Poland and EU's points of view vary on several issues

Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-14 23:57:05|Editor: yan
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WARSAW, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- Poland's government has clashed with EU institutions several times recently, notably on the issues of judiciary system's reform, the logging of Bialowieza forest, migration crisis and the EC's reform proposals on the posted workers directive.

The judiciary system's reform, launched by the ruling Law and Justice party (PiS), has drawn criticism from the European Union, which has sent Warsaw several warnings, and finally ended up with the infringement procedure against Poland, launched by the European Commission on July 29th.

The European Commission frowned on the power invested in Polish justice minister to dismiss and appoint court presidents and accused it of undermining judicial independence. The Law on the Ordinary Courts Organization and the Law on the National School of Judiciary have finally entered in force.

Polish President, Andrzej Duda, however, decided to veto two of the three judicial bills aimed at reorganizing the Supreme Court and the National Council of the Judiciary (KRS), which were also subject to the European Union's criticism. The Polish government said the infringement procedure was "unjustified".

The EU also accused the reform of falling foul of gender equality in employment, as the law introduced a different retirement age for female and male judges. Same problem concerns the rest of society, after the government's decision to reintroduce a varied retirement age. Top EU officials for justice and gender equality reminded Poland that equal treatment was a key pillar of the EU.

Another source of conflict is the cutting in Bialowieza, ancient forest listed as the UNESCO heritage site. Located on Poland's eastern border with Belarus, it boasts unique plant and animal life. Large-scale logging authorized by the Polish government began in May 2016, allegedly to cease damage caused by a spruce bark beetle infestation.

On July 28, the EU top court ordered an immediate halt to logging in this place, except in situations threatening public safety. Earlier same month, the World Heritage Committee also strongly urged Poland to stop logging and wood extraction of the older parts of the forest.

Responding to this order, Polish Ministry of the Environment informed that the measures taken in Bialowieza Forest were in accordance with the Court's decision and only intended to ensure public safety.

The Polish government and the EU's attitudes vary also on the refugee issue. On July 26, the European Commission pressed ahead to the second stage of legal actions against the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland over refugee sharing for "non-compliance with their legal obligations on relocation". This move came a month and a half after the Commission launched infringement procedures by sending "letters of formal notice".

According to the Commission, Poland and Hungary haven't taken in any refugees since September 2015, when EU member states pledged to relocate a total of 160,000 migrants within two years. If the counties still refuse to comply, they might face a financial penalty.

Poland did not agree with this decision. Polish foreign minister Witold Waszczykowski said that forced resettlement cannot be associated with any kind of European policy and receiving migrants cannot be imposed by any European institution.

The country, on the other hand, has also criticized the EC for the reform proposals related to the posted workers directive, which, according to Polish deputy prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki, could undermine the competitiveness of the European economy

In 2016, the European Commission presented a draft amendment to posted workers directive, including the principle of equal pay for the same work in the same place. This means that an employee sent to work temporarily in another EU country would have to earn the same wage as the local worker doing the same tasks and obtain local benefits.

Poland claims these rules extremely unfavorable for Polish firms which delegate nearly half a million workers to western Europe. It would increase costs for companies sending employees to a country with higher labor costs, for example, Polish firms dispatching workers to Germany.

Criticizing the amendment, Morawiecki underlined that free movement of goods, capital, services and labor were the key elements of the EU's single market.

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