The press - public enemy no. 1
"This has got to stop," said government spokesman Marcin Kaszuba on public TV's flagship news program. He was talking about the flood of corruption scandals that have rocked the country this year, calling for a stop to illegal activity by an increasingly influential and threatening professional group, which in Kaszuba's words, "is destabilizing the country."
It is not just words, either. Contrary to defeatist propaganda spun by cynical foreign-owned media, the authorities are not slow in pressing charges. 36 cases are being pursued by the Warsaw prosecutors' office alone. Those charged are, however, journalists guility of making the corruption public, not the actual suspects. And when Kaszuba said, "the moment of truth has come", he was not talking about plans to put an end to bribery. His targets were those who leak information concerning scandals to the eagerly awaiting press.
The Rywingate scandal may have taken its name after the country's most famous film producer, popular due to his energetic performance as a gangster in the "Extradition" TV series he also produced. But "Rokitagate" would, perhaps, be a more appropriate label. By the time Lew Rywin's trial, scheduled to begin on December 2, comes to an end, the Civic Platform (PO) deputy and member of the investigative commission, Jan Rokita, may well be in prison for disclosing confidential information.
Five months back, Jan Rokita read out a text message from Adam Halber, a member of the National Broadcasting Council (KRRiTV), to Robert Kwiatkowski, TVP president, during the commission's televised session. The message contained words that have since become the "anthem of the boys' republic," as the current political system is sometimes described.
"Glory be unto us and the boys," Adam Halber proclaimed. "Down with the dickheads." This is a market regulator writing to the head of a state-owned company accused of monopolistic practices by its competitors. Improper? Of course, concluded the prosecutors, Rokita should be charged for disclosing confidential information.
Enough joking. Rokita will escape scot-free. He is, after all, a politician. He could be voted into power one day. It would be dangerous to make him a martyr of the truth. Journalists though, cannot feel quite so secure. Even those who enjoy powerful political influence and have friends in the highest places, such as Adam Michnik, editor of Gazeta Wyborcza, risk losing the respect of the public for trying to do their job as best they can.
When testifying before the commission and the prosecutors, Michnik frequently refused to answer questions, citing his legal obligation to protect his sources. The court, referred to by the commission, upheld his stance. That has not, however, stopped politicians and commentators quite openly showing their impatience with Michnik's determination to say only as much as his sense of professional ethics allows him. Perhaps it is a reflection of their own ideas on the subject.
It is not just words, either. Contrary to defeatist propaganda spun by cynical foreign-owned media, the authorities are not slow in pressing charges. 36 cases are being pursued by the Warsaw prosecutors' office alone. Those charged are, however, journalists guility of making the corruption public, not the actual suspects. And when Kaszuba said, "the moment of truth has come", he was not talking about plans to put an end to bribery. His targets were those who leak information concerning scandals to the eagerly awaiting press.
The Rywingate scandal may have taken its name after the country's most famous film producer, popular due to his energetic performance as a gangster in the "Extradition" TV series he also produced. But "Rokitagate" would, perhaps, be a more appropriate label. By the time Lew Rywin's trial, scheduled to begin on December 2, comes to an end, the Civic Platform (PO) deputy and member of the investigative commission, Jan Rokita, may well be in prison for disclosing confidential information.
Five months back, Jan Rokita read out a text message from Adam Halber, a member of the National Broadcasting Council (KRRiTV), to Robert Kwiatkowski, TVP president, during the commission's televised session. The message contained words that have since become the "anthem of the boys' republic," as the current political system is sometimes described.
"Glory be unto us and the boys," Adam Halber proclaimed. "Down with the dickheads." This is a market regulator writing to the head of a state-owned company accused of monopolistic practices by its competitors. Improper? Of course, concluded the prosecutors, Rokita should be charged for disclosing confidential information.
Enough joking. Rokita will escape scot-free. He is, after all, a politician. He could be voted into power one day. It would be dangerous to make him a martyr of the truth. Journalists though, cannot feel quite so secure. Even those who enjoy powerful political influence and have friends in the highest places, such as Adam Michnik, editor of Gazeta Wyborcza, risk losing the respect of the public for trying to do their job as best they can.
When testifying before the commission and the prosecutors, Michnik frequently refused to answer questions, citing his legal obligation to protect his sources. The court, referred to by the commission, upheld his stance. That has not, however, stopped politicians and commentators quite openly showing their impatience with Michnik's determination to say only as much as his sense of professional ethics allows him. Perhaps it is a reflection of their own ideas on the subject.
