Witold Stanisław Tomczak (5 April 1957 – 11 March 2025) was a Polish far-right politician who was a member of the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...

from 2004 to 2009. Before his political career, Tomczak worked as a physician. He graduated from the Medical University of Silesia in

Katowice Katowice (, ) is the capital city of the Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland and the central city of the Katowice urban area. As of 2021, Katowice has an official population of 286,960, and a resident population estimate of around 315,000. K ...

in 1987 and specialized in general medicine. He practiced as a family physician in Łęka Opatowska near

Kalisz Kalisz () is a city in central Poland, and the second-largest city in the Greater Poland Voivodeship, with 97,905 residents (December 2021). It is the capital city of the Kalisz Region. Situated on the Prosna river in the southeastern part of Gr ...

, where he was a local councilman from 1990 through 1998. From 1997 to 2001, he was a

Sejm The Sejm (), officially known as the Sejm of the Republic of Poland (), is the lower house of the bicameralism, bicameral parliament of Poland. The Sejm has been the highest governing body of the Third Polish Republic since the Polish People' ...

member for the conservative party Christian-National Union (ZChN), which at that time was part of the

Solidarity Electoral Action Solidarity Electoral Action (, AWS) was a coalition of political parties in Poland, active from 1996 to 2001. AWS was the political arm of the Solidarity (Polish trade union), Solidarity trade union, whose leader Lech Wałęsa (also an AWS member ...

party (AWS). He left the AWS in 1999 to co-found the Polish Agreement party. In 2001, he ran on the ticket of the then newly established

League of Polish Families The League of Polish Families ( Polish: ''Liga Polskich Rodzin,'' , LPR) is a social conservative political party in Poland, with many far-right elements in the past. The party's original ideology was that of the National Democracy movement whic ...

in the Kalisz constituency and won a seat again. Before Poland's EU accession, Tomczak served as a Polish observer to the European Parliament. In

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

, he was elected to the European Parliament in the Greater Poland Voivodship constituency, and served there from 2004 to 2009. He was a member of the euroskeptical

Independence/Democracy Independence/Democracy (IND/DEM) was a Euroscepticism, Eurosceptic Political groups of the European Parliament, political group that operated in the European Parliament between 2004 and 2009. At its height in 2004, it had 37 MEPs and it only ex ...

Group in the parliament. He set on the

Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development The Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development (AGRI) is a committee of the European Parliament. Responsibilities of the Committee AGRI is the European Parliament committee responsible for: #The operation and development of the Common Agricul ...

and was a substitute for the

Committee on Culture and Education The Committee on Culture and Education (CULT) is a committee of the European Parliament. Responsibilities of the committee This committee has focused on the well-being of all members of the human race and the increased opportunities for educat ...

and a member of the Delegation to the EU-

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

Joint Parliamentary Committee. Tomczak died on 11 March 2025, at the age of 67.

Controversies

Art

Tomczak made the headlines in Poland in 2000, when, together with fellow Polish Agreement member Halina Nowina-Konopka, he damaged a sculpture by Italian artist

Maurizio Cattelan Maurizio Cattelan (; born 21 September 1960) is an Italian visual artist. Known primarily for his hyperrealistic sculptures and installations, Cattelan's practice also includes curating and publishing. His Satire, satirical approach to art has re ...

on display in the National Gallery of Art Zachęta in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

. Entitled ''La Nona Ora'' (The Ninth Hour), the sculpture is an effigy of

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

in full ceremonial dress being crushed by a meteor. Tomczak stated he damaged the sculpture "because this is what my voters expected me to do"."Zniszczył rzeźbę, straci immunitet",

Gazeta Wyborcza (; ''The Electoral Gazette'' in English) is a Polish nationwide daily newspaper based in Warsaw, Poland. It was launched on 8 May 1989 on the basis of the Polish Round Table Agreement and as a press organ of the Solidarity (Polish trade union), t ...

, 2008-06-27, retrieved 27 June 200

/ref> At the scene, Tomczak and Nowina-Konopczyna left an open letter addressed to the prime minister, the minister of justice and the minister of culture, in which he denounced the curator of the exhibition, Anda Rottenberg, as a "civil servant of Jewish origin" who was "ignorant of the Culture and Heritage of the Polish Nation" and "refused to realize her 'controversial' ideas in Israel". The letter was signed by 91 Sejm members. The public prosecutor requested Tomczak's

parliamentary immunity Parliamentary immunity, also known as legislative immunity, is a system in which politicians or other political leaders are granted full immunity from legal prosecution, both civil prosecution and criminal prosecution, in the course of the exe ...

be lifted, however, this was rejected by the Sejm's regulatory commission. Tomczak lost his parliamentary immunity in the European Parliament in 2008. In 2016, he was sentenced for the above incident for one year on probation. In 2017, he received presidential pardon. On 11 March 2025, he died at the age of 67.

Homosexuality

In 2007, Tomczak caused controversy in the European Parliament with remarks on

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or Human sexual activity, sexual behavior between people of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexu ...

. According to the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

, he declared homosexuality "was against the law of nature, and called on 'so-called defenders of human rights' to tackle 'discrimination against normal families'". The report quotes Tomczak as saying that " ery person has a right to life and deserves respect and help, including one who – lost and scarred – has given into homosexual tendencies. The solution is to help those who suffer and to provide them with the cure that they expect us to deliver.""Poland urged to halt 'homophobia'",

, 2007-04-26, retrieved 30 June 200

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tomczak, Witold 1957 births 2025 deaths People from Kępno County League of Polish Families politicians League of Polish Families MEPs MEPs for Poland 2004 MEPs for Poland 2004–2009 21st-century Polish physicians Recipients of Polish pardons