The purpose of the article is to analyse the role of the public prosecutor's office as an institution that is specifically embedded in between certain elements of the political system, particularly between the executive and judiciary powers. For this reason, the public prosecutor's office can be regarded, together with courts, as an institution that aims to be actively involved in administering justice and an instrument of the executive power to guarantee internal security and to execute internal functions of the state. The public prosecutor's office, given its specific operation area, is expected to prosecute crimes effectively as well as safeguard the rule of law, which may be threatened by the infringing actions of not only individuals and criminal groups but also of officials and state institutions. Hence, with respect to the accountability of the public prosecutor's office, it should be more independent of the executive power which is subject to political rules. It appears, however, that separating it officially from the executive power does not have to lead automatically to the public prosecutor's office independence of political influence when other direct (the Prime Minister's and the Minister of Justice's authority over the Attorney General) and indirect mechanisms of prosecutors' political dependency (clientelism, politicisation and political bonds of prosecutors with politicians) exist.
The fact that various myths influence the shape of law and the mythologization of some of its aspects is indisputable. In most cases, this process of "mythologization" is perceived pejoratively, leading to the establishment of groundless, irrational ideas and at the same time the rejection of "science" in favor of "fiction". This article aims to propose a different approach to both the concept of myth and the mythologization of law, by referring to the classical, ancient understanding of the concept of mythos as a fable, story. Ancient Greek myth performed a function similar to the law, establishing some basic rules in society. Stressing its "narrative" side indicates that what matters is not so much a description of reality, but a process that emphasizes the relational nature of the community. Thus, relating the myth, just like reading the norm of law, is an interpretation of the event in the light of applicable principles and systems of values, while being also a continuous process of shaping social awareness. Interpreting the law as a story means that those who create and use it lose the luxury of simply remaining the "mouth that pronounces the words of the law" as Montesquieu stated, since they are supposed to care not only for its implementation, but also for the quality and conviction of citizens as to its validity. The proposed form of reading the law as a myth-fable, political myth therefore is a search for a plot, understood as a possibility to act, to respond to the needs and problems of the changing world as well as the development of "the political" politics and education of citizens. ; Fakt wpływu rozmaitych mitów na kształt prawa oraz mitologizacja pewnych jego założeń są niepodważalne. W większości wypadków ten proces "mitologizacji" postrzegany jest pejoratywnie – jako prowadzący do ugruntowania bezpodstawnych, irracjonalnych wyobrażeń i zarazem do odrzucenia "nauki" na rzecz "fikcji". Celem niniejszego artykułu jest zaproponowanie odmiennego podejścia zarówno do samego pojęcia mitu, jak i do mitologizacji prawa poprzez odwołanie się do klasycznego, antycznego rozumienia pojęcia mythos jako fabuły, opowieści. Starogrecki mit pełnił funkcję zbliżoną do prawa, ustanawiał bowiem pewne podstawowe reguły obowiązujące w społeczeństwie. Zaakcentowanie jego strony "fabularnej" wskazuje zaś, że istotny jest nie tyle opis rzeczywistości, ile proces podkreślający relacyjny charakter wspólnoty. Tym samym opowiadanie mitu, podobnie jak odczytywanie normy prawa, stanowi interpretację zdarzenia w świetle obowiązujących zasad i systemów wartości, jest również ciągłym procesem kształtowania społecznej świadomości. Ujęcie prawa jako opowieści powoduje, że ci, którzy je tworzą i stosują, tracą luksus prostego pozostania monteskiuszowskimi "ustami ustawy", ponieważ mają się troszczyć nie tylko o jego wykonywanie, lecz także o jakość oraz przekonanie obywateli co do jego słuszności. Proponowana forma odczytania prawa jako mitu-opowieści, mitu politycznego polega zatem na poszukiwaniu fabuły, czyli możliwości działania umożliwiającego reagowanie na potrzeby i problemy zmieniającego się świata oraz na rozwój polityczności i edukację obywateli.
