Poland 'Coup' Claims Explained: Top Court Chief Suspended, Police at Tribunal, President Flies Home

A long-running fight over Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal boiled over on Friday, Oct. 30. The court’s president was declared suspended, police moved onto the tribunal’s grounds in Warsaw, and President Karol Nawrocki turned his plane around mid-flight to Senegal.

Opposition leaders called it a “coup.” The government of Prime Minister Donald Tusk says it is restoring the rule of law. To be clear about what is and isn’t known: there is no report of a military takeover or an attempt to overthrow Poland’s government. The “coup” language is a political accusation in a dispute over who legitimately runs the country’s top constitutional court.

What happened in Poland on Oct. 30

According to Reuters and Euronews:

• The tribunal’s chief was suspended. A notice on the tribunal’s website said court president Bogdan Święczkowski and vice president Bartłomiej Sochański had been suspended from their duties. Euronews reported the decision was attributed to Judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska, who is acting as head of the court. Euronews also noted, citing the Polish daily Fakt, that it was initially unclear who posted the notice.
• Police moved in. Police said officers entered the tribunal’s premises after incidents outside, including dangerous objects thrown at police, Reuters reported. Police said they acted after letters from Prosecutor General Waldemar Żurek and from Korwin-Piotrowska raising safety concerns about protests and possible threats to judges and staff, according to Euronews. Police said officers were respecting the tribunal’s independence.
• Prosecutors sought immunity waivers. Żurek, who is also justice minister, said he had requested that the immunity of Święczkowski and his deputy be lifted, accusing them of preventing judges from doing their work, Reuters reported.
• The president flew back. “At a moment like this, the President must be in Poland. I am cutting short my flight to Senegal. I am returning,” Nawrocki wrote on X, per Reuters. Euronews said he landed in Warsaw around 9:40 p.m. local time.

Why the ‘Poland coup’ claims?

The tribunal’s own account on X disputed the move, saying its website had been unlawfully taken over, that Święczkowski remained president, and that those involved had committed a “coup d’état,” Euronews reported.

Law and Justice (PiS) leader Jarosław Kaczyński called it an attack on the tribunal and said Poland was becoming a police state, according to Euronews. Reuters reported that PiS politicians, including Kaczyński, said Tusk’s government was carrying out a coup on the tribunal. The leader of the right-wing Confederation party also said it was “probably simply a coup,” Euronews reported.

Święczkowski, who arrived at the tribunal Friday evening, accused Korwin-Piotrowska of usurping control and said decisions made by “these usurpers” were unlawful. He said he would meet Nawrocki to decide next steps, Euronews reported. Supreme Court First President Zbigniew Kapiński also issued a statement expressing strong objection to the day’s actions.

What Donald Tusk said

Tusk defended the moves. “After years of lawlessness under PiS, this process is difficult, at times even painful, and requires decisive action. There is no other way,” he wrote on X, according to Reuters.

The background: a tribunal at a standstill

The dispute has effectively paralyzed the tribunal, Reuters reported. Earlier this year, parliament elected six judges to fill vacancies. Nawrocki, an ally of PiS, refused to swear in some of them, and Święczkowski, a former deputy justice minister under PiS, declined to let judges chosen by the current majority take up their duties. Euronews reported that the European Court of Human Rights had issued an interim order telling authorities not to obstruct those judges, but the conflict continued.

At its core, the fight is over which judges are legitimate and which state bodies get to decide. Both sides accuse the other of breaking the constitution, and the situation was still developing late Friday.

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