Map source: Human Rights Watch

Last updated: 21 October 2006

Contributed by: Agnieszka Mrozik, Poland National VAW Monitor

Poland established itself as a popular democratic regime in 1989. However, since that time, the country has struggled to create political and economic stability. Poland signed the Treaty of Accession to the European Union on 16 April 2003 and became a member of the European Union on 1 May 2004.

The new Constitution of the Republic of Poland (available here in Polish) was adopted in 1997 and establishes equality before the law in several provisions. Article 32 states:

"1. All persons shall be equal before the law. All persons shall have the right to equal treatment by public authorities.

2. No one shall be discriminated against in political, social or economic life for any reason whatsoever."

Article 33 states:

"1.  Men and women shall have equal rights in family, political, social and economic life in the Republic of Poland.

2. Men and women shall have equal rights, in particular, regarding education, employment and promotion, and shall have the right to equal compensation for work of similar value, to social security, to hold offices, and to receive public honours and decorations."

In addition, Article 47 guarantees all persons the right to "legal protection of his private and family life, of his honour and good reputation and to make decisions about his personal life."

The U.S. Department of State 2005 human rights report notes that police statistics suggest that there were 88,388 female domestic violence victims in 2004. According to this report, the police conducted 22,652 investigations into domestic violence and forwarded 21,843 requests for indictment, which resulted in 17,158 convictions. On 6 June 1997, the new Penal Code (available here in Polish) and Code of Criminal Procedure (available here in Polish) entered into force. Several relevant articles can be used for prosecution. Article 156 imposes a prison sentence of one to ten years for the infliction of serious bodily harm; Article 157 imposes a prison sentence of three months to five years for lesser harm, and; Article 190 imposes a maximum prison sentence of two years for threats to commit an offense against another. Prosecution proceedings begin upon initiation by the injured party. In addition, Article 207 punishes the mental or physical mistreatment of a person close to or dependent on the perpetrator by three months to five years' imprisonment. If the perpetrator uses particular cruelty, the prison sentence increases to a term of one to ten years.

The 2005 Polish Law on Domestic Violence outlines government responsibilities to counteract domestic vioelnce. It also provides for some amendments to the Penal Code and Social Aid Act.

The U.S. Department of State noted that divorces are often granted without property settlements, thus compelling women to return to abusive situations. More alternative housing and state-funded shelters for victims of domestic violence are needed, as well. While law enforcement and the State Agency for Solving Alcoholic Problems worked together to document domestic violence incidents through the "blue card" system, the program received insufficient funding, thus limiting its impact.

In November 2005, the new Counteraction Violence in Close Relations Bill was enacted (available here in Polish). According to the new law, it is possible to impose pre-trial police supervision of perpetrators of domestic violence, but only when the perpetrators leave the place where they stayed with the victim. The bill states that in the case of a perpetrator’s suspended sentence, it is for the court to decide about the form of future contact between the perpetrator and the victim. In certain defined circumstances, the court may require that the perpetrator stays away from his or her victim. The court may also require the perpetrator undergo a therapy or educational program.

The U.S. Department of State observed that 1,987 cases of rape were reported in 2005. However, NGOs believed the actual number of rape cases to be ten times higher, taking into account the number of victims who do not report rapes. Rape is punished under Article 197 of the Penal Code, which states that whoever forces another person to have sexual intercourse by force, threat or deceit, shall be punished by a sentence of one to ten years' imprisonment; the maximum sentence increases to twelve years if committed using particular cruelty. Forcing a person to commit other sexual acts is punished under Article 197(2) by a prison sentence of three months to five years. The Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women noted that the victim is required to initiate proceedings against the rapist by filing a motion, and she may not withdraw the charges once they are filed. According to the International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights (International Helsinki Federation) in Women 2000: An Investigation into the Status of Women's Rights in Central and South-Eastern Europe and the Newly Independent States (Women 2000), the Police Headquarters issued an order in 1999 that female victims of rape are to be questioned by a female officer. However, the International Helsinki Federation reports that this order is not adhered to, partly due to the lack of women working in the police force. 

