Date: [date of submission]
From: [Name / Civic Group / Organization]
To:
Council of the European Union
via:
- Permanent Representations of EU Member States (REPERs)
- General Secretariat of the Council of the EU
Subject: The need to protect judicial independence also from peer and institutional pressure
Dear Members of the Council,
We respectfully appeal for a balanced and fair assessment of the situation of the judiciary in Poland, especially in light of the ongoing disputes regarding the status of judges appointed with the participation of the National Council of the Judiciary (KRS) after 2018.
Judges who endorsed candidates for the reformed KRS — acting lawfully and in accordance with the constitutional framework for judicial appointments — have become targets of sustained ostracism from parts of the judicial community, notably among circles affiliated with associations such as Iustitia and Themis. This has manifested in:
- public challenges to their right to adjudicate,
- mass motions for their exclusion from court panels,
- exclusion from career advancement and internal functions,
- refusal to cooperate within judicial teams,
- reputational harm and public stigmatization.
While we recognize the critical importance of shielding courts from political interference, we emphasize that judicial independence must equally protect judges from pressure by peers, associations, and ideological factions. Judicial impartiality requires freedom not only from governmental influence but also from internal coercion and groupthink.
We are concerned that certain interpretations of CJEU and ECtHR case law have been used in practice to justify or tolerate this kind of peer pressure, contrary to the intended goal of safeguarding the rule of law.
We call on the Council and its Member States to:
- Consider the harmful effects of intra-judicial and associative pressure on judges in future rule of law assessments,
- Reaffirm the principle of equality before the law for all judges, regardless of the date or method of appointment,
- Defend the right of judges to act independently from professional associations or collective political narratives.
Respectfully,
[OPEN LETTER TO THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEA
[Signature]
[Contact information or name of initiative]
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