Poland - December 2023

Following a resolution by the Parliament’s lower house (the Sejm) to restore reliability and impartiality to public media, the current Minister of Culture removed the chairmen and boards of state-owned television, radio, and news agencies. The overhaul of state media was met with protests from the opposition, with PiS MPs staging a sit-in in the state news channel TVP’s headquarters. President Andrzej Duda called the move a violation of the Polish Constitution, stating that a resolution by the Sejm cannot be put above Polish law. While the state media has been heavily criticized by international observers for being influenced by PiS during its time in office, the sudden overhaul of state media by Donald Tusk’s government has raised concerns. The Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights has argued that the dismissal of public media management by a government minister contradicts the requirement for public media to be independent from political interference.

Sources: France 24, Notes from Poland (1), AP News, The Parliament, Notes from Poland (2), HFHR