The U.S. Department of State observed that police reported 54 investigations of sexual harassment during 2005. This was a drop from 225 investigations in 2004, possibly due to the incarceration of repeat offenders. There is no specific article in the current Penal Code that addresses sexual harassment, although it can be prosecuted under Article 199, which states: "Whosoever, using the relation of dependence or critical situation of another person, forces that person to have sexual intercourse or any other form of sexual activity or forces a person to perform such an activity, shall be punished by three years of imprisonment." Women 2000 reports that sexual harassment could be prosecuted under Articles 11(2) and 11(3) of the Labour Code, which address equal treatment and discrimination in working relationships, respectively. A report Women in Poland 2003 (here in Polish) by Urszula Nowakowska and Anna Swedrowska, observed that Article 11(1) of the Labour Code protects the personal dignity and bodily integrity of employees.  According to Eirofound, the Polish Labour Code was amended again in October 2003. Sexual harassment is now defined and prohibited under Article 18(3)(a)(6), which states that, "discrimination in reference to gender shall also comprise all unaccepted behaviour of a sexual character or behaviour referring to the gender of the employee whose objective or effect comprises transgression against the dignity, or insult or humiliation, of an employee; such behaviour may comprise physical, verbal, or non-verbal elements (sexual harassment)." The President signed the Act into law, and the entire law entered into force on 1 May 2004.

Poland is a country of origin, transit and destination for trafficking in women. Polish women are mainly trafficked to Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, France, Japan and Israel. Because of its gateway position between Western and Eastern Europe, Poland has become an extremely popular transit country among traffickers. As much as thirty percent of the prostitutes in Poland are estimated to be foreigners, and of these foreign prostitutes, La Strada estimates that sixty percent are trafficking victims. Of the foreign women trafficked into Poland, Ukrainians comprised the largest number of victims. The U.S. Department of State has ranked Poland as a Tier 1 country in its 2006 Trafficking in Persons Report.

Trafficking in persons can be prosecuted by the Penal Code under Articles 204 and 253. Article 204(4) punishes the recruitment or abduction of persons for prostitution purposes abroad by a prison sentence of one to ten years. Inducing another person to engage in prostitution for profit is also punishable under Article 253(1) by up to three years' imprisonment. Article 253 punishes "trade in humans," even with the victims' consent, by a minimum prison sentence of three years. In addition, Article 189 (deprivation of liberty), Article 190 (threats to commit an offense detrimental to another) and Article 191 (force or threats to compel a person to conduct, resist or submit to certain behavior) may be used to prosecute trafficking offenses. According to the 2006 Trafficking in Persons Report, in 2005 police in Poland initiated 22 new trafficking investigations and continued work on 22 previous investigations. Authorities prosecuted 43 individuals for trafficking crimes, resulting in 37 convictions. Thirty-seven foreign victims assisted law enforcement efforts in 2005. Under Polish law, foreign victims are not eligible for various state-provided services that Polish victims may receive; to remedy this, the government allocated $80,000 to an NGO to provide assistance to foreign victims. This NGO assisted 79 foreign victims in 2005. The NGO La-Strada Foundation, which provides victim assistance and trainings on prevention and victim support, is a good resource for obtaining information on trafficking in women in Poland. 

Compiled from:

2006 Trafficking in Persons Report, Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, U.S. Department of State, June 2006. (PDF, 295 pages).

2005 Country Report on Human Rights Practices, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, U.S. Department of State, 8 March 2006.

Integration of the Human Rights of Women and the Gender Perspective - Violence Against Women, Addendum 1, Radhika Coomaraswamy, Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, 27 Feb. 2003. (PDF, 435 pages).

Women in Poland 2003, Urszula Nowakowska and Anna Swedrowska, Women’s Rights Center, Warsaw 2003 (PDF, 140 s.).

Women 2000:  An Investigation into the Status of Women's Rights in Central and South-Eastern Europe and the Newly Independent States, International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights, 5 November 2000. (PDF, 16 pages).

A Form of Slavery: Trafficking in Women in OSCE Member States, International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights, 19 June 2000. (PDF, 91 pages).