波兰总统杜达签署一项司法改革的法律后波兰一些城镇发生了成千上万人的示威。司法改革的目的是控制波兰包括最高法院在内的所有法院。
人群聚集在华沙总统府外，呼喊“耻辱”、“自由法院”和“我们将捍卫民主”等口号。
波兰及海外的人权组织以及欧盟指称波兰政府试图破坏司法独立。
但是波兰执政党说，需要通过改革来制止腐败，以及彻底改变源于波兰共产党时代的司法体制。
7月早些时候，波兰最高法院73名法官中包括首席大法官格尔斯多夫在内的大约三分之一法官被强迫退休，但是格尔斯多夫法官拒绝退休。她说，根据宪法，她的任期2020年结束。
杜达总统星期四签署的法律将让政府更容易取代格尔斯多夫法官，同时让执政党更容易挑选支持该政党的人担任法官。
欧盟委员会质疑波兰的司法改革，并开启了几项法律诉讼。波兰如果被认定破坏法治，将面临失去大笔欧盟援助的风险。
Thousands of people are protesting in towns and cities across Poland after President Andrzej Duda signed into law judicial reforms aimed at taking control of the country’s courts, including the Supreme Court.
Crowds gathered outside the presidential palace in Warsaw chanting “Shame”, “Free courts!” and “We’ll defend democracy!”
Human rights groups in Poland and abroad as well as the European Union have accused the government of trying to undermine the independence of the judiciary.
But the ruling party has said the reforms were needed to tackle corruption and overhaul a judicial system mired in Poland’s communist past.
Earlier this month, about a third of the Supreme Court’s 73 judges, including chief justice Malgorzata Gersdorf, have been forced to retire early.But Gersdorf has refused to step down, saying her constitutional term does not expire until 2020.
The law signed by Duda Thursday makes it easier to replace Gersdorf by making it more accessible for the ruling party to pack the courts with supportive judges.
The European Commission has questioned Poland’s judicial reforms and has opened several separate legal cases. Poland risks losing billions of euros in European aid if it is found to be subverting the rule of law.