Poland: top court reform plan adopted

Protesters react in front of the parliament after lawmakers voted to approve a law on court control, in Warsaw, Poland on Thursday.

Polish lawmakers on Thursday adopted a controversial reform of the Supreme Court, despite days of street protests, concern from the Opposition over judicial independence and EU threats of unprecedented sanctions.

The lower house of Parliament, which is controlled by the ruling conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party, voted 235 to 192 — with 23 abstentions — in favour of the law giving the justice minister power to select candidates for the court.

“ This paves the way for a non-democratic system in Poland,” political analyst Stanislaw Mocek of the Polish Academy of Sciences told AFP.