-- THE PRIME MINISTER FROM GULFSTREAM, FLYING FROM TOKYO TO DAVOS, SPEAKS TO 300POLITYKA VIA EMAIL ABOUT HIS VISIT TO JAPAN AND PLANS FOR DAVOS: Prime Minister Morawiecki agreed to answer a few questions from 300POLITYKA via email, while aboard a government Gulfstream flying from Tokyo to Davos, concerning his visit to Japan and his plans for the World Economic Forum. The Prime Minister revealed what he is bringing to the most prestigious economic summit: “Davos is a kind of arena of opinions. Poland comes with a big message – we encourage the business community and political decision-makers to fight VAT fraud at the EU level and to combat tax havens. And we are reinforcing our message – it is time to start a determined fight against tax havens, which create global injustices and require global cooperation to tackle. These 'havens', meaning abuses and fraud, are unfortunately also present in Europe and within the European Union itself, which makes this discussion even more interesting.” -- The Prime Minister wrote to us about the behind-the-scenes of his long talks with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and the Japanese imperial couple. "We have similar geopolitical sensitivities. Japanese investments will help us achieve a technological leap,” the Prime Minister stated. "Recent years show that many economic forecasts by mainstream economists have not come true. As early as November 2015, I heard that we would lead the economy to ruin. Then dozens of economists predicted problems and growing public debt. Those were shots in the dark. The risk of a slowdown does indeed exist in Europe, and that is precisely why we want to immunize ourselves against these risks by launching a series of major infrastructure projects such as the CPK (Central Communication Port), high-speed railways, and modern energy. Japan can and wants to participate in the dynamic development of Poland and the Visegrad Group,” the Prime Minister wrote to us. -- We asked the PM how he responds to accusations that social spending is hindering development opportunities: “We are well aware that prosperity without development and modernization can become a short-lived adventure. And we do not want to subject Poland and Poles to such temporariness. That is why we are seeking new investments, including in Industry 4.0, high technologies, research and development, and modern transport infrastructure, which is the basis for any business. The implementation of a large part of these plans will set the Polish economy in motion at a pace it has perhaps never operated at before. This is a great, historic opportunity, and we intend to strengthen and utilize it,” the PM wrote. -- LAST EMAIL FROM THE PM IN THE MORNING: “I found a few more typos, corrected below.” -- FULL INTERVIEW FROM THE PLANE: https://300polityka.pl/news/2020/01/22/premier-mailuje-z-300polityka-z-samolotu-w-drodze-z-tokio-do-davos-mamy-podobna-wrazliwosc-geopolityczna-japonskie-inwestycje-pomoga-nam-dokonac-skoku-technologicznego/ ***** -- WILL PIS, KONFEDERACJA, AND PSL-KUKIZ PREVENT THE RESCUE OF ABANDONED ANIMALS? - ROBERT JURSZO IN OKO.PRESS: “MPs from PiS, Konfederacja, and PSL-Kukiz'15 want to strip animal welfare organizations of the right to intervene and rescue animals whose health and lives are at risk. The justification for the proposed changes is the desire to curb alleged abuses by animal protection organizations. However, this is a fringe issue – the fact is that it is mainly NGOs that save animals.” https://oko.press/poslowie-chca-zmienic-ustawe-o-ochronie-zwierzat/ -- FT PUBLISHES INTERVIEW BY JAMES SHOTTER WITH PRESIDENT DUDA - WE CANNOT ACCEPT THE SPREAD OF LIES: “The words of Vladimir Putin are a complete distortion of historical truth. We give it a very direct name, it is an ideology, it is a kind of post-Stalinist revisionism,” Mr Duda said in the presidential palace in Warsaw. “Some claim that this is propaganda-based hybrid warfare. Some experts claim that Putin’s words are used for the purpose of internal propaganda. For us, it doesn’t make a difference. For us, what matters is that this historical lie is being spread around the world. And we can absolutely not accept this.” -- POLAND WILL NOT AGREE TO SANCTIONS RELIEF - PAD CONTINUES IN FT: “Frankly speaking, in this context, my absence in Yad Vashem is a protest against the distortion of history by the Russian president,” he said. Mr Duda warned against any attempt to ease the