In an interview with istotne.pl, Commissioner for Human Rights Adam Bodnar said how officials and people who, for some reason, will not attend a demonstration can express their opposition.
According to Bodnar, many people today are wondering how to show their opposition and protest while, for various reasons, having difficulty finding a way to do so. Not everyone can afford to attend a demonstration. “If we are state officials, we have certain limitations related to this. Or not everyone can afford to openly publish their own content on Facebook; not everyone is able to join one non-governmental organization or another,” says Adam Bodnar.
The Commissioner for Human Rights points to two solutions. “First, solidarity—that is, showing support for those who are being repressed by those in power. It has been a year since Judge Juszczyszyn was suspended for wanting to defend the Constitution. But there are more such people. Recently, we heard about prosecutors who were forcibly delegated to other prosecution units,” Bodnar explains.
“The second form is support for all those who care and who are trying to create a free space in which people can exercise freedom of speech and other civil liberties. And sometimes, when someone asks me, ‘What can I do?’ I ask them: ‘All right, but do you at least subscribe to any newspaper, or regularly donate to any non-governmental organization that works to defend the rule of law, the right to privacy, or various groups that are discriminated against?’ And then these people tell me: ‘No, no, you know, because it’s, it’s, I haven’t seen…’. But it isn’t difficult. It is enough to set aside a few or a dozen złotys a month and, even in this way, through your own contribution, strengthen those who care about monitoring those in power, independent journalism, freedom of speech, and all those values that are the essence of a democratic society,” Adam Bodnar explains.
According to the Commissioner, such small forms of support are important from the perspective of bringing about change in society, especially when they translate into broad mass engagement.
“I don’t know if you are aware, but this is precisely how Alexei Navalny built his position: he had hundreds, thousands, and millions of people behind him who appreciated the fact that he monitored those in power and, through crowdfunding, made small donations to support his activities. I am not saying that we are already at the same stage as Russia, but since we have such opportunities, let us really use them. In this way, we show support for those who care and who have the courage to act in the public sphere in this way,” concludes the Commissioner for Human Rights.