Botched execution
Last month, Poland rejected an EU proposal that would have created an annual "European Day against the Death Penalty," a symbolic measure which even the quarrelsome member states should seemingly be able to agree on - abolition of capital punishment is a requirement for EU membership. Poland itself abolished the practice in 1988.
Instead, Poland insisted on an annual "Day for the Protection of Life," which would also condemn abortion and euthanasia. This proposal was a non-starter from day one. While every EU country has outlawed the death penalty, abortion upon request is legal in the majority, and euthanasia has been legalized in two. EU politicians suggested that the move brought Poland's commitment to European values into question.
The ruling party, Law and Justice (PiS), must have known that its opposition would only entrench its image as backward and intolerant. Whatever the merits of re-energizing public debate on abortion and euthanasia, surely Poland's concerns could have been framed more diplomatically, by means offering a better chance of success. So why did PiS decide to fight this losing battle?
The answer is simple - the battle was not fought for the benefit of the EU, but rather to please the domestic audience. The EU is a favorite villain of the downtrodden countryside - a key PiS constituency - which sees it as the latest in a series of foreign powers looking to engulf Poland and erase its culture. The Kaczyńskis can now claim to have stood up to the EU on a major cultural issue.
PiS's pandering may win them the upcoming elections,but when its leaders return to Brussels, any remaining credibility they had held among EU politicians will be lost. Poland has played the role of stubborn outcast for so long, it is beginning to be ignored. Last week, the Council of Europe approved the establishment of an anti-death-penalty day despite Poland's opposition.
This does not bode well for Poland's negotiating power in the EU. When PiS is called upon to defend Poland's interests, it will likely prove impotent - a lame duck. And in the countryside, a lame duck usually faces execution sooner or later.
