Question to the EC: Mass arrests of LGBTI activists in Poland

See here the joint question of several MEPs to the European Commission on the mass arrests of LGBTI activists in Poland.

Subject: Mass arrests of LGBTI activists in Poland 

After more than 100 Polish municipalities declared themselves ‘LGBTI-free zones’, after an outrageous homophobic presidential campaign by President Duda, after the Polish Minister Janusz Kowalski said the whole of Poland should be an ’LGBT-free zone’, the authorities carried out a mass arrest of 48 LGBTI activists on 8 August 2020 because they had been demonstrating against the detention of the young activist Małgorzata Szutowicz. 

This gross escalation is a clear breach of EU core values and the respect of fundamental rights. It spreads fear among LGBTI people in Poland, and aims to intimidate Polish LGBTI activists. 

1. Does the Commission condemn the mass arrest of 48 LGBTI activists in Poland on 8 August 2020?

2. Has the Commission been subject to threats of a veto on the next multiannual financial framework if it takes action in response to these events?

3. What concrete actions is the Commission planning to take to end the continued attacks against LGBTI people in Poland?

Answer in writing

The Commission condemns any form of discrimination, violence and hatred against lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, non-binary, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ) persons and activists. As stated by the President in her State of the Union address, ‘LGBT ideology-free zones’ are humanity-free zones and have no place in our Union.

The principle of non-discrimination also applies to all EU funding under direct, indirect and shared management.

The Commission will continue to monitor the situation in Poland and make sure that, when implementing EC law, the principle of non-discrimination is fully respected. The Commission adopted an LGBTIQ Equality Strategy(1) on 12 November 2020.

(1) https://ec.europa.eu/info/policies/justice-and-fundamental-rights/combatting-discrimination/lesbian-gay-bi-trans-and-intersex-equality/lgbtiq-equality-strategy-2020-2025_en

This question was introduced by the following MEPs.

Francisco Guerreiro (Greens/EFA), Pierre Karleskind (Renew), Sophia in 't Veld (Renew), Fredrick Federley (Renew), Karen Melchior (Renew), Nicolae Ştefănuță (Renew), Moritz Körner (Renew), Maite Pagazaurtundúa (Renew), Samira Rafaela (Renew), Radka Maxová (Renew), Liesje Schreinemacher (Renew), Abir Al-Sahlani (Renew), Anna Júlia Donáth (Renew), Irène Tolleret (Renew), Sylwia Spurek (S&D), Tanja Fajon (S&D), Anne-Sophie Pelletier (GUE/NGL), Isabel Carvalhais (S&D), Monika Vana (Greens/EFA), Cornelia Ernst (GUE/NGL), Olivier Chastel (Renew), Gabriele Bischoff (S&D), Delara Burkhardt (S&D), Miapetra Kumpula-Natri (S&D), Chrysoula Zacharopoulou (Renew), Grace O'Sullivan (Greens/EFA), Gwendoline Delbos-Corfield (Greens/EFA), Eleonora Evi (NI), Dimitrios Papadimoulis (GUE/NGL), Hilde Vautmans (Renew), Maria Arena (S&D), Arba Kokalari (EPP), Pascal Durand (Renew), Nathalie Loiseau (Renew), Catherine Chabaud (Renew), Ilana Cicurel (Renew), Evelyne Gebhardt (S&D), Laurence Farreng (Renew), Mauri Pekkarinen (Renew), Billy Kelleher (Renew), Andrus Ansip (Renew), Irena Joveva (Renew), Sandro Gozi (Renew), Asger Christensen (Renew), Martin Hojsík (Renew), María Soraya Rodríguez Ramos (Renew), Klemen Grošelj (Renew), Stéphane Bijoux (Renew), José Ramón Bauzá Díaz (Renew), Stéphane Séjourné (Renew), Svenja Hahn (Renew), Marianne Vind (S&D), Katalin Cseh (Renew), Stéphanie Yon-Courtin (Renew), Magdalena Adamowicz (EPP), Marie-Pierre Vedrenne (Renew), Henna Virkkunen (EPP), Jan-Christoph Oetjen (Renew), Claudia Gamon (Renew), Aurore Lalucq (S&D), Birgit Sieppl (S&D), Ramona Strugariu (Renew), Isabel Santos (S&D), Valérie Hayer (Renew), Marisa Matias (GUE/NGL), Maria Walsh (EPP), Kathleen Van Brempt (S&D), Linea Søgaard-Lidell (Renew), Mario Furore (NI), Clara Aguilera (S&D), Alice Kuhnke (Greens/EFA), Pär Holmgren (Greens/EFA), Jakop G. Dalunde (Greens/EFA), Michal Šimečka (Renew), Rasmus Andresen (Greens/EFA), Frances Fitzgerald (EPP), Mounir Satouri (Greens/EFA), Terry Reintke (Greens/EFA), Petra De Sutter (Greens/EFA), Maria-Manuel Leitão-Marques (S&D), Frédérique Ries (Renew), Attila Ara-Kovács (S&D), Rosa D'Amato (NI), Fabienne Keller (Renew), Tilly Metz (Greens/EFA), Marc Angel (S&D), Chris MacManus (GUE/NGL), Caroline Nagtegaal (Renew), Malik Azmani (Renew), Jan Huitema (Renew), Bart Groothuis (Renew), Jordi Solé (Greens/EFA), Barry Andrews (Renew), Evelyn Regner (S&D), Pernille Weiss (EPP), Pina Picierno (S&D), Kati Piri (S&D), Javi López (S&D), Lucia Ďuriš Nicholsonová (ECR), Kira Marie Peter-Hansen (Greens/EFA), Jordi Cañas (Renew), Giuliano Pisapia (S&D), Sándor Rónai (S&D), Róża Thun und Hohenstein (EPP), Carles Puigdemont i Casamajó (NI), Antoni Comín i Oliveres (NI), Clara Ponsatí Obiols (NI), Lina Gálvez Muñoz (S&D), Pernando Barrena Arza (GUE/NGL), Ernest Urtasun (Greens/EFA), François Alfonsi (Greens/EFA), Damien Carême (Greens/EFA), David Cormand (Greens/EFA), Karima Delli (Greens/EFA), Claude Gruffat (Greens/EFA), Yannick Jadot (Greens/EFA), Michèle Rivasi (Greens/EFA), Caroline Roose (Greens/EFA), Marie Toussaint (Greens/EFA), Sylvie Brunet (Renew), Véronique Trillet-Lenoir (Renew), Bernard Guetta (Renew), Raphaël Glucksmann (S&D), Manon Aubry (GUE/NGL), Katarina Barley (S&D), Tineke Strik (Greens/EFA), Dorien Rookmaker (NI), Manuel Bompard (GUE/NGL), Izaskun Bilbao Barandica (Renew), Malin Björk (GUE/NGL), Margrete Auken (Greens/EFA)

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