Four reasons why Poland’s war on abortion should scare you Commentary This is not just ‘Poland being Poland’. These actions are illegal, inhumane and could spread across Europe – and this is just the beginning. By Neil Datta
After the Crisis, Before the Crisis: The Rule of Law Headache that Won’t Go Away Commentary The Hungarian-Polish veto on the EU budget and the recovery fund was averted at the European Council last week, but threats to core European values were not. The EU’s rule of law crisis is nowhere near to being solved, and attacks on fundamental rights and democracy will intensify in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. By Márta Pardavi
Three views on Belarus from Warsaw, Kyiv and Moscow Background Our local Heads of Office are turning their attention to Belarus: Joanna Maria Stolarek discovers the spirit of Polish Solidarność on the streets of Belarus. Sergej Sumlenny reports on unexpectedly cautious, neutral and ambivalent responses from Ukraine. And in Moscow, President Aljaksandr Lukashenka remains the partner of choice, Johannes Voswinkel writes. By Joanna Maria Stolarek , Sergej Sumlenny and Johannes Voswinkel
Poland wants no refugees – NGO’s critical look at the New Pact on Migration and Asylum Commentary Despite its tough public rhetoric, the Polish government might turn out to be more flexible behind closed doors regarding the New Pact, to prevent embarrassing defeats on issues that are far more important from a domestic policy point of view, such as the rule of law. By Joanna Maria Stolarek and Gert Röhrborn
Poland remains divided Commentary Following a suspense-packed election thriller, Poland has elected its new president. What seemed like it would be a walkover for the incumbent, Andrzej Duda, turned out to be an attempt to shift the direction of Polish domestic affairs. By Joanna Maria Stolarek
Poland: Freedom of the press in free fall Background The direction has been pointing constantly downwards since 2015. In the international ranking on press freedom by "Reporters Without Borders", Poland was 18th at the time, but has now slipped to 62nd place. 44 places in five years. The changes in the media landscape are admittedly occurring more subtly than in Hungary, for example. But restrictions on the work of journalists in the country are becoming increasingly noticeable. By Joanna Maria Stolarek
Germany’s Central European Strategy Bites Back Analysis As 2020 opens with dramatic global events demanding attention and care, the countries of the European Union remain divided on crucial issues from climate change to foreign policy. The relationship between Germany and the countries of Central Europe is pivotal to many of these impasses. By Zsuzsanna Végh
Gender Ideology and the Crisis of Care in Poland Interview Across Europe and beyond, actors on the nationalist right are instrumentalising the concept of gender for their own political gains. In Poland the incumbent right-wing Law and Justice party, backed by the Catholic Church, demonised LGBT organisations in its recent successful electoral campaign. By Adam Ostolski and Agnieszka Graff
For Ukrainians in Poland, jobs but no security Transatlantic Media Fellowship Poland’s booming economy attracted thousands of Ukrainian workers, who struggle to integrate amid xenophobia and fear. By Hanna Kozlowska
More than just making hard work of an easy win. Following the European elections, PiS maintains its dominant position in spite of the changing political scene in Poland. Backgrounder The European elections held on 26th May 2019 confirmed what was feared: The national-conservative party Prawo i Sprawiedliwość (Law and Justice, PiS) won by a clear majority. What are the reasons behind this election result and how has the political mood in the country changed? By Irene Hahn-Fuhr