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| - Thirty-four judges critical of judicial reforms introduced by Poland's right-wing government were subject to "harsh reprisals", according to a report released Saturday by an independent association of Polish judges. Poland's deputy justice minister Michal Wojcik immediately rejected the allegations as an "unprecedented attack" by a "very politically engaged group" against the legislative and executive branches of government. Judges "want to be a completely extraordinary caste that stands above others," Wojcik added, quoted by the Polish PAP news agency. Politicians from the governing right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) party often single out judges who object to some of the party's reforms as being part of a "caste" wanting to be above the law. Presented by judge Krystian Markiewicz, head of the Iustitia association that groups 3,500 Polish judges, the report alleges "harsh reprisals" against 34 justices who object to PiS judicial reforms Since taking office in 2015, the PiS government has introduced a slew of controversial judicial reforms that it insists are designed to tackle corruption. But critics, including the European Commission and top European judicial bodies, argue they threaten judicial independence and the rule of law. The Iustitia report names both the judicial officials who allege they experienced wrongdoing as well as the politicians and other officials who are allegedly responsible for the wrongdoing. The report also documents what it terms "mild reprisals" against at least 24 other judges, including public criticism of them by MPs and government politicians. Thirty-six prosecutors also experienced reprisals connected to their criticism of PiS reforms, the report said. It further alleges that top Polish politicians, including PiS-allied President Andrzej Duda, PiS Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, Minister of Justice Zbigniew Ziobro and the leader of the PiS party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski engaged in "slandering judges in the national and international arena". via/mas/jj
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