Poland, Judaism and Historical Memory It’s a complicated story, and politicians too often attempt to simplify it. By Elisabeth Zerofsky
https://www.wsj.com/articles/poland-judaism-and-historical-memory-11551397831https:/
Call it the pangs of intimacy. As Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cultivates relationships with Central European heads of state, he has had some uncomfortable moments. A recent spat shows how quarrels over Judaism’s history in the region can complicate cooperation.
During a foreign-policy conference in Warsaw two weeks ago, an Israeli reporter asked Mr. Netanyahu to comment on the controversial “Polish death camps” bill. Signed into law in February 2018, the legislation made it a crime to claim “contrary to the facts” that the Polish nation was “responsible or co-responsible” for crimes committed by the Third Reich during its occupation of Poland. After critics objected in Israel and around the world, Warsaw downgraded the crime to a civil offense.
The Israeli reporter wanted to know: Given that Mr. Netanyahu was patronizing the Polish government, what did he think about law remaining in place? “The Poles collaborated with the Nazis, and I don’t know anyone who was ever sued for such a statement,” the prime minister replied. After some consternation from Polish officials, Mr. Netanyahu clarified that he was referring to individual Poles—not the Polish nation. Rather than let the matter drop, Israel’s acting Foreign Minister Yisrael Katz, the son of Holocaust survivors, declared on Israeli television several days later that “every Pole suckled anti-Semitism with his mother’s milk.” Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki subsequently canceled a trip to Israel. CONTINUE AT SITE
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