WARSAW, Poland -- Thousands of Poles marched through Warsaw on Saturday to protest the policies of the populist ruling party under Jaroslaw Kaczynski, describing them as attacks on the country's democracy and attempts to distance the country from the heart of the European Union.
Speakers at the "March of Freedom" said the government under the conservative Law and Justice party has eroded the independence of Poland's courts and other institutions to such an extent that the country would not be accepted into the European Union or NATO today if it didn't already belong.
"We will not allow Kaczynski to take us out of Western Europe. Together we will defend freedom," said Jacek Jaskowiak, the mayor of Poznan, a city in western Poland.
The event was organized by the opposition Civic Platform party, but other opposition parties and the Committee for the Defense of Democracy, a civic organization, also took part. Red baseball caps with "Make Law & Justice Small Again" -- a play on President Donald Trump's "Make America Great Again" -- were among props in evidence, along with banners saying "Rule of Law."
Protesters are concerned about how Law and Justice has consolidated power since taking office in 2015. EU officials have repeatedly censured the party for backsliding on democratic standards. The Polish government rejected the bloc's recommendations to reverse curbs on the Constitutional Court. It also took direct control of the public media and drafted laws giving politicians more control over the judiciary.
Civic Platform leader Grzegorz Schetyna said the moves risk eroding freedoms and encouraging authoritarian rule, and he appealed for unity of the opposition.
"Standing as one is the only way to win in next elections," Schetyna said Saturday, standing with leaders of other opposition groups as the march reached its destination in central Warsaw. "All those that are now breaking the law will be made accountable when we win."
Kaczynski said Saturday that the protesters were misguided. Speaking in the northwestern city of Szczecin minutes before the march began, he said "freedom exists in Poland, and only those who do not perceive reality can question that."
"Freedom means to live in a country that is growing and adding jobs, and we are taking care of that," he added.
Information for this article was contributed by Marek Strzelecki of Bloomberg News; and by staff writers of The Associated Press.
A Section on 05/07/2017