Immunity for politicians and ministers is not uncommon in the Polish parliament, but this case, voted on on Friday, November 7, 2025, was particularly important.
Lawmakers had to decide whether former Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro would lose his immunity from preventive detention on suspicion of being a member of a criminal organization. During his term, the right-wing conservative politician “Sherif” A Polish figure who defended law and order with an iron fist.
Sejm, the lower house of the Polish parliament, approved by a majority the exemption of immunity in 26 criminal cases filed by the public prosecutor’s office. Finally, he gave the go-ahead for the arrest and preventive imprisonment of 55-year-old Ziobro. Zbigniew Ziobro, a Krakow native with legal training, served as head of the Ministry of Justice in the conservative government that took office in autumn 2015. Shortly thereafter, he was appointed attorney general. He had already held both positions from 2005 to 2007.
Ziobro pushed for a radical restructuring of Poland’s judicial system, with the aim of bringing the entire jurisdiction under political control to govern without legal obstacles, despite opposition from the European Union.
corruption and abuse of power
However, Ziobro is being charged with corruption rather than politicizing the judiciary. The charges center on the Justice Fund, which relies on the Ministry of Justice. Ziobro is said to have used the money from the fund, which was primarily aimed at crime victims, as a black box for the Polish Sovereignty Party (SP), which he founded and led. The SP was part of the conservative government from 2015 to 2023, along with Jarosław Kaczynski’s Law and Justice Party (PiS).
According to the complaint, funds intended for crime victims were used for SP politicians’ campaign and media support. The public prosecutor’s office has accused Ziobro of belonging to a criminal organization and of embezzling 150 million zlotys (equivalent to 35 million euros). Kaczynski acknowledged that this tactic is controversial. In a letter found in Ziobro’s home, the PiS leader warned his coalition partners of the political and criminal consequences of his actions.
In addition, with funds from the fund, software Pegasus, an Israeli spy. The program was originally intended to help fight organized crime, but it was also used to spy on liberal opposition parties and journalists. Pegasus allows secret agencies to access smartphones, download data, and eavesdrop on conversations.
embezzlement of funds
Mr. Ziobro’s arrest is in the hands of the Polish secret service ABW, but it is doubtful that it will be possible as the former minister has been in Hungary for some time. At the end of October 2025, Hungarian government leader Viktor Orban published a photo with Ziobro on the social network X, accusing the government of Donald Tusk of conducting a “political witch hunt” against the former justice minister.
Since December 2024, Ziobro’s close associate, former Deputy Minister of Justice Marcin Romanovski, has also been residing in Budapest. To avoid arrest on similar charges, he fled to the Hungarian capital and obtained political asylum, causing relations between Warsaw and Budapest to hit rock bottom.
In numerous interviews with right-wing media, Ziobro has justified his trip to Budapest by citing participation in a “long-term planned conference”, without saying whether he will apply for asylum in Hungary.
He said the action against him amounted to revenge by the government secretary, Donald Tusk, for investigating people around him. He also claimed that the Prime Minister wanted to divert attention from other issues, such as the health sector’s financial woes. Ziobro himself has been suffering from cancer for years, but that doesn’t stop him from continuing his political career.
Waiting for the change of government in Budapest
Ahead of the independence march on Tuesday, November 11, billboards with the slogan “Solidarity with Minister Ziobro” appeared in Warsaw. The event is held annually by right-wing and nationalist groups to commemorate the restoration of Polish national independence in 1918, and this time it will be attended by both President Nawrocki and PiS leader Kaczynski. It is expected that the Ziobro incident will also be a topic of discussion at the march.
Tusk has already said he will not send a special unit to Budapest to bring Ziobro back, but said he is in contact with Hungarian opposition leader Peter Magyar. In the spring of 2026, the Hungarian people will elect a new parliament. If Prime Minister Orbán’s Fidesz party loses, things could become very difficult for Ziobro and his ideological allies in Budapest.
(milliseconds/CP)
About The Author
