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After the conference in Interlaken the Committee of Experts on the Reform of the Court published a document called Implementation of the Interlaken Declaration. Draft Report on the Access to the Court – Fees for Applicants. In the document the Committee presented a possibility of introducing fees for applicants to the Court. Helsinki Foundation for Human Right believes it may imply a significant limitation to access to the European Court of Human Rights.

Human Rights Commissioner of the Council of Europe declared that there are still many European Countries that need to clarify the issue of their participation in CIA extraordinary rendition program. Since among these countries the Commissioner listed Republic of Poland as one, Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights filled a letter to Prosecutor General reiterating the appeal for immediate and full explanation of the issue.

In the days of 10-11 June 2010 a two-day training for lawyers on the application of the European Convention of Human Rights in the proceedings before national courts and European Court of Human Rights took place in the premises of the District Chamber of Legal Advisers in Warsaw. The seminar was the last one of the set of training courses organized by the National Chamber of Legal Advisers and Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights.

On the 15th June 2010, the District Court in Cracow dismissed a lawsuit against Mr. Paweł Wodniak – journalist of the portal “Fakty Oświęcim” for violation of personal interest. The Court ruled that a news report that merely mentions an individual’s involvement in a criminal proceeding does not constitute a violation of press laws, the rule of innocence, or journalism ethics.

27 May 2010 the District Court of Warsaw passed a verdict in the case regarding the problem of providing safety to the so-called whistleblowers. It upheld the sentence passed by the lower court and did not reinstated to work Piotr Sułek, ex-editor-in-chief of the weekly “Post Office”. The Court did indeed agree that the notice of leave was unjustified, but decided to grant Piotr Sułek compensation in the form of one pay in addition to the return of the costs of the proceeding.

The Special Rapporteur of the Human Rights Council visited Republic of Poland from 5-22 May 2009 at the invitation of the Government, and therein after published a report concerning the mission. The main purpose of the visit was to assess and understand Poland’s trajectory regarding sexual and reproductive health rights and harm reduction policies.

On 15 June 2010 European Court of Human Rights passed a judgement in the case Grzelak v. Republic of Poland (no. 7710/02). The Tribunal stated that the lack of factual access to ethics classes in Polish schools constitutes a violation by the authorities of the right to cultivate religion beliefs and is of discriminatory character.

On 26 May 2010 the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights submitted to the Constitutional Court an amicus curiae brief in the case no. K 36/09. The case concerns the compliance of the reduction of retirement benefits of former officers of the communist state security services with Polish Constitution and the European Convention on Human Rights.

A mission of more than 30 Belarusian, Lithuanian and Swedish young election observers are heading for Republic of Poland for this weekend. The monitors are going to observe the quality of election as Poles are voting for a new Head of State after the death of President Lech Kaczynski in a plane crash in the Russian Federation.