Katarzyna Bąkowicz of SWPS University told Polish Press Agency (PAP) she is not surprised the pact dominated successive election campaigns, saying migration is a topic that "pays off" politically to exploit.
"Migration is one of the topics around which there is the most disinformation, not only in Poland but across Europe", she said, tracing this to fear of the unfamiliar — "we fear everything we don't know", and migrants appear as strangers.
She said the issue is "very strongly used by radical circles to create polarization, to propagate exclusionary attitudes, and to build a so-called common enemy concept". According to Bąkowicz, the logic of such political messaging rests on portraying a threat to public safety and attributing that threat to a specific group — in this case, migrants — so that eliminating migrants becomes framed as the path back to a sense of security.
As an example, she pointed to a recent speech by independent lawmaker Janusz Kowalski, who cited the number of foreigners employed in public administration as a reason Poles lack jobs. Bąkowicz argued that public figures should work to weaken such narratives rather than reinforce them, warning they fuel acts of aggression against migrants and deepen social divisions. In the long run, she said, a society that competes internally rather than cooperating becomes more vulnerable to manipulation and outside influence.
The pact, approved in 2024, creates a common EU framework for migration management, including mandatory registration and security checks for migrants crossing EU borders illegally, faster border procedures for asylum seekers with low chances of approval, new return rules, and a solidarity mechanism between member states.
Under that mechanism, EU countries can choose to contribute through relocation, a payment of EUR 20,000 for each migrant not accepted, or operational support such as deploying personnel, with a minimum EU-wide relocation target of 30,000 people annually. Countries facing significant migratory pressure can be exempted from this obligation — currently Poland, Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic and Estonia.
The issue featured heavily in Poland's 2023 parliamentary election, when conservative opposition party Law and Justice (PiS) politicians warned that a Tusk-led government would mean accepting forced relocation, and again in the 2025 presidential race, when PiS-backed winner Karol Nawrocki pledged to seek Poland's complete withdrawal from the pact. Despite the change of government in late 2023, Poland's opposition to the pact continued, though Prime Minister Donald Tusk said his administration negotiated reductions that left Poland's solidarity contribution at zero.
While member states can be partially exempted from pact obligations, full rejection is not legally possible, and non-compliance could lead to EU infringement proceedings and financial penalties.
(jh)
Source: PAP, Polish Radio