By Chris Jones - 24th April 2007
STRASBOURG: The European parliament descended into chaos on Wednesday over the stance taken by Polish MEP Bronislaw Geremek against the Warsaw government.
Geremek, a member of the Alde group in parliament, has refused to sign a declaration that he never collaborated with the Communist authorities in Poland – which means that he should technically be removed from his post.
The Pole, who is 75, has held numerous national government posts and has filled in similar declarations on many occasions, including when he stood as an MEP.
He argues that he has no need to sign a new declaration – and is taking a symbolic stance against the new law which has been criticised for stigmatising journalists and academics in particular.
“In my opinion, demanding that I submit again a declaration under the threat of losing my mandate is contradictory to the rule of law and disregards the will of 121,805 voters,” he said in a statement.
“It is contradictory to the constitutional principle of the respect for human dignity.”
“I believe that this law as it is, violates moral rules, threatens freedom of speech, media freedom, and the autonomy of universities.”
“It creates a kind of ‘ministry of truth’, a ‘memory police’ and it makes citizens defenceless when facing a smear campaign, weakening the legal protection of their rights.”
“To this demand that urges me to subordinate to a humiliating procedure I have only one answer - I refuse.”
Although the Polish central election committee has made no formal request to parliament to revoke Geremek’s status, MEPs took the opportunity to criticise what they clearly saw as the heavy handedness of the government in Warsaw.
Socialist group leader Martin Schulz said that Geremek could expect “unlimited solidarity” from his group, echoing Geremek’s own group leader, Graham Watson.
“We expect the president of the European parliament to tell the Polish government that MEPs will be protected,” Schulz said.
Green group leader Daniel Cohn-Bendit said that parliament had to “stand up against the nutters in parliament” who wanted to see Geremek stripped of his post – a dig at the MEPs from the ruling party in Poland who were heckling him.
Bruno Gollnish, head of the new far-right group Indepence, Tradition, Sovereignty, accused MEPs of double standards, preparing to defend one of their own against national politicians when in the past they had argued that national laws took precedence.
Gollnish himself – as well as his national party leader Jean-Marie Le Pen – was given no protection by parliament when accused of using hateful and racist language by national parliamentarians in France.
The hemicycle descended into chaos as many MEPs - particularly those from the ruling party in Poland - found their calls for speaking time refused by the chairman.
The Polish law has been strongly criticised by opposition parties, who argue that it is unfairly victimising people years after the end of the Communist regime.
They argue that many people feel obliged to sign the declaration because they risk losing their jobs.
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