The right-wing Prime Minister of Poland has declared his intention to proceed with a referendum on EU migration reforms. This referendum will gauge public willingness to accept “thousands of undocumented immigrants from the Middle East and Africa.”
In a video message released online, Mateusz Morawiecki confirmed that the referendum would coincide with a parliamentary election scheduled for October 15th. Migration and security concerns will be focal points during the election campaign, as Morawiecki’s ruling party, Law and Justice (PiS), seeks to maintain its hold on power.
The campaign to extend PiS’s eight-year rule began last Thursday when Defense Minister Mariusz Błaszczak announced on public radio the deployment of 10,000 troops closer to the Belarus border to deter any potential aggression.
This announcement comes in the wake of recent incidents involving Belarusian military helicopters violating Polish airspace and Wagner group mercenaries establishing a presence in Belarus. The Polish government interprets these actions as provocations that underline the perceived threat from Minsk to both Poland and the EU.
The Morawiecki government has consistently opposed EU plans to equitably distribute migrants across member states, an approach intended to share responsibility for unauthorized entries into the bloc. Despite opposition from Hungary and Poland, among others, EU interior ministers officially endorsed the agreement in June.
The proposed referendum will present a specific question: “Do you support the admission of thousands of undocumented immigrants from the Middle East and Africa through the forced relocation mechanism imposed by European bureaucracy?”
The accompanying video features footage of street violence in Western Europe, including burning buildings and vehicles, alluding to recent unrest in France. The video also includes a scene involving a knife, accompanied by the voice of PiS leader Jarosław Kaczyński, who raises the question of whether citizens desire a similar situation to occur in Poland, implying a loss of national control.
PiS has expressed concerns about the increasing influx of migrants from Africa and the Middle East entering Poland via Belarus, despite Belarus not being an EU member. The shared 400km border has witnessed roughly 19,000 attempted crossings this year, exceeding the 16,000 attempted crossings in the entirety of 2022. To protect the border, around 2,000 Polish soldiers and 5,000 border guards are stationed, with a 186km metal wall fortifying sections of the frontier.
Although Poland has granted refuge to over a million Ukrainians, primarily of white Christian background, the country’s leaders have voiced reservations about hosting Muslims and individuals from diverse cultures. Concerns about cultural identity and security have been cited, particularly during the 2015 refugee crisis.
Apart from migration-related questions, the forthcoming referendum will also inquire about other matters, including support for raising the retirement age, which had previously been lowered to 60 for women and 65 for men, as well as the privatization of state-owned enterprises.
Political analysts have drawn parallels between the Polish leader’s anti-EU rhetoric and the “Take back control” slogans used by pro-Brexit campaigners in the UK.
Additionally, Kaczyński has amplified anti-German sentiments within his party, which has employed this stance to solidify its support base since its establishment in 2001. Topics such as misogyny, homophobia, security concerns, and racism have also been invoked. Kaczyński has even demanded that Germany pay Poland €1.3tn in reparations for Nazi war crimes during World War II, a demand Germany has rejected.
Kaczyński has justified these sentiments by invoking Poland’s history under Nazi and Soviet rule, portraying them as the foundation for Polish fears and demands.
During a rally in Chełm, Kaczyński asserted, “Guess who wields the most influence in Brussels? Correct – Germany. We’d be transitioning from living under the eastern boot to living under the western one.”