President of Poland proposes to punish "denial of OUN-UPA crimes": submits bill

Polish President Karol Nawrocki has submitted to the Sejm a draft law on amendments to the Criminal Code, which proposes to introduce punishment for denying "crimes" committed by Ukrainian nationalists. This was reported by the Office of the President of Poland.

According to Navrotsky, these changes will counteract the spread of "false statements about crimes" committed by members of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists under Bandera's leadership and the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), as well as other Ukrainian formations that, as the text states, "collaborated with the German Third Reich.".

It is about denying "genocidal crimes committed against Poles in Volyn".

The initiative of the Polish President provides for amendments to two laws: on the Institute of National Remembrance – Commission for Investigation of Crimes Against the Polish People, and on the Criminal Code of Poland.

In addition, the draft law toughens penalties for organizing and illegally crossing the state border. These provisions were included in the previous presidential draft law on amendments to the law on assistance to citizens of Ukraine.

The bill was the result of vetoing the previous law. Navrotskyi did not sign it, as he believes that the assistance under the 800+ program should be paid to Ukrainians who work.

He submitted his own draft amendments to the regulations, which limited benefits for citizens who do not work. Other proposals of the Polish president, such as punishing the spread of "Bandera" and extending the process of granting Polish citizenship, were not taken into account.

• on September 12, the Polish Sejm passed the government's draft law on assistance to foreigners, which tightens the conditions for foreigners to access benefits such as the 800+ and Good Start programs, and legalizes the stay of war refugees from Ukraine in Poland until March 4, 2026.