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Members of the Human Rights House Network (HRHN) express their concern to learn that the European Union is aiming at further reducing the ordinary budget of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. The NGOs call upon the European Union to support the work of the Office, by increasing its ordinary budget as a way to strengthen the impact of its work and cooperation by all States.

The HFHR prepared an observation report on the Independence March in Warsaw that took place on 11 November 2013. “The report is based only on the information prepared by ten independent observers from the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights who participated in the monitoring – on their reports and on their recorded video and photographic materials”, says Danuta Przywara, President of the HFHR. “Hence it should not be treated as comprehensive observation but as an objective summary of what the observers managed to see”, adds Ms Przywara.

On issuing decisions denying refugee status to foreigners, the Office for Foreigners (OF) automatically banned them from re-entering Poland, despite the fact that there was no legal ground for imposing such a ban. The [Polish] Refugee Council revoked such decisions. Only in September 2013 did the Office inform about its change of practice in this regard. Currently, the HFHR calls on the OF to revoke their negative decisions issued before a change of policy.

Last week, the Supreme Court heard the case of Łukasz Kasprowicz, a blogger charged with insulting on his blog the mayor of Mosina, Zofia Springer. The case has been pending for four years now. In January this year, the Circuit Court acquitted the blogger. However, the mayor of Mosina filed a cassation complaint with the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court reversed the judgment, remanding the case for retrial.

X.Y. and Z.W. submitted a petition to the Committee on Petitions of the European Parliament arguing that Poland violated their rights as European Union citizens. Petitioners noted that Poland’s refusal to enter in the Polish register of births, deaths and marriages the information about them concluding a civil partnership abroad had violated their right to a family life and free movement of persons.

Last week in Geneva, the Polish Government provided explanations to the UN Committee Against Torture regarding the periodic report on the implementation of the Convention against Torture. Wojciech Wegrzyn, Under-secretary of State at the Ministry of Justice led the Polish ten-member delegation.

The Constitutional Tribunal held on 29 October 2013 that internal regulations of guarded centres for foreigners which govern body searches were contrary to the Polish Constitution. The constitutional review was launched at the request of the Human Rights Defender.

In July, the HFHR inquired about actions taken by the Ministry of Interior in response to the reports regarding PRISM, a US surveillance programme. Replying to the inquiry, Piotr Stachańczyk, the Ministry’s Secretary of State, observed that the issue was the subject of a discussion within the EU and the negotiations between the EU and the US held in a special ad-hoc working group. In consequence of the above, the MI will base its further activities on both outcomes of the working group talks and decisions of other EU bodies involved in the issue.

Halina Bortnowska, Board member of the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, was presented with the Professor Zbigniew Hołda Award.