Assembly law in the light of the 2016 amendment — selected issues

Abstract

This article presents considerations regarding one of the most important civil liberties — the right to public gatherings. The institution of the right to assembly was discussed through constitutional and international law, taking into account the similar nature of these regulations. The beneficiaries of the right to assemblies were also pointed out, and the changes that took place in this matter at the constitutional level were compared. First of all, the focus was on the amendment to the Act on Assemblies, which took place on December 13, 2016, and discussed the judgment of the Constitutional Tribunal issued as a result of the preventive request of the President of the Republic of Poland. Reference was made to issues related to the unconstitutionality of the introduced regulation of cyclical assemblies. Also referred to was a pro-constitutional interpretation of the provisions of the law on assemblies and the position of courts examining appeals against decisions refusing to register a public assembly. Finally, de lege ferenda postulates were referred to, which would consist of a derogation of the provisions on cyclical assemblies, as a form of favoring one type of assembly over others.