Poland is intensifying its crackdown on Poland hate crimes, including online abuse. By March 2026, the country will establish 50 specialized units within 11 district prosecutor’s offices. Justice Minister and Prosecutor General Waldemar Żurek has officially signed the order to launch the initiative.
Poland Hate Crimes Prosecution
This new legal network will investigate a wide range of offenses, including insults and public humiliation based on national, ethnic, racial, or religious identity, as well as violent acts motivated by these factors. Publicly insulting others or inciting hatred on these grounds can carry a sentence of up to three years in prison.
Additionally, prosecutors will target the promotion of totalitarian regimes, insults against the Polish nation, and the obstruction of religious services.
“We will prosecute every perpetrator, regardless of whether the aggression is directed at Ukrainians, Jews, Poles with differing views, or anyone else,” Żurek emphasized. The minister noted that special attention is currently being paid to hate speech targeting Ukrainians, as the issue has escalated sharply. The number of such incidents in the first half of 2025 rose by 41% compared to 2024.
In July 2024, Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski also warned about the rise of hostility and hatred in Poland. In a video address, the minister stated: “There is no excuse for the growing campaign of racism and the anti-Semitism fueled by it.” He stressed that “anti-immigrant hysteria harms Poland” and “awakens the worst demons, while Holocaust denial excludes us from civilized nations.”
NEWSROOM IN notes that in January 2026, the European Commission adopted the new EU Anti-Racism Strategy for 2026–2030. This new EU strategy fundamentally redefines the traditional understanding of racism, moving beyond discrimination based solely on skin color.
The document provides a broader definition of racism, describing it as any belief or action that justifies contempt for people or the idea of superiority over them. According to the strategy, racial discrimination officially includes the infringement of rights based on race and skin color, language, religion, citizenship, or national and ethnic origin.