The legislation, passed by parliament and submitted for presidential signature on March 6, proposes amendments to the penal code that would broaden the legal definition of hate speech and toughen criminal penalties.
In a statement accompanying the referral, Duda said the provisions raise constitutional doubts and require “thorough scrutiny” before they can take effect.
“The analysis of the adopted law and its proposed solutions raises constitutional concerns,” the president said. “For this reason, before it potentially enters into force, it should undergo a detailed review by the Constitutional Tribunal to assess its compliance with the Constitution.”
The bill expands the list of protected characteristics to include disability, age, gender, and sexual orientation. It also addresses changes to the legal definitions of discrimination, the promotion of totalitarian ideologies, incitement to hatred, and offences such as insult or physical assault.
LGBT+ rights advocates criticized the president’s move. Mirosława Makuchowska, director of the Campaign Against Homophobia, told state news agency PAP that the decision effectively strips several vulnerable groups of legal protection against hate speech.
“Unfortunately, we expected this. The president has not shown himself to be tolerant or open,” she said, calling his argument about limiting freedom of speech “misguided.”
“This law simply extended existing protections to more groups. Absolute, unrestricted freedom of speech does not exist in our legal system,” Makuchowska added, pointing out that Polish law already penalizes insults against the president.
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Source: IAR, PAP