According to former prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki, there are "political prisoners" in Poland for the first time since the time of General Wojciech Jaruzelski, who declared martial law in 1981.

Grazyna Ignaczak-Bandych, head of the head of state's office, told TV Republika commercial news: Kaminski and Wasik were guests of the head of state, and the police broke into the presidential palace when President Andrzej Duda had already left because Sviatlana Tsyhanouszka, the Belarusian opposition leader, was accompanied by a went to a meeting with members of the Belarusian opposition.

Several Polish opposition politicians called what happened a coup. According to former prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki, there are "political prisoners" in Poland for the first time since the time of General Wojciech Jaruzelski, who declared martial law in 1981.

"Police invade presidential palace to arrest opposition MPs pardoned by president"

- can be read in the X entry of former government spokesman Piotr Müller, a PiS representative.

Szymon Szynkowski vel Sek, former Minister of Foreign Affairs, PiS representative, said what happened

"they show the rule of lawlessness, they are an international shame, the likes of which have not happened since 1989".

In December, the court sentenced Kaminski and Wasik to two years in prison for the excesses they committed in 2007 in the context of the anti-corruption fight. However, President Andrzej Duda already pardoned them in 2015. The clemency decision sparked a legal dispute, its opponents argued that it could not be granted, as the first-instance verdict was not yet final.

In June of this year, the Supreme Court ordered a new trial against Kaminski and Wasik, and based on the verdict in December, the Warsaw District Court initiated the transportation of Kaminski and Wasik to prison on Monday.

The police already tried to arrest the two politicians at their residence on Tuesday morning. Meanwhile, Kaminski and Wasik left for the presidential palace, where they took part in an official event in the morning at the invitation of Andrzej Duda. At the press conference held in the forecourt of the presidential palace in the afternoon, the two politicians underlined: they are not hiding, they are currently guests of the head of state, but if they go to jail, they will become political prisoners. After the declaration, they returned to the palace.

We didn't have to wait long, the Polish ballibs have already shown their true colors

At his Tuesday afternoon press conference, Prime Minister Donald Tusk called it disturbing that the head of state is "participating in the chaos and conflict affecting the state system." Citing the criminal code, Tusk underlined that anyone who hides the perpetrator of a crime is criminally responsible. He added: with the quote, he wants to make Duda aware of "what he got involved in".

The new Minister of the Interior, Marcin Kierwinski, wrote on the social network X: "everyone is equal before the law".

According to the statement of the office of the head of state, on Tuesday evening, with the participation of Andrzej Duda, the office began consultations regarding what happened. Grazyna Ignaczak-Bandych later announced on Catholic television TV Trwam:

the president will inform other heads of state and international institutions in a letter about the "unlawful and constitutional actions" of the Polish executive.

Hundreds of protesters gathered in front of the presidential palace on Tuesday evening, demanding the release of Kaminski and Wasik. A larger group of protesters also appeared in front of the Warsaw police station where the two representatives were taken. Several PiS politicians were present, including party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski.

According to a late evening police statement, the two convicts were taken to a prison in Warsaw. Kaczynski and PiS politicians also marched in front of the prison building.

"We are with you!"

they chanted. Speaking to reporters, Kaczynski accused the governors of "reckless constitutional violations".

MTI

Featured image: MTI/PAP/Adam Warzawa