Adam Bodnar will discuss Poland’s illiberal turn and rule-of-law battle with the EU at the ARENA lecture on 11 november. How should Brussels and Oslo push back against Warsaw’s democratic backslide? What can the EU do when a member state so openly defies basic European values?

Since the Law and Justice Party (PiS) entered into government in Poland in 2015, it has been dismantling the rule of law. Through a number of judicial reforms, the government has gained influence over the judicial branch, challenging the separation of powers. The developments have lead to stark criticism from the EU and its Court of Justice. In 2021, the rule of law crisis entered a new phase, as Poland refused to comply with the judgments from the EU Court of Justice and the European Court of Human Rights. In October this year, Poland’s controversial top court decided that parts of EU law is incompatible with national legislation, causing protests in Poland and escalating the rule of law dispute between Warsaw and the EU. Some fear that it is the beginning of a road towards ‘Polexit’.

In this lecture, Adam Bodnar asks: what can the EU do when a member state so openly defies basic European values? Should the EU use another set of sanctions, including conditionality on funding certain projects? What if those sanctions are also futile? The rule of law crisis in Poland does not only threaten the future of a democratic Poland, but also causes an existential threat to the entire European Union. What if similar approaches are used by other populist governments?

Adam Bodnar
Adam Bodnar is a Polish lawyer and professor. In 2015 he was appointed as the Ombudsman for Citizen Rights, where he brought a number of local governments to court for their introduction of LGBT-free zones. He has received the Rafto Memorial Prize for his work on the promotion of fundamental human rights (2018), and the Rule of Law Award from the World Justice Project for his efforts in strengthening the rule of law in difficult circumstances (2019). In April 2021, Bodnar was ousted as Ombudsman by the Constitutional Tribunal of Poland. Bodnar is Professor of Law and Dean of the Law Faculty of the SWPS University of Social Sciences and Humanities in Warsaw.

About the ARENA lecture
The ARENA Lecture is a long-standing tradition at the University of Oslo. In this lecture series, ARENA invites politicians and other influential persons to hold an open lecture on a topic that is both of academic and public interest.

 

ARENA-forelesningen 2021: Den polske rettsstaten for fall

Adam Bodnar, jurist, menneskerettsaktivist og tidligere ombudsmann for menneskerettigheter i Polen, holder årets ARENA-forelesning den 11. november.

Siden lov- og rettferdighetspartiet (PiS) kom til makten i Polen i 2015, har de gjennomført en rekke reformer som har gitt regjeringen politisk kontroll over domstolene. Dette har ført til sterk kritikk både fra EU og norske aktører. Gjennom EØS-midlene gir Norge flere hundre millioner euro i støtte til utviklingsprogrammer i Polen, noe flere norske aktører har stilt seg kritiske til. I oktober i år, vedtok en polsk domstol at nasjonal rett kan ha forrang over europeisk rett, noe som gjør at mange frykter en såkalt «Polexit». Adam Bodnar vil diskutere den demokratiske tilbakegangen i Polen. Hvordan bør EU og Norge reagere?

Adam Bodnar
Adam Bodnar er en polsk jurist, professor og menneskerettighetsaktivist. I 2015 ble han Polens Ombudsmann for menneskerettigheter. I denne stillingen brakte han flere lokale myndigheter til retten for å opprette såkalte LGBT-frie soner. Bodnar har mottatt Raftoprisen for sin jobb med å fremme fundamentale menneskerettigheter i Polen (2018), og Rule of Law Award fra the World Justice Poject for sitt arbeid med å styrke rettssikkerheten i vanskelige omstendigheter (2019). I April 2021 bestemte Polens grunnlovsdomstol at Bodnar måtte gå av som ombudsmann. Bodnar er professor og dekan ved det juridiske fakultet ved SWPS University of Social Sciences and Humanities i Warszawa.

Om ARENA-forelesningen
ARENA-forelesningen er en tradisjon på Universitetet i Oslo. I forelesningsrekken inviterer ARENA politikere og andre toneangivende personer til å holde en åpen forelesning over et tema som både er akademisk interessant og har offentlig interesse.

Meld deg på her.