Polish President Andrzej Duda unexpectedly said on Friday that he was proposing urgent amendments to a contentious law on Russian that he signed this week and that drew US and European Union criticism.
Duda said he was aware of the controversies, also in Poland, surrounding the law proposed by the governing conservative Law and Justice party and was addressing them by sending amendments to the parliament on Friday.He urged the lawmakers to act swiftly.
Critics say the law violates the Polish Constitution and could keep government opponents from holding public office without full power to challenge the decisions in court.They say it could also have a negative effect on the eligibility of opposition candidates in an election due in the autumn.
In its current form, the law will create a powerful committee, ostensibly meant to investigate Russian influence in Poland but is seen as primarily targeting Donald Tusk, a former prime minister who is now opposition leader.
