Police deployed during stand-off over control of Poland's top court
A political stand-off over Poland's top court, the Constitutional Tribunal, has broken out after the government suspended its two senior justices and moved to bring criminal charges against them.
TL;DR
- The Polish government suspended the President and Vice-President of the Constitutional Tribunal and is seeking to press criminal charges against them.
- The Constitutional Tribunal declared the government's actions a "coup d'etat" and stated the two justices remain legally appointed.
- Opposition politicians from the Law and Justice (PiS) party protested the move outside the court in Warsaw, leading to police deployment.
- Prime Minister Donald Tusk defended the actions as necessary to restore the rule of law, a process he described as difficult and requiring decisive action.
- The dispute over the Constitutional Tribunal's independence has been ongoing since the PiS-led government took office in 2015, with European courts ruling that some judges were improperly appointed.