Former Polish Minister of Justice Zbigniew Ziobro, Photo: Hubert Mathis / Zuma Press / Profimedia Images
Hungary has granted asylum to the former Polish justice minister in Poland, it announced on Monday, known as the architect of judicial reforms that plunged Warsaw into a years-long conflict with the EU, and who has now become a fugitive to avoid accusations of abuse of power in Poland.
This case highlights that the rift between the two EU and NATO countries is widening, although they were once considered close allies.
“I decided to take advantage of the asylum granted by the Hungarian government due to political repressions in Poland,” former Minister of Justice Zbigniew Ziobro wrote on X.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk's pro-EU government has pledged to bring to justice people linked to the former nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) government who are accused of wrongdoing.
Ziobro, the most famous person targeted by prosecutors to date, is accused of misusing funds from the Justice Fund, intended to help victims of crimes, including the purchase of the sophisticated Pegasus spy system. Prosecutors say it was used against domestic political opponents.
Ziobro says he is the victim of a political witch hunt because, as prosecutor general, he opened investigations against people close to Tusk.
“The former minister of justice runs away like a coward from justice”
He said on Monday that he had also applied for asylum for his wife. On Friday, Poland summoned Hungary's ambassador after reports emerged that Budapest had granted asylum to the two Poles.
In 2024, Hungary angered Poland when it granted asylum to Marcin Romanowski, a former deputy justice minister in the PiS government, who is also accused of embezzling public funds.
Members of Poland's ruling coalition quickly condemned the decision by the former minister, known for his tough speech, to seek safety abroad rather than face the charges at home.
“The former justice minister is running like a coward from the Polish judiciary. A total downfall!” said the minister in charge of special services, Tomasz Siemoniak, in a post on X.
A month ago, the Polish Minister of Justice, Waldemar Zurek, accused the Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, of being closer to Russia than to Europe, the statement being made in connection with the case of the two former Polish officials accused of embezzlement and who are protected by Hungary. “Unfortunately, Orban wants to dynamite the EU from within, and his pro-Russian policies are completely unacceptable for the majority of EU citizens,” concluded Zurek.
