Hungary has granted political asylum to a former minister of a fellow European Union member state, Poland, emphasising that the current Tusk government in Warsaw uses criminal law as a weapon against its political opponents. Poland called Hungary’s move a “hostile act,” and Warsaw has summoned the Hungarian ambassador to the foreign ministry to demand an explanation.
The rule of law has been seriously threatened since the left-liberal government of Donald Tusk came to power a year ago. State institutions have been purged, opposition lawmakers jailed, and court rulings ignored. Nevertheless, EU institutions have not called out the government for its abuse of power, and have instead rewarded the Tusk cabinet with billions of euros in EU funds.
The former Polish deputy justice minister Marcin Romanowski was granted political asylum by Hungary on Thursday, December 19th. The Hungarian prime minister’s chief of staff, Gergely Gulyás, said Romanowski “sought and received political asylum in accordance with both Hungarian and EU laws.” He added: “
We avoid interfering in other nations’ politics, but it is evident that the judicial independence and rights of opposition figures in Poland are under threat.
Romanowski, a minister of the former conservative Polish government led by the Law and Justice (PiS) party, was arrested in July for allegedly misusing public funds during his time as a government official. He was detained despite holding immunity as a member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
In an interview with The European Conservative in September, Romanowski said:
The current left-liberal government is trying to destroy and slander all those who may be dangerous to their interests and ideological madness.
The day after Romanowski’s arrest, a court ordered his release due to his immunity, but that immunity was lifted in October in the Council of Europe, paving the way for a Polish court to order his arrest last week. However, the authorities were unable to find Romanowski, and a European arrest warrant was issued on Thursday. But Romanowski’s lawyer subsequently announced that Hungary had accepted Romanowski’s request to grant him international protection.
As Balázs Orbán, the Hungarian prime minister’s political adviser posted on X, formerly Twitter:
According to both EU and Hungarian law, political asylum can be granted if a fair trial is not guaranteed beyond a reasonable doubt and in Romanowski’s case, these conditions were clearly met. This isn’t the first time Hungary has taken in Polish refugees and while we are saddened that it is needed again, justice demands we act.
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski said he views Budapest’s decision as a “hostile act,” and the Hungarian ambassador to Warsaw was summoned to the Polish foreign ministry on Friday. The ministry said that if Hungary failed to fulfil its European obligations—i.e., hand over Romanowski in accordance with the European arrest warrant—Poland would request the European Commission initiate proceedings against it.
On his personal X account, Marcin Romanowski explained his reasons for fleeing Poland and requesting political asylum in Hungary. He said he did not want Tusk and Justice Minister Adam Bodnar to “enjoy the pictures of an opposition MP from the patriotic camp being led away in handcuffs.” Romanowski said he also wants to draw the attention of the international community to the growing political repression in Poland.
“Marcin Romanowski indicated that he cannot count on a fair trial in Poland due to the political involvement of some judges,” his lawyer said.
In its recent analysis of the Tusk government’s abuses of power, the Ordo Iuris think tank in Warsaw said that the events of the past year have led to Poland becoming a “militant democracy.” The cabinet has taken numerous unlawful actions that are “aimed at physically eliminating the opposition from the public space.”
The institute lists among these rule-of-law violations the attack on the independence of judges, the forceful takeover of the public media and the prosecutor’s office, and the unlawful arrest of opposition lawmakers. Authorities have even stripped the opposition PiS party of millions of euros in state funding.
Sébastien Meuwissen, a conservative political analyst, recently told The European Conservative:
Since the arrival of the liberal government led by Donald Tusk, the foundations of what constitutes a properly functioning democracy—i.e., a country that respects the rule of law—have been undermined on several levels.
Despite the blatant violations, the Polish prime minister’s actions have not been condemned by Brussels and the liberal Western elites. Instead, they rewarded him by unfreezing EU funds to Poland—funds that had been unduly blocked under the previous PiS government.
