In the Polish city of Piotrków Trybunalski on Thursday, residents protesting the construction of a migrant integration center were barred from entering the city council session where the matter was being discussed.
As reported by wPolityce.pl, demonstrators concerned about a rise in mass immigration gathered outside the city hall to observe the debate, but found the doors locked in their faces as officials held the meeting behind closed doors.
“This is a disgrace. This is an absolute scandal,” said Law and Justice (PiS) MP Krzysztof Ciecióra, who condemned the exclusion of local citizens. “We can see that the hall is basically empty and everyone can still sit here. The president is actually acting against good manners and democratic principles. All this indicates that there is something to hide here.”
Reporting from the scene, Telewizja wPolsce24’s Piotr Czyżewski confirmed that protesters were denied entry despite their concerns over the planned settlement of non-EU migrants in their community. “These ladies and gentlemen came here to protest against the idea of accepting illegal migrants, and the doors were closed to them,” he said.
Ogromne wzburzenie wśród mieszkańców Piotrkowa Trybunalskiego – drzwi na dzisiejszą sesję Rady Miasta, podczas której toczy się debata o migracji, zostały zatrzaśnięte im przed nosem. Ten gest mówi więcej niż słowa – pokazuje prawdziwe intencje tej władzy: lekceważenie obywateli… pic.twitter.com/o0xfHZqXk8
— Dominik Dzierżanowski (@D_Dzierzanowski) June 12, 2025
One resident summed up the mood outside: “We are simply ignored.”
Among the crowd was Robert Bąkiewicz, head of the Rota of the Independence March Association and a member of the Border Defense Movement, who blasted the local authorities for their dismissive treatment of the citizens. “This is chutzpah. The symbol of closed doors says everything about how councillors and the mayor treat the residents of Piotrków Trybunalski today,” he said, as the crowd chanted “Shame! Shame!”
🇵🇱‼️ Residents of Poland’s Piotrków Trybunalski turned out en masse on Thursday to observe a city council debate on the creation of a migrant integration center.
The council, however, locked up and held the meeting behind closed doors.
Dozens of EU-funded Centers for the… pic.twitter.com/fq3sdoo0z4
— Remix News & Views (@RMXnews) June 13, 2025
Bąkiewicz later posted on X: “Disgrace! The mayor and the chairman of the City Council of Piotrków Trybunalski slammed the door in the face of the residents. This is unimaginable arrogance and contempt.”
The backlash comes amid the rollout of a controversial EU-funded project to establish 49 Centers for the Integration of Foreigners (CICs) across Poland, as reported by Remix News in October last year.
The initiative is being implemented by the Ministry of Family, Labour, and Social Policy under Donald Tusk’s left-liberal government. It is funded by the EU’s Asylum, Migration, and Integration Fund and aims to facilitate the settlement and social integration of third-country nationals.
Each center will provide services such as language classes, legal advice, and psychological support, and will be required to involve at least one NGO experienced in working with migrants. While the government has presented the centers as “one-stop shops” for integration, critics have accused authorities of concealing the scope and local impact of the plan.
Many are concerned that the establishment of such centers is a precursor to the mass immigration now enveloping much of Western Europe.
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