BTiP 2022, nr 4 – Artykuł 5

Apolitical reality of Polish Police

Iwona Osmólska | Pomeranian University in Słupsk
ORCID 0000-0001-7443-9225

Józef Pruchniak | Pomeranian University in Słupsk
ORCID 0000-0002-4256-0781

„Bezpieczeństwo. Teoria i Praktyka”, 4/2022, s. 69-82
DOI 10.48269/2451-0718-btip-2022-4-005
PDF: English

Abstract: The aim of the study is not only an attempt to define the concept of “apoliticality of the police” and its meaning, but above all, to draw attention to the increasingly emerging problem of interference by the participants of the political scene in the work of the Polish Police. For the purposes of this study, the notions of “political neutrality” and “apoliticality” are equivalent and synonymous. The main problem is the search for an answer to the question of whether the Polish Police nowadays are adequately protected against the influence of political pressure? The text uses theoretical research methods, including literature analysis and statistical data analysis. It was assumed that the apolitical nature of the police means the lack of involvement of police officers in political activities and the scrupulous and impartial performance of official duties, regardless of what is happening on the Polish political scene. The results of the conducted analyses allow the conclusion that the apolitical nature of the Polish Police is a mystification because it is insufficiently protected against the influence of politics, which as a consequence leads to a reduction in its effectiveness and social trust.
Key words: apoliticality, non-partyism, the police, politics, politicians, political neutrality, uniformed groups