Europe

Poland's political standoff set to continue through holidays

Associated Press
Published | Updated

Jaroslaw Kaczynski, chairman of the populist ruling Law and Justice party, speaks during a press conference as a political crisis drags on, in Warsaw, Poland, Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2016. Opposition lawmakers are vowing to continue a sit-in in parliament through the holidays while sporadic street protests have been taking place for nearly a week over government actions that the opposition decries as anti-democratic. (AP Photo/Alik Keplicz) (The Associated Press)

Jaroslaw Kaczynski, chairman of the populist ruling Law and Justice party, looks at journalists during a press conference as a political crisis drags on, in Warsaw, Poland, Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2016. Opposition lawmakers are vowing to continue a sit-in in parliament through the holidays while sporadic street protests have been taking place for nearly a week over government actions that the opposition decries as anti-democratic. (AP Photo/Alik Keplicz) (The Associated Press)

Jaroslaw Kaczynski, chairman of the populist ruling Law and Justice party, looks on during a press conference as Poland's Prime Minister Beata Szydlo, left, speaks, in Warsaw, Poland, Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2016. Opposition lawmakers are vowing to continue a sit-in in parliament through the holidays while sporadic street protests have been taking place for nearly a week over government actions that the opposition decries as anti-democratic. (AP Photo/Alik Keplicz) (The Associated Press)

A bitter political standoff in Poland is dragging on, with opposition politicians vowing to continue a sit-in inside parliament through the upcoming Christmas and New Year holidays.

Grzegorz Schetyna, head of the opposition Civic Platform party, said Wednesday that the protesting lawmakers will remain inside the parliament's main assembly hall in protest until Jan. 11, when parliament is set to resume after a holiday break. They are protesting steps by the ruling Law and Justice party that they deem undemocratic.

Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the powerful chairman of Law and Justice, said the behavior of the rebellious lawmakers is of a "criminal nature" and appealed to them to respect the law.