Jarosław Kaczyński threatened imprisonment, then labeled protestors at the Smolensk memorial as “scraps”. This is the second such remark by the PiS president this week, and he could face sanction for the first.
Jarosław Kaczyński Calls Protesters “Trash” at Smolensk Memorial
On Sunday, 10 August, Kaczyński gave a statement in front of the Smolensk disaster memorial at Piłsudski Square, Warsaw. A protest group, shouting “liar” from megaphones, drowned out his remarks. He declared, “Here stand those who should be handled by special services, yet our current government and agencies fail to do their duties. Soon, these people will find their rightful place in prison, and Polish authority will follow national interests. There is great panic about this. And these “trash” who stand here – I do not mean our supporters – the same people who sit in government offices today are also frightened. Every Polish voice calls them a KPO, the slum of Civic Platform. That is the reality of these governments, and we must end it.”
Confrontation Between PiS President and Journalist
This was not Kaczyński’s first sharp outburst. Earlier, on 6 August, he called journalist Radomir Wita a “rude.” The exchange followed a TVN24 journalist inquiring about the new president’s plan to rectify justice system failures. Kaczyński responded with laughter from PiS MPs, then accused the journalist of “earning a lot for this.” He added that MPs, including Joanna Lichocka, was unfair to judge others. Kaczyński also referenced her high earnings during her tenure at public media and her multi‑million‑zloty assets. He told her to behave differently toward women, began to leave, and, when the journalist asked another question, he said, “I do not talk to rude people,” walked out, and called her “you are rude.”
MP Calls for Sanctions Against Kaczyński
On the same Wednesday, European Parliament member Krzysztof Brejza of the Civic Coalition sent a petition to the ethics committee demanding sanctions against Kaczyński for remarks he made to a journalist. “I believe such statements are utterly unacceptable in the public sphere and entirely inappropriate for a parliamentarian. Insulting a journalist performing official duties violates not only parliamentary ethics but also the constitutional principle of freedom of speech and press,” Brejza said.
