“We will set fire to Europe”: Polish union protests outside ECJ against order to close coal mine

Polish trade unionists have today protested outside the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in Luxembourg against an order by the court to close the Turów coal mine. Their demonstration was joined by politicians from Poland’s ruling coalition.

The protesters, who arrived overnight on buses, were met by hundreds of Luxembourg police officers along with heavy vehicles, dogs and barbed wire barricades.

Around 2,000 people assembled outside the headquarters of the top European court on Friday morning, in a gathering organised by the Solidarity union.

In May, the CJEU ordered Poland to provisionally close Turów, following a complaint against it filed by the Czech Republic. The mine sits close to the countries’ shared border. The Polish government criticised the ruling – as well as the EU’s “colonial” attitude – and has so far refused to comply.

In response, the CJEU last month issued Poland with daily fines of €500,000 for as long as it refuses to close the mine. Warsaw has still not done so, instead trying to negotiate a settlement with Prague. But talks recently broke down, with the Polish government criticising the Czechs’ “irrational” approach.

Today’s protesters, wearing yellow vests saying “Hands off Turów”, pledged that “because they want to close us down, we are closing down the CJEU”. Banners read: “Yesterday Moscow, today Brussels is taking away our sovereignty”.

The unionists said they had come to Luxembourg to “defend our rights and jobs”, reports Onet. The Polish government has argued that closing the Turów coal mine, which provides 4-7% of Poland’s electricity, would cause enormous economic harm both locally and nationally.

“We are warning, we are giving you time to think,” said Piotr Duda, head of Solidarity. “If not, we will set fire to Europe, but we will set fire to it in our hearts. To resist these idiots who with one decision want to deprive jobs to thousands of people. We will not let them!”

A delegation from Solidarity intended to enter the court to hand in a petition and resolution to close it down. After they were not let in, they left the documents outside.

Barbed wire fences had been erected around the court and 840 police officers as well as air support had been deployed, while water cannons and military-type vehicles provided by the Belgian police were also available. Several police stations were closed and roadblocks had been set up, reports the Luxembourg Times.

“There is martial law here,” Duda commented. “Blocked roads, the whole of Luxembourg closed, barbed wire everywhere. Let them be scared. Let them know that their decision is unacceptable to us.”

“Europe welcomes us as if we were invaders, yet we didn’t come here to fight or murder somebody,” complained Dominik Kolorz from Solidarity, quoted by Radio Zet.

Duda later handed in a petition at the Czech embassy. Wojciech Ilnicki, head of the Turów branch of the union, explained that the protesters were unhappy about the actions of Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš.

“We don’t like what the oligarch Babiš has done, worsening relations between our countries, between neighbours, for his private benefits,” he said.

“A mine cannot be closed overnight. It should be an issue between the mine and the border settlements,” said his fellow union leader, Bogumił Tyszkiewicz, reports the Polish Press Agency (PAP). “We cannot allow an independent institution to interfere so much…Such matters need to be resolved…not by force, but by agreement.”

MEPs from Poland’s ruling United Right coalition joined the protesters outside the court. “I am with [the trade unionists] today. We will not give Turów up!” wrote one of them, Anna Zalewska.

Robert Bąkiewicz, a Polish far-right leader, was also present at the demonstration. “We are at war,” he said. “This is not just about Turów. It is the beginning of the destruction of our economy.”

Main image credit: Tomasz Pietrzyk / Agencja Gazeta

Ben Koschalka

Ben Koschalka is a translator and senior editor at Notes from Poland. Originally from Britain, he has lived in Kraków since 2005.