A Polish writer could be sent to prison for up to 3 years for calling the country's president a 'moron'

• A Polish writer faces up to three years in jail for calling Poland's president a 'moron.'
• Jakub Zulczyk insulted President Duda in a Facebook post in November.
• It is a criminal offense in Poland to insult state leaders.

A Polish writer faces up to three years in jail after he branded the country's president a "moron" under laws which make it illegal in Poland to insult the head of state.

Jakub Zulczyk, a writer and journalist, made the comment in a Facebook post in November in response to a tweet Polish President Andrzej Duda addressed to Joe Biden after his election victory, the BBC reported.

Zulczyk had criticised President Duda - who was closely allied with former President Trump - for failing fully to acknowledge Biden's victory, claiming that he was awaiting the outcome of the electoral college vote, even though multiple world leaders had already hailed Biden's win over Trump.

Duda, who is loyal to the country's ruling right-wing Law and Justice party, had tweeted: "Congratulations to Joe Biden for a successful presidential campaign.

"As we await the nomination by the Electoral College, Poland is determined to upkeep high-level and high-quality PL-US strategic partnership for an even stronger alliance."

In response Zulczyk - a popular writer behind the HBO Europe show "Blinded By The Lights" - wrote on Facebook on November 7 that the electoral college votes were a "formality" and said President Duda did not understand US politics. The post ended: "Andrew Duda is a moron."

On Monday, Zulczyk said that he had just discovered through a news report that he had been charged with insulting the head of state, a criminal offence.

"Two funny things," he wrote on Facebook.

"First - I just said that the District Attorney's Office Warsaw Downtown North has directed an indictment against me from Article 135 of the Penal Code, i.e. an insult to the Head of State.

"It's about a Facebook post about the US election, in which I wrote this and quote: "Andrew Duda is a moron."

Prosecutors said that Zulczyk's words in the Facebook post were "offensive" and "unacceptable," according to the BBC.

Zulczyk said that he would not disclose whether he planned to plead guilty to the offense.

Poland has some of the most repressive defamation laws in the developed world, according to a report by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.

Citizens can face imprisonment for insulting the country's leaders or even the national flag.