Polish opposition party demand the release of two imprisoned members

The largest political bloc in the Polish parliament and current opposition party, Law and Justice (PiS), demanded the immediate release of imprisoned MPs, Mariusz Kaminski and Maciej Wąsik.

PiS members interrupted and stalled Tuesday’s parliamentary proceedings watched by the wives of the jailed MPs, who had been invited by the group to observe the debate.

Speaker Szymon Holownia called on lawmakers to stay calm and allow the debate to start.

Kaminski and Wasik were convicted of abuse of power for actions taken in 2007 when they served in an earlier PiS-led government.

President Andrzej Duda pardoned the two in 2015, but legal experts argued the pardons were illegitimate as presidential pardons are reserved for cases that have exhausted all routes of legal appeal – which Kiminski and Wąsik had not.

Tuesday’s incident comes as the government led by Donald Tusk, and President Duda find themselves at odds.

Duda is closely aligned with PiS, and is making it clear that he will oppose Tusk’s agenda. His second and final term as president runs until mid-2025.

After a meeting between the two on Monday, the president said their discussions were  on Kamiński and Wąsik’s arrests.

Duda is seeking to pardon them again via a lengthy legal procedure, and has appealed to the chief national prosecutor.