Almost half of Poles agree with their prime minister’s declaration that the death penalty can be justified for the most serious crimes, according to a survey.
In a May 17 poll, 48.3 per cent of respondents said they supported the prime minister’s position (46.3 per cent of the survey’s participants did not favour the death penalty; 5.4 per cent did not have a clear opinion).
Mateusz Morawiecki made the claim following the torture and death of an eight-year-old boy at the hands of his stepfather.
“For crimes committed with such cruelty, with such premeditation, I am personally in favour of the highest punishment—the death penalty,” the PM wrote in an impassioned Tweet on May 10. “Penalties for the worst degenerates are far too lenient.”
Miejsce zwyrodnialców krzywdzących najsłabszych jest w więzieniu. Kara musi być surowa, odstraszająca i adekwatna do czynu! A dzieci trzeba chronić w sposób szczególny!
Kary dla najgorszych zwyrodnialców są zdecydowanie za niskie. Co to za świat, gdy za tortury dziecka idzie… pic.twitter.com/iHwZOv3c4H
— Mateusz Morawiecki (@MorawieckiM) May 10, 2023
The death penalty is outlawed across the EU. The European Charter of Human Rights that Poland signed in 1993 forbids the death penalty, while in 2000 the Council of Europe declared itself a death penalty-free zone.
The PM’s stance also goes against the Catholic Church, which teaches that the death penalty is “inadmissible” as it violates the “dignity of the person”. The ruling Conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party usually aligns policy with the Catholic Church; the PM is Catholic and the banner on his Twitter account features a picture of the Polish pope, John Paul II.
Morawiecki has said he disagrees with the Church on the death penalty and that it should be “thought over” in Poland, reports Euroactiv.
Following the PM’s comments, the government’s spokesperson said the PM’s was only expressing his personal view and that reinstating the death penalty was not part of the ruling party’s political agenda or a topic for discussion, reports Euroactiv.
Professor Andrzej Zoll, a criminal law expert, says that Morawiecki’s approval of the death penalty could be a step toward withdrawing Poland from the European Union, reports Rzeczpospolita news outlet.
The death penalty is outlawed across the EU. The European Charter of Human Rights that Poland signed in 1993 forbids the death penalty, while in 2000 the Council of Europe declared itself a death penalty-free zone.
The PM’s stance also goes against the Catholic Church, which teaches that the death penalty is “inadmissible” as it violates the “dignity of the person”. The ruling Conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party usually aligns policy with the Catholic Church; the PM is Catholic and the banner on his Twitter account features a picture of the Polish pope, John Paul II.
Morawiecki has said he disagrees with the Church on the death penalty and that it should be “thought over” in Poland, reports Euroactiv.
Following the PM’s comments, the government’s spokesperson said the PM’s was only expressing his personal view and that reinstating the death penalty was not part of the ruling party’s political agenda or a topic for discussion, reports Euroactiv.
Professor Andrzej Zoll, a criminal law expert, says that Morawiecki’s approval of the death penalty could be a step toward withdrawing Poland from the European Union, reports Rzeczpospolita news outlet.
