Screaming at the Deaf

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Hundreds of thousands of Polish protesters took to the streets of the capital Warsaw this week to protest against the country’s conservative government and call for change, a mass demonstration that comes ahead of a highly-anticipated parliamentary election in autumn, the Guardian reported.

Opposition leader Donald Tusk and officials said around half a million people attended the protest, considered the largest political gathering since the communist regime ended in Poland in 1989.

Demonstrators targeted the policies of the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party, which has been accused of eroding the country’s democratic foundations since it came to power in 2015.

The PiS party has run afoul of European Union officials over legislation impacting the independence of the judiciary, and faced criticism for campaigns against the LGBTQ community and narrowing reproductive rights.

The recent marches came days after lawmakers passed a controversial law that would establish a government commission to ban individuals from public office if it believed they were agents of Russian influence.

Critics said the bill is unconstitutional and serves as a pretext to launch a political witch-hunt ahead of elections.

The bill has been dubbed “Lex Tusk” because it’s widely seen as targeting the opposition leader, who previously served two terms as Poland’s prime minister from 2007 until 2014.

Observers noted that the PiS remains popular over policies that have led to increased social spending, and its support for neighboring Ukraine following Russia’s invasion last year.

However, recent polls suggest that neither PiS nor Tusk’s Civic Platform party would secure enough votes to form a government. The election’s outcome will depend on smaller parties and who is able to form a coalition with them.