Hungary’s decision to grant political asylum to MP Marcin Romanowski, who is wanted by the Polish authorities, has led to a dispute between Warsaw and Budapest. Romanowski was deputy justice minister in the PiS government that was voted out of office in 2023. Poland’s public prosecutor general has charged him with corruption and embezzlement of public funds. The polarisation of society is reflected in the press in both countries.
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Setting a precedent
Hungary is disregarding the rule of law, Gazeta Wyborcza criticises:
“The Romanowski case sets a precedent. Just as there has never been a situation in Poland in which a court has ordered the arrest of a sitting member of parliament, there has not yet been a situation in the EU in which political asylum has been granted to a person wanted on a European arrest warrant. … We must not forget that Hungary is biased in this case: a failing oligarchy where the powerful flout the law. If it were a constitutional state, many of Prime Minister Orbán’s associates, and perhaps he himself, would already be in prison for corruption.”
A flop for Tusk
The Polish government has let things get completely out of hand, the PiS-affiliated outlet wPolityce puts in:
“One thing is clear: in a few days’ time, people will be talking around Christmas tables. The number one topic will be prices – for butter, energy and everything else. But now there is a second big topic: the Hungarian asylum for Romanowski and its international consequences. Both topics have one thing in common: they are proof of the incompetence of Donald Tusk’s government. Catching Romanowski before Christmas was supposed to be a spectacular success. Now it’s become a spectacular flop.”
Not for the first time
Hungary is once again disregarding the decision of a foreign court, hvg complains:
“The case is similar to the Gruevski affair of 2018, when the former Macedonian head of government was smuggled into Hungary in Hungarian diplomatic cars after a court in Skopje had sentenced the politician, who was involved in financial scandals and moving closer to Putin, to two years in prison for white-collar crimes. … It’s clear that the Hungarian government won’t send the politician home. … [And in the current case] it is certain that the questioning of the Polish rule of law will further undermine the already unfriendly relations between Hungary and Poland.”
EU looking on idly
The pro-government newspaper Mandiner sees good reason to doubt the rule of law in Poland:
“Parliament and government are deliberately ignoring the decisions of the Constitutional Court, seriously violating the principles of the separation of powers and the rule of law, as well as the provisions of the Polish constitution. The centre-left parliamentary majority has even adopted a resolution declaring the body’s decisions invalid. The EU and its institutions, which have so often expressed concern about the rule of law in Hungary and in Poland under the PiS government, have been silent about the Tusk government’s approach over the past year and are even rewarding it.”