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world news Diahuebs 23 December 2021

EU takes aim at Poland amid fears for bloc’s legal order

(AP) — The European Paolo Gentiloni said that the
Union on Wednesday rulings “are in breach of the Earlier this year, the com-
launched legal action general principles of auton- mission sought fines to force
against Poland over re- omy, primacy, effectiveness Warsaw to improve the way
cent decisions by one of and uniform application of the Supreme Court works
the country’s top courts Union law and the binding and suspend new laws said
which have raised trou- effect of rulings of the Court to endanger judicial inde-
bling questions about the of Justice of the European pendence. The ECJ ordered
27-nation bloc’s legal or- Union.” Poland to pay $1.2 million a
der. day to prevent “serious and
Gentiloni said the commis- irreparable harm” to EU legal
In October, Poland’s con- sion, which proposes EU order and values.
stitutional court ruled that laws and supervises the way
Polish laws have supremacy they are applied, considers Polish Prime Minister Ma-
over those of the EU in areas that the Polish court “no lon- teusz Morawiecki rejected
where they conflict. When ger meets the requirements the commission’s objections,
countries join the EU, as Po- of an independent and im- and notably that Brussels cies,” Mueller said. a loss of voting rights.
land did in 2004, they must partial tribunal established by would question the constitu-
bring their laws into line with law as required by the (EU) tional court’s independence. Sebastian Kaleta, a deputy John Morijn, a law professor
the bloc’s regulations. The treaty.” justice minister, went fur- at the University of Gronin-
European Court of Justice Morawiecki said the court ther, branding the move “an gen in the Netherlands who
is supreme arbiter of those “The European Union is a “not only fulfils all inde- attack on the Polish constitu- has been closely following
rules. community of values and of pendence criteria, but it is a tion and the country’s sover- the EU-Poland conflict, wel-
law and the rights of Europe- Constitutional Tribunal that eignty.” comed the commission ac-
In launching its legal action, ans under the treaties must be stands guard of the constitu- tion.
the EU’s executive branch, protected, no matter where tion and ensures that it re- The first step of the legal ac-
the European Commission, they live in the union,” he mains the highest law of the tion involves the commission He told The Associated Press
said that it sees two constitu- told reporters. Republic of Poland,” accord- sending a “letter of formal that it clarifies that Poland’s
tional tribunal decisions this ing to Polish news agency notice” requesting a reac- constitutional court, which
year as “expressly challeng- The legal action is just the PAP. tion and information from has become now a “political
ing the primacy of EU law.” latest in a series of confron- Poland. Warsaw is required body,” threatens some ba-
The commission also raised tations between Brussels and Government spokesman Pi- to reply in detail within two sic EU principles. He said it
doubts about the court’s le- the right-wing government otr Mueller told PAP that the months. means the tribunal should no
gitimacy. in Warsaw over the state of commission had overstepped longer be considered a real
the country’s justice system, its authority. “EU bodies can- Countries that fail to comply court and that Polish citizens’
Announcing the move, rule of law standards and me- not operate outside of their with EU court rulings can right to a fair trial is “under
Economy Commissioner dia freedoms. literally expressed competen- face hefty fines and possibly threat.”

Landslide in Myanmar mining area leaves dozens missing

(AP) — A landslide at a re- said. has broken out between the miles) north of Myanmar’s On July 3, 2020, at least 162
mote jade mine in north- Myanmar army and ethnic biggest city, Yangon. A cease- people died in a landslide in
ern Myanmar’s Kachin Reports were scant from the guerrilla forces. fire in the region has been the same area, while a No-
state killed one person area in Hpakant, which is disrupted since a Feb. 1 coup vember 2015 accident left
and left at least 70 missing the center of the world’s big- Gayunar Rescue Team of- ousted Aung San Suu Kyi and 113 dead. In that case, the
Wednesday and a search gest and most lucrative jade ficial Nyo Chaw, who was her elected government. victims died when a 60-meter
and rescue operation was mining industry. It’s a re- coordinating the effort, said (200-foot) -high mountain of
underway, rescue officials gion where sporadic fighting more than 70 miners who It has some of world’s rich- earth and waste discarded by
were digging for jade were est jade deposits, making the several mines collapsed in the
swept into a lake a couple of industry a hotbed for corrup- middle of the night, cover-
hours before dawn when the tion. ing more than 70 huts where
landslide hit. Earth and waste miners were sleeping.
from several mines around The military has said it shut
Lonekhin village slid 60 me- down jade mining in Hpak- Those killed in such acci-
ters (about 200 feet) down a ant, but some companies dents are usually freelance
cliff and struck the miners, have been operating illegally. miners who settle near giant
he said. The mines are also a main mounds of discarded earth
source of revenue for the that has been excavated by
At least five young women Kachin ethnic armed group- heavy machinery. The free-
and three small shops were Kachin Independence Army lancers who scavenge for bits
also buried in Wednesday’s based in Kachin state. of jade usually work and live
landslide. The body of a jade in abandoned mining pits at
worker was unearthed from According to an official of a the base of the mounds of
heavy mud by midday, Nyo civil society group in Hpak- earth, which become par-
Chaw said. ant, who asked not to be ticularly unstable during the
named fearing his safety, rainy season.
“About 150 rescue workers between 20 and 50 mining
and firefighters are search- companies have been operat- Most scavengers are unregis-
ing for the area and we have ing illegal mines. tered migrants from other ar-
found the body of a jade eas, making it hard to deter-
miner so far and keep finding Safety has long been a con- mine exactly how many peo-
others,” Nyo Chaw told the cern, and the suspension of ple are actually missing after
Associated Press. licensing in recent years has such accidents and in many
sparred a rush of artisanal cases leaving the relatives of
Hpakant is a mountainous mining under even worse the dead in their home vil-
and remote area in Kachin conditions. lages unaware of their fate.
state, 950 kilometers (600