Polish President Nawrocki vetoes digital content bill for second time

Nov 13 - Polish President Karol Nawrocki vetoed legislation on Friday that would have let regulators decide whether online content is illegal and order it blocked, his second rejection of a bill implementing the European Union’s Digital Services Act.Nawrocki said the bill, which had been narrowed and resubmitted after he vetoed an earlier version in January, gave state officials excessive power over online speech."It is not the role of an official to rule on whether a given piece of content constitutes a crime or not. That is solely the role of independent courts," he said in a video on X.The bill, which the Sejm, the lower house of parliament, passed in October, would have let regulators order the blocking of online content including criminal threats and incitement to violence, with appeals routed through courts.Nawrocki, an ally of the nationalist opposition, and Prime Minister Donald Tusk's pro-European coalition government have clashed repeatedly since he took office, as the president has vetoed 48 of the government's bills.The legislation had gained urgency after a string of knife attacks at Polish schools in October, including one in which a 15-year-old wore a helmet-mounted camera and appeared to intend to film the attack.Digital Affairs Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski said the veto would leave Poland without the tools the government says are needed to respond quickly to such cases."This veto is not just throwing legislation in the trash — it’s permission for hate, hatred and the death that the internet also brings," Gawkowski said in a post on X.Nawrocki rejected the link between the bill and the school attacks, accusing the government of exploiting the violence to push the legislation through."They exploited a tragedy, applied emotional blackmail, to push through regulations that give the government essentially arbitrary control and the ability to decide what we can and cannot say, write or publish," he said.Tusk defended the bill in a post on X. "Protecting children from online criminals. It is hard to imagine a more important issue that should unite people across political divides. And yet he vetoed it," Tusk said.Gawkowski told a press conference he would draft another bill on the issue. REUTERS