Republic of Poland

Head of state: Aleksander Kwasniewski
Head of government: Jerzy Buzek
Capital: Warsaw
Population: 38.8 million
Official language: Polish
Death penalty: abolitionist for all crimes
1999 treaty ratifications/signatures: Protocol No. 6 to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms concerning the abolition of the death penalty; Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

At least one conscientious objector to military service was imprisoned in 1999.

International organizations

In July the UN Human Rights Committee considered Poland's fourth periodic report on fulfilment of its obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The Committee expressed concern about numerous forms of discrimination against women, including discriminatory restrictions on women's access to reproductive health care. The Committee also expressed concern at the lack of an independent system of supervision to address abuses of human rights by police and prison officers, and to monitor prison conditions. The Committee called on the authorities to adopt firm measures to eradicate the abuse and humiliation of new recruits to the army.

Conscientious objection

The law governing conscientious objection was amended in May. However, several of the new provisions were at variance with internationally recognized principles on conscientious objection. The amended law set the length of alternative civilian service at nearly twice the length of military service and limited the time period in which applications for alternative civilian service can be made to "the time of receiving a call-up order for military service".

  • Marcin Petke, a conscientious objector to military service, was imprisoned on 29 January for six months for evasion of military service. The judge of the Garrison Court of Gdynia reportedly offered Marcin Petke "alternative" service in an army office, which he refused.

AI country report

  • Poland: Draft law concerning alternative service is at variance with internationally recognized principles on conscientious objection to military service (AI Index: EUR 37/004/99)

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