Donald Tusk, Poland’s arch-europhile Prime Minister, has been accused of putting the interests of the bloc ahead of those of his own people in the wake of yesterday’s violent clashes between police and protesting farmers in Warsaw.
Poland’s government today sought to blame hooligans and provocateurs for this week’s angry scenes, which left many police officers injured, and pledged to prosecute the offenders.
However Beata Szydlo of the Law and Justice Party, who herself served as Polish Prime Minister between 2015 and 2017, saw things somewhat differently.
Referring to similar protests in the EU’s very doorstep last month, she told Express.co.uk: “In Poland, demonstrations against the Green Deal have been milder than in Brussels, for example.
“Nevertheless, there have been provocations, as many commentators assume – inspired by the police themselves.
“This is a hallmark of Tusk, and the police acted similarly to his previous governments. “
Ms Szydlo explained: “During the Law and Justice government, despite numerous opposition demonstrations, there were no such scenes.
“The police behaved with great tolerance for demonstrators.”
Mr Tusk had “immediately used the unrest as an excuse to avoid talking to the protesters”, Ms Szydlo claimed.
She added: “This, however, will not help him. Now the farmers are being joined by trade unionists and workers in many industries. Poles do not want a Green Deal.
“Tusk, however, will do anything to help his patrons from Brussels – even at the expense of his own people.”
Warsaw police said that 14 officers were hurt, one of them seriously, when aggressive participants in the massive farmer protest Wednesday pelted them with pavement stones and other objects. The police used tear gas against them.
Mr Tusk said warned those found guilty of provoking the violence “for political or other reasons” they would be punished according to the law.
He also insisted the violence will not prevent him from talking to representatives of disgruntled farmers who say their livelihoods are being undercut by recent European Union decisions.
Interior Minister Marcin Kierwinski claimed some people took advantage of otherwise legal protests to sow unrest.
He added: “I want to make it clear: We need to differentiate between two categories.
“The farmers, who were protesting in accordance with the law.
“But we were also dealing with a small group of hooligans and provocateurs who attacked the police.”
More than 50 participants were arrested and 26 of them are under investigation, according to the police.
Farmers across Europe are angry over EU climate policies and food imports from Ukraine that they say threaten their livelihoods.
Such protests have occurred across the 27-member EU in recent weeks, but the latest in Warsaw was decidedly angrier than earlier demonstrations in Poland.