The prestige of law is one of the most crucial issues addressed in the sociology of law. The awareness of the degree of acceptance of the law by its addressees is a fundamental factor in the introduction of possible changes in the legal system.The notion of "prestige of law" was introduced to empirical sociology by Adam Podgórecki in the research he conducted in Poland in 1964.A new perspective in the study was to go beyond classical socio-demographic variables and put an emphasis on personality variables. It was also one of the first such studies internationally. In the fifty years that have passed since A. Podgórecki's research, similar studies, even using exactly the same questions, have been repeated many times in both nation-wide and local studies. It should be assumed that the changes taking place in Poland and in the consciousness of its citizens during that time, such as the change of the system, increasing civil rights and freedoms, Poland's accession to international organizations, etc., might be reflected in the increasing level of the prestige of law. But did it happen? Unfortunately not. The analysis of empirical research devoted to the prestige of law in the following article, especially after the political transformation that took place in 1989, but also nowadays, is an attempt to explain the reasons for its persistently low level. ; Prestiż prawa to jedno z najważniejszych zagadnień podejmowanych w socjologii prawa. Wiedza na temat stopnia akceptacji prawa przez jego adresatów jest czynnikiem podstawowym dla wprowadzenia ewentualnych zmian w porządku prawnym. Pojęcie prestiżu prawa zostało wprowadzone do socjologii empirycznej przez Adama Podgóreckiego w badaniach pod tym tytułem, które przeprowadził w Polsce w 1964 r. Nowym ujęciem w przeprowadzonych badaniach było wyjście poza klasyczne zmienne socjodemograficzne i położenie nacisku na zmienne osobowościowe. Było to też jedno z pierwszych takich badań w skali międzynarodowej. W ciągu pięćdziesięciu lat, które minęły od badań A. Podgóreckiego, podobne badania, nawet przy użyciu dokładnie tak samo sformułowanych pytań, powtarzane były wiele razy, zarówno w badaniach ogólnokrajowych, jak i lokalnych. Należy założyć, że zmiany zachodzące w Polsce i w świadomości jej obywateli przez ten czas, takie jak zmiana ustroju, zwiększenie praw i swobód obywatelskich, wstąpienie Polski do organizacji międzynarodowych itp., mogą mieć odzwierciedlenie w zwiększającym się poziomie prestiżu prawa. Czy jednak tak się stało? Niestety nie. Przeprowadzona w niniejszym artykule analiza badań empirycznych poświęconych prestiżowi prawa, zwłaszcza po transformacji ustrojowej, jaka miała miejsce w 1989 r., ale również w czasach obecnych, stanowi próbę wyjaśnienia przyczyn stale utrzymującego się jego niskiego poziomu.
The article analyzes the process of displacing law and its values from political thinking. There are many indications that law and its values are not a point of reference for contemporary politics, which results from the ongoing process of democratization. The coherence of virtues, law and politics, variously approached and variable over time, lasted in European culture for more than a thousand years. The Greek models have been adopted and consolidated by the Romans and Medieval thinkers. The breakthrough is brought by Machiavelli's writings, which radically changed the view of politics, free will, power. The nature of the state ceases to mean providing citizens with a happy life, and it begins to concern security. As a result, law becomes a tool to protect this security effectively. ; Artykuł jest analizą procesu wyparcia prawa i jego wartości z myślenia politycznego. Wiele wskazuje na to, że dla współczesnej polityki prawo i jego wartości nie stanowią punktu odniesienia, za co odpowiada trwający proces demokratyzacji. Koherencja cnót, prawa i polityki, różnie ujmowanych i zmiennych w czasie, trwała w europejskiej kulturze przez ponad tysiąc lat. Greckie wzorce zostały przejęte i ugruntowane przez Rzymian i myślicieli średniowiecznych. Przełomem stało się dopiero pisarstwo Machiavellego, który radykalnie odmienił spojrzenie na politykę, wolną wolę, władzę. Istota państwa przestaje sprowadzać się do zapewnienia obywatelom szczęśliwego życia, a zaczyna dotyczyć bezpieczeństwa. Co za tym idzie prawo staje się narzędziem służącym do tego, by owo bezpieczeństwo skutecznie zabezpieczyć.
