Poland and all those interested abroad know perfectly well what threatens them. That is why they organized a cumulative attack as soon as they realized that the rulers in Poland have a comprehensive plan, and that this plan is really dangerous for those for whom Poland, controlled by the judges, had no chance for any emancipatory movements.

Regardless of whether it was about billions taken out of Poland, or the position of big companies or political influence, when the judges in Poland and all their supporting forces did not manage, the Court of Justice of the European Union was launched, being the most important status quo ante fuse.

The European Commission, the Council of the European Union or the European Council are not an effective tool because their hands are tied by the European treaties. The CJEU is not bound by anyone and anything, because it can decide on everything, even if it is at odds with logic and common sense. And the CJEU will do everything that everyone else expects from it. Only because it is the last line of defense that cannot be obtained in any other way.

The situation we have been witnessing is not an ordinary conflict of reasons and positions, but a war which aims to prevent Poland from becoming independent. And the European Union has its atomic weapon called CJEU which is used in such instances. Of course, it will never use it against a more equal one, but it will always be ready to use it against heretics and religious outcasts, that are at present Poland and Hungary. This is actually a dead end if you do not want to leave the European Union. And even when such a strong Member State as the United Kingdom decides to do so, it must pay a huge price. This is how the European Union works; a community of equal and self-respecting states. And therefore it needs to have nuclear weapons in the form of the CJEU.

If only the judicial reform were withdrawn, the atomic bomb would immediately be returned to the storehouse; and Poland would return to its place as a milk cow and training ground for realizing all kinds of foreign interests.

Stanisław Janecki @St_Janecki

Tłum. KJ