Polish leader condemns ‘scandalous lie’ over Holocaust

Jarosław Kaczyński was speaking as tensions between Israel and Poland ran high after the parliament in Warsaw passed a law that could mean a jail term for anyone who accuses the Polish nation of being complicit in Nazi German crimes during World War II.

Kaczyński, the head of Poland’s governing Law and Justice party, said phrases such as “Polish” death camps are "a base attempt to shift responsibility for monstrous crimes from those who are stronger -- because Germany is stronger than us -- onto those who are weaker."

Poland has long fought the use of phrases like “Polish death camps”, which have often appeared in foreign media in relation to Nazi German-run extermination camps located in occupied Polish territory during World War II.

Poland’s ruling conservatives have said such phrases distort history and suggest that their country was complicit in the Holocaust.

But the new Polish legislation bringing in penalties, which has not yet been signed into law by the president, has sparked fury in Israel.

Israeli ambassador to Poland Anna Azari has said: "In Israel, this bill is seen as creating a possibility of punishment for Holocaust survivors' testimony. The emotions are running high.”

Public broadcaster Polish Radio has launched a new website, GermanDeathCamps.info, aimed at debunking misconceptions about Poland’s role in the Holocaust.

(pk)

Source: IAR