The head of Poland’s Supreme Court has arrived for work surrounded by hundreds of supporters, rejecting a controversial law forcing dozens of senior judges to retire early.
Chief Justice Malgorzata Gersdorf, 65, had been told to step down at midnight on Tuesday and a replacement was named.
She has branded the reforms, which require judges to retire at 65 instead of 70, a “purge”.
Poland’s prime minister defended his government’s drive to impose changes.
“Every EU country has the right to develop its judicial system according to its own traditions,” Mateusz Morawiecki said in a speech to the European Parliament on Wednesday.
Up to 40% of Supreme Court judges are expected to be forced out, as part of changes which the government argues will help fight corruption and replace judges who date back to a communist era that collapsed in 1989.
On Monday the European Union launched legal action against Poland’s right-wing government, saying the law undermined judicial independence. Some Euro MPs listened to the Polish leader’s speech behind signs that read “rule of law”.
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There were protests in several Polish cities against the reforms late on Tuesday, including outside the Supreme Court in Warsaw.
Hundreds of supporters returned on Wednesday morning to greet Prof Gersdorf on her arrival with chants of “constitution” and “we are with you”. A number of colleagues also welcomed her as she addressed the protesters at the entrance. , vowing to defend the rule of law.
What is the row about?
The new law imposes a new retirement age for judges of 65. Presidential assent is required for those who wish to stay on. Judges had until Tuesday to apply to stay on.
Twenty-seven out of 73 Supreme Court judges were 65 or over.
While some did apply to stay on, according to Polish media, Prof Gersdorf was one of 11 judges who refused to make such an appeal.
The judge, an outspoken critic of the governing Law and Justice (PiS) party, has insisted that under Poland’s constitution she should remain in her post until 2020.
She has called the government’s move “a purge of the Supreme Court conducted under the guise of retirement reform”.
Source: BBC news