EU’s sanctions against Russia, which, as well as annexing Crimea, fought a war with Georgia in 2008. “We continue to advocate and demand that the territorial integrity of both Ukraine and Georgia be preserved. It is absolutely unacceptable that in the 21st century, Russia is shifting borders in Europe by force,” he said. “We do not agree with policies that would lead to attempts at easing sanctions or lifting them and returning to business as usual with Russia. We believe that such behaviour will only embolden the aggressive behaviour of Russia, as the last 12 years have shown, starting with Russia’s attack on Georgia in 2008.” https://www.ft.com/content/5fef6336-3b81-11ea-b232-000f4477fbca -- WILL THE JAPANESE PARTICIPATE IN MAJOR INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS? - AS REPORTED BY RZ: “The Japanese are a potential partner in the construction of the Central Communication Port (CPK). Their experience in building both airports and high-speed railways can be very helpful in realizing one of the most ambitious infrastructure projects in Europe. These are the conclusions from Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki’s visit to Japan, which concluded on Tuesday, January 21. – The visit to Tokyo began a series of meetings with airport operators as part of the second stage of the technical dialogue. We want to complete the entire process within the dialogue in the first quarter of this year – Mikołaj Wild, president of the Central Communication Port company, who is a member of the delegation accompanying the prime minister, told 'Rzeczpospolita'. https://www.rp.pl/Lotnictwo/301219883-Japonczycy-coraz-blizej-CPK-Zbuduja-tez-koleje.html?cid -- EUROPE KNOWS PUTIN IS LYING - FRONT PAGE OF DGP: “The President of Russia may once again miss an opportunity to tell the truth about World War II. However, Europeans are not inclined to believe the narrative imposed by him. Regardless of Vladimir Putin’s propaganda campaign, the West knows the basic facts about the origins and course of World War II – according to an international survey by United Survey for Dziennik Gazeta Prawna and RMF FM. The majority of respondents believe that the Soviet Union was not drawn into the war in 1941, but was in it from September 1939, i.e., from the moment of the joint aggression with Nazi Germany against Poland.” https://wiadomosci.dziennik.pl/swiat/artykuly/6425316,ii-wojna-swiatowa-europa-putin-klamstwo-sondaz.html -- CRITICISM OF THE COURTS IS A COMFORTABLE AREA FOR PRESIDENT DUDA BUT WITH A BIG MINEFIELD - JACEK GĄDEK ON GAZETA.PL: “Duda’s fundamental dilemma is as follows. Poles can’t stand the courts and want reforms, but on the other hand, they love the European Union, and it is the EU that stands firm behind Polish courts. Two surveys prove this. In the one for 'Dziennik Gazeta Prawna' and RMF FM, to the question 'how do you assess the work of the courts?', 38% answered 'low', 32% answered 'average', and only 5% answered 'high'. One in four people didn't even have an opinion. Meanwhile, in a Eurobarometer survey, to the question 'are you happy with life in the EU?', as many as 84% of Poles said 'yes', and only 6% said 'no'. Therefore, criticizing the courts is a convenient field for Duda, but it's also a minefield, and the president is one step away from stepping on it.” -- FIRST FILL THE "ŻYLETA", THEN COMES THE TIME FOR THE "PICNICKERS" - GĄDEK'S FOOTBALL METAPHOR: “Speaking in the slang of Warsaw football fans: Andrzej Duda first fills the 'żyleta' (the standing-room-only section, known for the most passionate fans) with his 'ultras', and only then will it be time to fill the sections for the 'picnickers'. Because without a full 'żyleta' – in Poznań, one might say 'kocioł' (cauldron), and in Szczecin, 'paprykany' – there is no spectacular atmosphere. On the other hand, without 'picnickers', there is no full stadium. And how do you attract 'picnickers'? You can draw them to stadiums with low ticket prices or the promise of an excellent spectacle. In politics, the equivalents will be promises of social benefits and increased quality of life, for example, through better public services. And since the summer electorate often makes decisions at the last minute of the campaign, or in extreme cases, only at the ballot box, tempting 'picnickers' only at the end of the campaign is a rational strategy.” http://wiadomosci.gazeta.pl/wiadomosci/7,114884,25619854,dlaczego-andrzej-duda-tak-mocno-bije-w-sady-bo-najpierw-zyleta.html -- WHY POLES DON'T DEFEND JUDGES - JACEK SOKOŁOWSKI AT THE JAGIELLONIAN CLUB: “The judiciary is perceived by citizens as an unfriendly labyrinth to navigate, through which one must struggle to finally, at the end of a (often multi-year) fight, receive a solution to a problem that is rarely seen as just. Often, this feeling of injustice stems largely from the fact that both the outcome of the proceedings and their course were not easily understood by the parties. In summary, the judiciary of the Third Polish Republic can afford to ignore the goals of public policy, and even torpedo them at times, while at the same time it is unable to solve the problems of 'ordinary people' in a way that is understandable and acceptable to them. This mix has resulted in broad public support for the policies pursued by the Law and Justice camp.” -- THE LIQUIDATION OF INDEPENDENCE CAN HAPPEN UNINTENTIONALLY - SOKOŁOWSKI CONTINUES: “The war between the ruling camp and the legal elite is not, as the opposition claims, a fight to intentionally introduce a dictatorship by eliminating judicial independence, although this fight may 'unintentionally' lead to such consequences. Nor is it, as the government and the media controlled by it claim, a reform aimed at 'purifying the judiciary of pathologies'. https://klubjagiellonski.pl/2020/01/21/dlaczego-polacy-nie-bronia-sedziow-szukajac-wyjscia-z-blednego-kola/ -- SOKOŁOWSKI ON THE NEED FOR A NEW CONSTITUTIONAL COMPROMISE: “If the reform is carried through to completion, we will receive, at best, courts incapable of questioning the policy pursued by the parliamentary majority, subject to strong pressure from the executive branch, and at the same time – just as inept and unfriendly to citizens as before. To break free from the vicious cycle of painful reforms that change nothing in practice, we need a new constitutional compromise. In this proposal, the president should become an element that has been missing from the Polish political and legal puzzle since 1989 – a factor of balance between two elites whose cooperation is essential for the proper functioning of the state.” -- SOKOŁOWSKI ON HOW A CONSTITUTIONAL COMPROMISE CAN BE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR "SMALLER" CANDIDATES: “Voters of the Left and PSL are looking for something that is neither PiS nor Civic Platform. And finally – within Civic Platform itself, the group of staunch supporters of the 'not one step back' strategy is shrinking, and in the second round, they will have to vote for anyone who is not the 'Adrian' they so despise. A presidential candidate who presents an outline of a historical compromise as their election program may lead to a rearrangement of positions on the podium, which could cause effects as surprising as the result of the previous presidential election. Its winner, let us recall, ran with a support level of 17%.” https://klubjagiellonski.pl/2020/01/21/prezydent-straznik-sadow-szukajac-wyjscia-z-blednego-kola/ -- THE US IS DISTANCING ITSELF FROM POLAND - JĘDRZEJ BIELECKI IN RZ: “However, it is not only Democrats who are signaling concern about the situation in Poland. Donald Trump, after canceling his visit to Warsaw on September 1, promised to visit our country by the end of the year. He has not done so yet, although from Davos, where he flew on Tuesday, it is not far to the Vistula. What's worse, the American leader did not find time for talks with Andrzej Duda in the Swiss resort. But this is not the only disturbing signal from the American administration for Poland. Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin, a politician of significantly lower rank than Vice President Mike Pence, who will be at the ceremonies in Yad Vashem four days earlier, will come to the commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. Earlier, despite Poland's pressure, the Trump administration limited sanctions on the consortium building Nord Stream 2 to a minimum, so the project will at most be delayed by a few months.” -- PIS STILL CAN'T AFFORD A COMPREHENSIVE VIEW OF MATTERS INCLUDING THE INTERNATIONAL CONTEXT - BIELECKI CONTINUES: “Germany's readiness to join the Three Seas Initiative speaks volumes about this. The same goes for the first gestures towards Warsaw from the new President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, who was elected with the votes of Polish MEPs. Unfortunately, the judicial