Poland’s deputy justice minister resigns over Internet trolling allegations
Lukasz Piebiak, Poland’s deputy justice minister resigned after an investigative report accused him of using an internet troll to wage a smear campaign against judges opposed to the government’s judicial reforms.
The Onet news portal on Monday published a report alleging that Deputy Justice Minister Piebiak “arranged and controlled” an online campaign against Judge Krystian Markiewicz, the head of Iustitia, a judicial organization critical of the government’s efforts to restructure the judicial system, as well as against other inconvenient judges.
The scandal brings attention back to the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party’s judicial reforms, which have been criticized as an attempt to put judges under tighter political control and have embroiled Poland in an ongoing dispute with the EU.
It also creates a potential problem for PiS ahead of the October 13 parliamentary election, coming just days after the speaker of parliament had to resign after being accused of abusing his right to travel by government jet.
