Committee for the Defence of Democracy

Komitet Obrony Demokracji, KOD
AbbreviationKOD
FormationNovember 19, 2015
Legal statusAssociation
HeadquartersWarsaw (Poland), Brussels (International)
Region served
Country-wide, International
AffiliationsKOD International, KOD UK, KOD Polonia USA
WebsiteRuchKOD.pl
A KOD demonstration in Warsaw, on 19 December 2015.
A KOD demonstration in Gdańsk on 19 December 2015.
Roger Waters wearing a T-shirt with the inscription "Konstytucja #KOD" during his concert in Gdańsk on 5 August 2018.

The Committee for the Defence of Democracy, CDD (Polish: Komitet Obrony Demokracji, KOD) is a Polish-born civic organization and NGO with goals that includes promoting the European values, especially democracy, rule of law, and human rights.[1] It was founded in November 2015 by a group of citizens including Mateusz Kijowski, in anticipation of the Polish constitutional crisis, 2015. The organization declares its independence of any political parties[2] and states that it has no intention to transform into one.[3] It opposed the actions of the government led by the Law and Justice (PiS) party.[4]

KOD has its Polish headquarters in Warsaw and international office in Brussels[5] (KOD International), with chapters and affiliated associations around Europe, in North America, Asia and Australia.[6]

The organization was awarded the 2016 European Citizens' Prize by the European Parliament for defending fundamental rights and democracy.[7]

  1. ^ "About KOD". Committee for the Defence of Democracy. Archived from the original on 23 March 2019. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
  2. ^ "About KOD". Committee for the Defence of Democracy. Archived from the original on 23 March 2019. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
  3. ^ "Oświadczenie KOD w sprawie partii politycznych - Komitet Obrony Demokracji". Komitet Obrony Demokracji (in Polish). Archived from the original on 15 November 2019. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  4. ^ Orłowski, Maciej (21 November 2015). "Powstał społeczny ruch Komitet Obrony Demokracji. Ma już ponad 20 tys. zwolenników". wyborcza.pl. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  5. ^ "Who is Who - International". Committee for the Defence of Democracy. Archived from the original on 15 March 2019. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
  6. ^ "Who is Who - Diaspora". Committee for the Defence of Democracy. Archived from the original on 15 March 2019. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
  7. ^ "KOD wins the European Citizens' Prize 2016". New Europeans. 13 October 2016. Archived from the original on 6 October 2020. Retrieved 16 November 2016.