reform, conducted with the grace of a lumberjack chopping down trees, will likely prevent this. Its political cost is therefore enormous. From Spain to Germany, many EU countries have problems with ECJ rulings, but they express this in a much more subtle way. However, one might get the impression that PiS still cannot afford a comprehensive view of the country's affairs, taking into account their international context. After nearly five years in government, it is high time to change this.” https://www.rp.pl/Analizy/301219882-Jedrzej-Bielecki-USA-dystansuja-sie-od-Polski.html?cid -- PATRIOTIC RHETORIC CONCEALS DANGEROUS INTENTIONS - ALEKSANDER HALL IN RZ: “Perhaps the most important challenge for Andrzej Duda’s opponents in the upcoming elections is to expose the falsity of his message. Patriotic rhetoric conceals the true and dangerous intentions for the nation of the political camp that Duda serves. The goal is not only to break the independence of judges, but to break their character and train them to be obedient to the wielders of political power. Anti-communist rhetoric is just a smokescreen.” -- SHOULD THE CONCENTRATION OF EVER-INCREASING POWER IN ONE CENTER CONTINUE? - HALL CONTINUES: “Historian Andrzej Nowak, one of the ideologues of PiS, argues that one of the most important tendencies shaping the Polish community throughout history has been the love of freedom and basing the state system on it. The question must be asked whether the state system, shaped by PiS, with the significant involvement of President Duda, increases or decreases the freedom of Poles. The answer is obvious. Since 2015, the scope of our freedom has clearly decreased, although the government tries to compensate us for this loss by generously distributing gifts, which, incidentally, come from our taxes. The current time, with a few weeks left until the presidential elections, requires Poles to answer whether they believe our state should be founded on the principle of freedom, or whether the process of concentrating ever-increasing and effectively uncontrolled power in one center should continue.” https://www.rp.pl/Rzecz-o-polityce/301219872-Aleksander-Hall-Nieuczciwa-retoryka-Andrzeja-Dudy.html -- I WILL VOTE FOR HOŁOWNIA, BUT ONLY IF HE'S A CANDIDATE FOR THE PRIMATE OF POLAND - AGNIESZKA WIŚNIEWSKA, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF OF KRYTYKA POLITYCZNA: “After reading the book, I unfortunately had to change my mind: Hołownia is not a 'soft-progressive'. He is an honest, conservative Catholic, sensitive to the suffering of children and animals, aware of the threats posed by climate catastrophe, and also a person who runs his own foundation and travels extensively around Poland for meetings with readers of his books. A good conservative, simply put. If I could vote for the Primate, if the Church held direct elections (and I am still formally part of this Church because I was registered there when I had no say in the matter), I would cast my vote for Szymon Hołownia. But firstly, such elections do not exist, and secondly, Hołownia is running for president. And therefore, for anyone who wants to vote for him, I recommend first reading what this candidate writes. It helps to realize that we are not dealing with a good outsider, but with someone who has been operating in the environmental and media circles for years, who has a position here and has clear views on the world.” https://krytykapolityczna.pl/felietony/agnieszka-wisniewska/zaglosuje-na-holownie-wybory-prezydenckie/ -- SHOW US THOSE LISTS - FRONT PAGE OF RZ: “Lawyers do not hide their outrage. Parliamentary officials, under the pretext of revoking delegations – which is merely a technical matter, important for example for accounting for car usage – are encroaching on the sphere of the judiciary. Questions are being asked: what is, or rather what is not, on these lists? The court issued a decision in the form of an order regarding the trip to the Chancellery of the Sejm and the inspection of the lists. This is a judicial act that cannot be interfered with. And the decision of the Chancellery of the Sejm, which prevented the judge from reviewing the lists, was justified by the decision of the court president, who is acting in his own case. – Since the matter concerns him, he should not act in several capacities at once – assesses Prof. Ewa Łętowska, a retired judge of the Constitutional