Latest

The European Court of Human Rights held last week that the conviction of Izabela Lewandowska-Malec for a letter, in which she had expressed critical opinions about mayor of Świątniki Górne, had violated the applicant’s right to freedom of expression (Application no. 39660/07).

The Head of the Office for Foreigners admitted the HFHR’s complaints directed to the Provincial Administrative Court in Warsaw before their submittal to the Court. He acknowledged that the submissions raised are fully justified. As a consequence, administrative bodies will be once again processing the case of issuing the Polish travel documents for two Iraqis.

The ECtHR inquired Prime Minister Donald Tusk to provide the expected date of developing the report on the enforcement of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights in Poland.This issue was discussed at the meeting of the Committee for Justice and Human Rights of the Sejm, the lower Polish parliamentary chamber, held in April 2012.

On 11 September 2012, the European Parliament adopted a resolution on alleged transportation and illegal detention of prisoners in European countries by the CIA. The draft of the resolution was prepared by the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs. Hélène Flautre was the Committee’s Rapporteur.

The Ministry of National Defence has announced its plans to purchase unmanned combat air vehicles (UCAVs, also known as “drones”) to be used by an independent combat unit. The MND stresses that its intention is to properly adapt the military potential of the Polish army to the type and scale of today’s security threats.

Following the arrest of Mariusz Dzierżawski, a board member of the Pro Foundation – Right to Life, the HFHR sent a letter to the President of the District Court in Słubice, questioning the legal basis for and legitimacy of Mr Dzierżawski’s arrest.

Polish law does not provide any possibility for same-sex couples to enter into a civil partnership. Neither does it guarantee equal access to social benefits and tax credits related to the protection of family life. For this reason, two Polish women who for the last 8 years have been in a stable same-sex relationship, complained against Poland to the ECtHR.

According to the information provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Polish Government presented to the European Court of Human Rights its position in the case al-Nashiri vs. Poland. The Government of the Republic of Poland – pursuant to Rule 33(1) of the Rules of Court – filed a motion to limit public access to all case files on the grounds that their public disclosure could harm the interest of the pending pre-trial proceedings in Poland. The decision as to the method and scope of making the positions of the parties known to the general public will now be taken by the Court.

This is the key point of the judgment pronounced by the Supreme Administrative Court in a landmark case concerning a denial of access to public information on the use of GPS devices in police surveillance. The SAC accepted all the submissions raised by the HFHR in the cassation complaint and referred the case to the Provincial Administrative Court in Warsaw for reconsideration.