POLAND: Germany Border Controls & more – 12th Sep 2024

Witam from BA! This is the Rorshok Poland Update from the 12th of September twenty twenty-four. A quick summary of what's going down in Poland.

Let’s kick off this edition with some news on foreign affairs. On Wednesday, the 11th, Prime Minister Donald Tusk criticized the German government because it will impose border controls on Poland and its neighboring countries to restrict the influx of illegal immigrants.

Normally, there is freedom of movement within the European Union, and people are free to cross from Poland to Germany without having to go through border controls. Tusk said that, instead of resolving the root cause of the illegal immigration problem by helping Poland strengthen its eastern border, Germany is being selfish. He called all EU countries to come to the dialogue table to strengthen the Polish border, which is the EU’s eastern border.

Speaking of Germany, the government announced that Tusk canceled his trip to the country that was going to take place on Thursday, the 12th. The German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was going to give Tusk a prestigious European media award for defending democracy. Tusk’s decision not to attend the ceremony came after Scholtz announced he could not participate due to his conflicting schedules. Tusk also gave a similar excuse, saying that he has important national meetings on Thursday. Social media users commented that the cancellation of the trip may show worsening relations between the Polish and German governments.

In an update to a previous story… Three weeks ago, we reported that the Polish army said that a Russian drone violated Polish airspace during a Russian airstrike on Ukraine. However, on Friday 6th, the army said that, after analyzing the situation in-depth, there was actually no violation.

Also, on Monday, the 9th, during a military exercise, a group of Polish paratroopers were supposed to land in the Błędowska Field in southern Poland. However, twelve soldiers accidentally landed in a village nearby, and some of their landings damaged house roofs. Also, some soldiers got tangled in power lines, but luckily were not electrocuted.

All these incidents raised concerns about whether the army is ready for a potential war scenario with Russia, a possibility that Poland’s politicians emphasize.

People experienced cyber threats this week as well. On Thursday, the 5th, police warned citizens that hackers leaked customer information from some online shops and they were using it to blackmail customers. The hackers targeted some erotic online shops and have gotten customers personal information, including their mails, and order histories. They blackmailed victims, demanding money, for instance, by threatening to reveal the erotic products they bought to their close ones. Police asked victims not to pay the hackers because criminals are most likely to continue blackmailing people who have decided to give them the money. Authorities recommended using strong passwords and having the two-step verification method enabled.

Speaking of crimes, on Tuesday, the 10th, the Financial Times, the British daily newspaper, wrote that drug traffickers are increasingly using Polish-flagged yachts to move drugs across the Atlantic because a law twenty twenty Polish law enabled easy and less costly registration of vessels under Poland’s flag.

While only 2,000 boats were registered under the Polish flag in twenty twenty, the number has increased to more than 70,000. Criminals realized this loophole in Polish law, and they transport cocaine and other drugs. Having the Polish flag as a member of the EU gives them relative protection when they are on the high seas.

Poland’s Ministry of Infrastructure acknowledged the issue but has yet to confirm if organized crime groups are involved. Meanwhile, the government is working on legislative changes to facilitate better inspections on these boats.

In other news, on Thursday, the 5th, Law and Justice, the main opposition, started to raise money from its supporters after the National Electoral Commission cut three million dollars worth of election funds allocated to the party. The Commission took away the money because this year Law and Justice gave one million dollars from the election funds to some members for personal gain. The Commission also said they may as well cut the party funds in the next few years. Law and Justice rejected the accusations, saying that it was another attempt to eliminate the party that has nationalistic views. It also said that already more than 50,000 people have donated money to the party

On a sad note, on Tuesday, the 10th, the world marked World Suicide Prevention Day, raising concerns about Poland’s suicide rate. According to the World Health Organization, Poland ended up in the 18th position in the suicide ranking.

The study showed that each day, on average, fifteen people take their lives. Men aging between 35 and 60 are more likely to commit suicide. Divorce, unemployment, alcohol or drug addictions, and living in rural areas increase the possibility of committing suicide. Psychologists said that eighty percent of those who want to commit suicide express this implicitly or explicitly to their close ones before it happens. According to mental health experts, emotional support can save lives, emphasizing the importance of recognizing crises and offering non-judgmental support.

On Tuesday, the 10th, miners and energy sector workers staged a protest in front of the Ministry of State Assets. The protesters were against the government’s plan to reduce the use of coal in producing energy due to climate change. They fear that the cut might cost them their jobs in the near future as the country may have fewer mines that extract coal. They are also asking for a fifteen percent rise in their wages. Jacek Bartmiński, the Deputy Minister of State Assets, said that miners have the right to express concerns about their future; however, climate policy still needs a gradual move away from coal.

Also on Tuesday, the 10th, Poland’s Institute of Meteorology and Water Management announced that seventy percent of Poland’s rivers and hydrological stations had the lowest amount of water this year. The most affected river was the Vistula River, which flows in central Poland, with water levels at the Warsaw-Bulwary monitoring station dropping to twenty centimeters. Even though this does not mean that Poland will experience a water shortage, it still raises concerns for the country's future. The Meteorology management expects the temperatures to decrease starting from the 10th, leading to frequent rains, which will contribute to filling the water resources.

In unrelated news. This year, some residents of the touristic Zakopane city expressed their discomfort about sightseeing helicopter flights over the city. Since Zakopane has nice views and mountains, some people organize sightseeing helicopter flights. On Friday, the 6th, Łukasz Filipowicz, the mayor of the town, appealed to the Civil Aviation Authority to prohibit these flights.

And to wrap up this edition… When you think about the Polish kitchen, the first thing you might think of is pierogi, or Polish dumplings. If you like them, don’t miss the pierogi festival in Łódź from the 13th to the 22nd of September. Twenty-four famous local restaurants will participate in the festival.

And that's it for this week!

Thanks for tuning into the Rorshok Poland Update. You can connect with us on social media as @rorshokpoland on Twitter and Instagram.

Do zobaczenia!