Tribunal.” https://www.rp.pl/Sedziowie-i-sady/301219894-Pokazcie-listy-poparcia-do-Krajowej-Rady-Sadownictwa.html -- THE KRS IS BECOMING COMPROMISING FOR THE AUTHORS OF THE REVOLUTION - TOMASZ PIETRYGA IN RZ: “The matter of the secrecy of the lists of support for the National Council of the Judiciary is slowly becoming a symbol of the failure of the revolution pushed by PiS in the courts. (...) This story would be comical if it weren't for the scandal involving officials and institutions in leading roles. They are not even trying to get out of this compromising situation. They are putting their credibility and the principle of state transparency on the line, in the name of an ambitious game, and perhaps also to cover up serious irregularities. And no one feels responsible for stopping this embarrassing spectacle. The new KRS has been controversial from the beginning. It started with questioning the constitutionality of its operation, then came accusations of political appointments, not to mention the embarrassment of judges sitting on it who were involved in hate and misconduct scandals. Today, the lists, so fiercely hidden, against the rules and logic, are merely the culmination of this entire story. And it becomes clear that the new KRS, which was supposed to be the engine of the revolution in the judiciary for PiS, the replacement of judicial elites, is becoming an increasingly shameful and compromising operation for its authors.” https://www.rp.pl/Opinie/301219893-Pana-nie-obslugujemy---komentarz-Tomasza-Pietrygi-ws-utajnienia-list-poparcia-do-KRS.html -- YOU HAVE ONLY COMPROMISED THREE OUT OF FOUR BRANCHES OF POWER SO FAR - DEPUTY EDITOR-IN-CHIEF OF DGP, BARBARA KASPRZYCKA: “So far, you have only compromised three out of four branches of power: the Sejm, the judiciary, and journalism.” -- EXPECTED NIGHTMARISH CONSEQUENCES OF THE JUDICIAL REFORM - FRONT PAGE OF GW: “Lawyers want to overturn the conviction of a double murderer from Jarocin because the judge who issued it was appointed by the new KRS. Such cases may become more frequent.” https://poznan.wyborcza.pl/poznan/7,36001,25620814,koszmarne-skutki-sadowej-reformy-pis-moze-upasc-wyrok-w-sprawie.html -- TERRIBLY, FUCK, A PITY - MICHAŁ SUTOWSKI WATCHES "PSY 3": “The film should be called 'Dogs in Retirement'. Not only are former SB officers no longer respected ('people spat on my uniform because of guys like you', that was already in the original), but no one is afraid of them either. Even worse – nobody needs them for anything. Major Stopczyk, the one with 'what are you burning over there?', is dying in the hospital, another colonel seems to have dementia. Wolf is not remembered by anyone (because the services covered him up). Franz's exploits from a quarter-century ago evoke a shrug from today's gangsters, and a once-shrewd informant, instead of brokering big deals, is changing toilet paper rolls in a dive bar. Psy 3. In the Name of Principles is a terribly sad work. (...) It all looks like a patriarchy where almost every male is impotent. Where ordering a murder costs four average salaries. And where once brilliant directors apparently have nothing to say, except that real men have a tough time. Terribly, fuck, a pity.” https://krytykapolityczna.pl/kultura/film/psy-3-pasikowski/ -- ANOTHER PUBLICATION BY SEBASTIAN KLAUZIŃSKI IN OKO.PRESS ON WP: “The Ministry of Justice was the most promoted entity on Wirtualna Polska in 2019 – according to data from Kantar, obtained by OKO.press. If Ziobro's ministry had paid WP for advertisements according to the official price list, it would have had to spend over PLN 125 million – more than, for example, Lidl, Allegro, Toyota, Orange, Tchibo, Bakoma, and Provident combined.” -- OKO.PRESS ANNOUNCES FURTHER PUBLICATIONS ABOUT WP: “In the top twenty of Kantar's ranking were also, among others: at 11th place, PKO BP bank. Its president is Zbigniew Jagiełło, associated with Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki. WP websites publish a lot of content favorable to the Prime Minister (more on this soon, in future OKO.press publications); - at 15th place, Polkomtel, operator of the Plus network. The company belongs to the empire of billionaire Zygmunt Solorz-Żak, the owner of Polsat. Tomasz Machała, currently on leave at WP, hosts the program '#Newsroom' broadcast on both media, and since January 17, he also continues to be one of the hosts of Polsat's 'Graffiti'.” https://oko.press/ministerstwo-sprawiedliwosci-wirtualna-polska-kantar/