Violation of the rule of law by the new Polish Government and the Commission’s silence

Subject: Violation of the rule of law by the new Polish Government and the Commission’s silence

On 20 December 2023, the new Polish Government forcibly took over the public media. They fired board members and appointed their own people, brutally violating the Constitution and Polish law. They sent thugs to the headquarters of the public television, used physical violence to remove employees and took a public television channel off the air.

While the Commission has been vocal about the rule of law and media freedom in the case of Hungary, it is now completely silent. This silence suggests the application of double standards by the Commission on rule of law matters. We can easily imagine what would happen if all this had taken place in Budapest, under Prime Minister Orbán.

1. Does the Commission consider that the forcible takeover of public media, bypassing the appropriate legal procedures under national law, is compatible with the rule of law and respects media freedom and plurality?

2. How will the Commission ensure that respect for the rule of law is measured by the same standards in all Member States, irrespective of the government and its political positions?

Submitted:12.1.2024

Answer given by Vice-President Jourova on behalf of the European Commission (3 April 2024)

Respect for media freedom and pluralism is enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU. Public service media are important and have a crucial part to play in ensuring pluralistic public debate in the EU.

As the Commission’s annual rule of law report makes clear, ensuring the independence of public service media governance is a key element of the rule of law enshrined in Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union.

It is also an essential aspect of the Commission’s proposal for a European Media Freedom Ac t (1), on which the European Parliament and the Council recently reached an agreement.

The European Media Freedom Act includes, for the first time in EU law, specific rules on the appointment and dismissal of the management of public service media. The Act has not entered into force yet.

In its 2023 rule of law report (2), the Commission underlined that Poland had not taken steps to enhance the independent governance and editorial independence of public service media, amid concerns as regards independent reporting by public broadcasters.

The 2023 Media Pluralism Monitor (3) highlighted high risks in relation to the independence of public service media. The Commission recommended to Poland to strengthen the rules and mechanisms to enhance the independent governance and editorial independence of public service media taking into account European standards on public service media.

Given its role in democracy, it is important that the Polish public service media model observes relevant legal frameworks and high standard of editorial independence.

The Commission is following developments closely and will cover this in the forthcoming 2024 rule of law report at the latest.

1 ∙ ⸱ https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52022PC0457

2 ∙ ⸱ https://commission.europa.eu/publications/2023-rule-law-report-communication-and-country-chapters_en

3 ∙ ⸱ https://cmpf.eui.eu/media-pluralism-monitor-2023/