Kara śmierci, czyli bardzo zły kierunek w polskiej polityce
In an interview with several conservative outlets, President Andrzej Duda said: „Do you know why there is so much treason and brazen insolence in Poland? Because no one has been hanged for treason in a long time. It’s terrible, but there is truth in these words”. The remark caused a storm. Politicians, lawyers and internet users competed in commentary, and the death penalty returned to public debate like a boomerang.
If this environment does not come to its senses, all these people will have to be removed from the judiciary without the right to a pension. (…) Recently one person told me very brutally: „Do you know why there is so much treason in Poland? Because no one has been hanged for treason in a long time”. It’s terrible, but there is truth in these words. – President Andrzej Duda
🗣️ @prezydentpl@AndrzejDuda: Jeżeli to środowisko nie opamięta się, to trzeba będzie tych wszystkich ludzi wyrzucić ze stanu sędziowskiego bez prawa do stanu spoczynku. (…) Niedawno jeden człowiek powiedział do mnie bardzo brutalnie: "Wie Pan dlaczego w Polsce jest tyle… pic.twitter.com/3HTEhszovY
Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski recalled that Poland has been bound since 2000 by Protocol No. 6 to the Council of Europe’s Convention on Human Rights, which abolishes the death penalty. The diplomatic service does not plan to withdraw from these commitments. Even the biggest enthusiasts of the „iron fist” must therefore make do with rhetoric, because the gallows remain today out of reach.
PiS vs PO. Who would hang the opponent first?
In Polish politics, accusations of treason are as common as pork cutlets at a Sunday lunch. PiS accuses PO of „selling Poland”, while PO answers PiS with „an attack on democracy”. If the death penalty for treason were actually introduced, the Sejm benches could turn into a courtroom straight out of the comedy „Idiocracy”.
Delikatnie przypominam Państwu z KO i ich medialnym akolitom, kto pierwszy, już jakiś czas temu, mówił o wieszaniu. To Wasz lider a dziś premier Donald Tusk. Jakoś wówczas nie trzęśliście się z oburzenia. https://t.co/82lntNhnD2
President Duda’s remarks triggered an avalanche of comments.
„I was outraged too. But it just passed. Very bad words at the end of the term. Please remember that if such a possibility is allowed, there will never be certainty who will be hanging whom.” – warns Left MP Anna Maria Żukowska.
A jak się Pan Prezydent @AndrzejDuda oburzał o cytat wiersza Miłosza wygłoszony przez Donalda Tuska przed Pałacem Prezydenckim! https://t.co/orCA1sYuEQ
Ja też się oburzałam. Ale właśnie mi przeszło. Bardzo niedobre słowa na koniec kadencji. Proszę pamiętać, że jak się dopuści…
— Anna-Maria Żukowska 💁🏻♀️ (@AM_Zukowska) July 9, 2025
Others argue that this is pushing the boundaries of public debate and calling for violence. There are also those who believe the death penalty should return, but only for the most serious crimes.
Political death penalty
The death penalty is a subject not to be laughed at, yet it is not hard to notice that politicians often treat other politicians as targets to be eliminated, rather than partners in serving citizens. Even on the most important matters for the state, the politicians of the two largest factions cannot reach an agreement. One can sometimes get the impression that PO and PiS would sooner carry out a death sentence on Poland than cooperate.
