In Poland, it was proposed to introduce a prison term for desecrating the EU flag.
The Polish opposition party "Civic Coalition" has introduced a bill that provides for imprisonment for the desecration of European Union (EU) symbols. This was reported by the publication Dorzeczy.pl.
The draft law "On the Symbols of the European Union and Their Protection" introduces sanctions for public insult, destruction, damage, or removal of EU flags and emblems. Such actions are proposed to be punishable by restriction of freedom or imprisonment for up to one year.
The authors of the initiative refer to incidents where politicians have called the EU flag a "rag," burned it, and trampled on it without facing consequences. In addition to criminal penalties, the bill provides for fines of up to 5,000 zlotys for improper use of symbols for advertising purposes. The bill aims to protect the "dignity" of European symbols alongside the flags of foreign states.
In May 2025, Polish presidential candidate and MEP Grzegorz Braun tore down and trampled on the EU flag. The incident occurred in the building of the Ministry of Industry in Katowice, where the politician arrived as a deputy to discuss the "liquidation of the Polish mining industry."
"This is Poland, not Brussels! We will not display the emblems of organizations hostile to us," Braun stated to the observing staff of the institution.
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