As well as protesting, Poles need to strengthen their state | Timothy Garton Ash

EU pressure won’t do it. But working to bolster institutions will counter the erosion of democracy

A year ago I wrote a column warning about political developments in Poland, headlined “The pillars of Poland’s democracy are being destroyed”. There was angry reaction from supporters of Poland’s governing Law and Justice party (PiS), but a year later it’s shocking to see how far the pillars of liberal, pluralist democracy in Poland have been battered and shaken, though not yet destroyed.

Related: The EU’s Poland problem: How will Brussels react to Warsaw’s autocracy?

Such a popular mobilisation should not be necessary in a 27-year-old parliamentary democracy

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