The article concerns German discussions and plans regarding the future of the European Union and its international role. The fi rst part discusses confl icts or diff erences that burden relations between EU Member States regarding refugee policy, energy policy, the euro currency and arms policy. In addition, phenomena and processes such as nationalism and populism, Brexit and separatism are emphasized. Then the global changes are presented with which the European Union is confronted: the end of Eurocentrism, the US exit from the INF treaty, the future of the nuclear agreement with Iran and the US trade war with China. The rest of the article presents briefl y reactions in Germany, which fall into the mainstream of opinion formation, as well as concepts to overcome crises and shape the role of the European Union: democratization of the EU, the EU as a social union and a new policy of relaxation. ; Artykuł dotyczy niemieckich dyskusji i planów odnośnie przyszłości Unii Europejskiej i jej roli międzynarodowej. W pierwszej części omawiane są konfl ikty względnie różnice, które obciążają stosunki między państwami członkowskimi UE, tyczące się polityki uchodźczej, polityki energetycznej, waluty euro i polityki zbrojeniowej. Ponadto akcentowane są takie zjawiska i procesy, jak nacjonalizm i populizm, Brexit i separatyzm. Następnie prezentowane są globalne zmiany, z którymi konfrontowana jest Unia Europejska: koniec eurocentryzmu, wyjście USA z traktatu INF, przyszłość porozumienia atomowego z Iranem i wojna handlowa USA z Chinami. W dalszej części artykułu przedstawiono pokrótce reakcje w Niemczech, które mieszczą się w głównym nurcie kształtowania opinii, jak również koncepcje pozwalające przezwyciężyć kryzysy i kształtować rolę Unii Europejskiej: demokratyzacja UE, UE jako unia społeczna i nowa polityka odprężania.
One of the fundamental categories of general sociology concerns power. Regardless of differences in interpretation, power can be defined as the dependence between subordinator and subordinated. This relation is unidirectional. When discussing influence, this property is significant, as otherwise it could be reciprocal, or an influence could be exerted by many other entities that are not bound by the relationship of subordination. The nature of international relations is too specific to allow a simple transfer of power-related phenomena from the realm of domestic relations. One can indicate the presence of delegated power, resulting from the mutual assignment of subordination rights to international decision- making bodies. The processes of international power are divided into procedures of hard power, soft power and smart power, the latter signifying the manifestation of effective power, making use of the mechanisms of the former two. It is also important to take into account the specificity of the legitimization of international power and manifestations of accountability. Also not without significance is the capacity for the implementation of international power, equipped with the relevant enforcement instruments. ; One of the fundamental categories of general sociology concerns power. Regardless of differences in interpretation, power can be defined as the dependence between subordinator and subordinated. This relation is unidirectional. When discussing influence, this property is significant, as otherwise it could be reciprocal, or an influence could be exerted by many other entities that are not bound by the relationship of subordination. The nature of international relations is too specific to allow a simple transfer of power-related phenomena from the realm of domestic relations. One can indicate the presence of delegated power, resulting from the mutual assignment of subordination rights to international decision- making bodies. The processes of international power are divided into procedures of hard power, soft power and smart power, the latter signifying the manifestation of effective power, making use of the mechanisms of the former two. It is also important to take into account the specificity of the legitimization of international power and manifestations of accountability. Also not without significance is the capacity for the implementation of international power, equipped with the relevant enforcement instruments.
The name of special services is applied to the civil and military services that organize and conduct intelligence and counterintelligence activities. Their operations are an element generating social and political trust between the political authorities and citizens. Given the current conditions of international relations and the international situation, a state is required to have efficient special services at its disposal. Anegative impact of globalization on state functioning, both in its external and internal dimensions, forces Polish special services to strengthen their fundamental function, that is providing information. The weakness of military intelligence and counterintelligence follows from the dissolution in 2000 of the Military Intelligence Services (WSI), and wasting their potential for political reasons. The role and task of special services in a democratic state should be to protect the liberty and democracy of the political system's principles, as set out in the Constitution, instead of protecting particular interests. The nature of the transformations occurring in security circles in Poland and related globalization processes, as well as civilizational, cultural and technological changes and the emergence of a civil society, demand a different attitude to the special services to be taken both by the public authorities and society, and make changes in their functioning necessary. This also calls for the need for a theoretical interpretation of the operations of modern Polish special services in a democratic state of law. ; The name of special services is applied to the civil and military services that organize and conduct intelligence and counterintelligence activities. Their operations are an element generating social and political trust between the political authorities and citizens. Given the current conditions of international relations and the international situation, a state is required to have efficient special services at its disposal. Anegative impact of globalization on state functioning, both in its external and internal dimensions, forces Polish special services to strengthen their fundamental function, that is providing information. The weakness of military intelligence and counterintelligence follows from the dissolution in 2000 of the Military Intelligence Services (WSI), and wasting their potential for political reasons. The role and task of special services in a democratic state should be to protect the liberty and democracy of the political system's principles, as set out in the Constitution, instead of protecting particular interests. The nature of the transformations occurring in security circles in Poland and related globalization processes, as well as civilizational, cultural and technological changes and the emergence of a civil society, demand a different attitude to the special services to be taken both by the public authorities and society, and make changes in their functioning necessary. This also calls for the need for a theoretical interpretation of the operations of modern Polish special services in a democratic state of law.
