Polish deputies have voted for a university professor specialising in human rights to be appointed as the country’s new civic rights ombudsman, a move expected to end a deadlock over who should take on the key role. So far, five attempts to select a new ombudsman have failed after the opposition blocked nominees supported by the country’s ruling conservatives. Opposition parliamentarians claimed that instead of being independent champions of citizens’ rights, previous conservative-backed candidates for the role would have been political lackeys appointed to enforce the government’s right-wing ideological agenda. But Marcin Wiącek, a professor at the University of Warsaw and an expert in constitutional law, won cross-party support in the lower house on Thursday. That means, unlike previous nominees, he is also likely to be backed for the post by the Senate, the upper house of parliament.
Source – Polskie Radio
Polish police are out in force on Thursday, training their speed cameras on dangerous drivers. Unmarked vehicles from a police unit called SPEED are also hunting for rule-breakers.
Source – Polskie Radio
Poland’s Internal Security Agency has detained a man who called for a communist revolution, and urged attacks on soldiers, priests and entrepreneurs, news outlets have reported. Prosecutors have accused the man of promoting totalitarianism.
The suspect is alleged to have called for Polish soldiers who took part in military missions abroad to be tortured and murdered. State broadcaster TVP Info reported that the suspect is the son of leftist MP Wanda Nowicka, a former deputy Speaker of the lower house of parliament.
Source – Polskie Radio
And finally, this weekend, the Dar Młodzieży training sailing ship will visit Gdańsk. The distinctive tall ship which was built in Gdańsk in 1981 has 3 masts, 26 sails and is over 108 meters long and 14 meters wide. On Saturday she will be moored at Westerplatte Wharf where she will be open to visitors free of charge.
She has only docked at Gdańsk 7 times in her 39 years of service. The ship whose name means „Gift of Youth” in English has travelled the world and trained generations of young people in the mastery of ocean going seamanship.
Source – Radio Gdańsk
Weather
Today will be a muggy day with risks of thunderstorms in a moderate breeze and temperatures will reach 27 degrees centigrade (81 degrees Fahrenheit) during the day, dropping to 16 degrees overnight. Saturday will be sunny with scattered clouds in a moderate breeze and temperatures will reach 23 degrees during the day and 13 degrees overnight.
That was the Radio Gdańsk English news and weather.
MC/mk