The name of special services is applied to the civil and military services that orga-nize and conduct intelligence and counterintelligence activities. Their operations are an element generating social and political trust between the political authorities and citizens. Given the current conditions of international relations and the international situation, a state is required to have efficient special services at its disposal. A negative impact of globalization on state functioning, both in its external and in-ternal dimensions, forces Polish special services to strengthen their fundamental func-tion, that is providing information. The weakness of military intelligence and counterintelligence follows from the dissolution in 2000 of the Military Intelligence Services (WSI), and wasting their potential for political reasons. The role and task of special services in a democratic state should be to protect the liberty and democracy of the political system's principles, as set out in the Constitution, instead of protecting particular interests. The nature of the transformations occurring in security circles in Poland and related globalization processes, as well as civilizational, cultural and tech-nological changes and the emergence of a civil society, demand a different attitude to the special services to be taken both by the public authorities and society, and make changes in their functioning necessary. This also calls for the need for a theoretical in-terpretation of the operations of modern Polish special services in a democratic state of law.
The aim of the paper is the analysis of the relationship between the perception of the success factors in international collaborative relationships and firm's international experience. The results of an empirical study on the sample of 278 Polish exporters and importers cooperating with partners from China and Germany are presented and both the differences in success factor perception depending on foreign partners' home country, and the correlation of the perception of the success factors with the international experience of the firms are discussed. The study revealed that the firms working with partners in China have somewhat more international experience. The importance of the majority of the success factors in relationships with German partners did not differ significantly from those in collaboration with Chinese firms. However, some consequential differences were observed. Internationalization experience is not strongly related with the perception of international cooperation success factors.
Legislative powers of the Council of Europe have a crucial impact on the domestic legal systems of the EU Member States including substantive administrative law, i.e. such an area of administrative law which defines rights and responsibilities of the public administration bodies and citizens. The legislation created by the Council of Europe's bodies has a great impact on the areas of law which were earlier regarded as the exclusive responsibility of a given country. The Council of Europe has always been a major source of standard setting. This paper analyses selected areas of substantive administrative law taking into account hard law and soft law documents developed under the auspices of the Council of Europe. ; Kompetencje legislacyjne Rady Europy mają istotny wpływ na systemy prawa krajowego państw członkowskich, włącznie z materialnym prawem administracyjnym, a więc działem prawa administracyjnego regulującym prawa i obowiązki organów administracji publicznej i obywateli. Akty prawne tworzone przez organy organizacji mają znaczący wpływ na te obszary prawne, które wcześniej uważane były za wyłączną kompetencję wewnętrzną. Rada Europy zawsze była ważnym źródłem stanowienia standardów. W niniejszym artykule analizie poddano wybrane obszary materialnego prawa administracyjnego, biorąc pod uwagę dokumenty hard law i soft law opracowane pod auspicjami Rady Europy.
The article aims to present the current situation in Ukraine through international relations theory that is able to provide the necessary theoretical background to analyse the complex problems that unfold in the contemporary international environment. These problems are analysed through several perspectives including realist, postmodern and socialconstructivist dimensions, as well as from the point of view of classical institutionalism. What is more, on the basis of their deliberations, the authors describe several possible scenarios of the future events, including the strategy of Russia to continue destabilization in Ukraine in order to seize control over its entire territory and the long-term effects of international sanctions on the Russian economy with the possibility of the collapse of the aggressor state. Nonetheless, the Crimean crisis reveals an important fact that, according to the authors, has deep ramifications for the entire international security system – at present, the international community is not able to exert influence on any of the nuclear powers through military means. While other, non-military means of influence can be used, such as broad economic sanctions or political isolation of an aggressor-state, they are not effective immediately thus allowing the aggressor states to violate international law with a feeling of impunity and invincibility.
