New Polish PM Mateusz Morawiecki praises his country’s Jewish heritage
POLAND’S NEW prime minister has described in his inaugural speech how his countrymen and women saved their “Jewish brothers”.
Addressing parliament for the first time in his new role on Tuesday, Mateusz Morawiecki said the bravery displayed by some Polish non-Jews during the Second World War was the “essence of what it means to be Polish”.
Though he previously spoke of his desire to “re-Christianize Europe” in an interview with Polish Catholic station TV Trwam, Mr Morawiecki also has Jewish ties.
In September the former banker revealed that two of his aunts are Jewish.
Tuesday’s address focused mainly on the economy and financial relations, but when speaking about national identity he said: “The deep community dimension is inscribed in our tradition: Assistance to people in flight, ĩegota [the Polish resistance group that helped Jews during the Holocaust] saving our Jewish brothers and Solidarity [the anti-communist movement, in which Morawiecki’s father was active]. This is real proof of what Polishness is and what the community is.”
Yesterday’s statement was significant because it referred to Jewish Poles as brethren.
Poland was home to 3.3 million Jews prior to the Holocaust, more than any other country in Europe.
One in ten Poles were Jewish in the first half of the 20th century, but an estimated 3 million were wiped out by the Nazis during the Second World War, according to Yad Vashem.
Mr Morawiecki, 49, who was sworn in by the Polish president on Monday, [NYUKûNM 2NK]K A_āM X ÿQX ]NWMN[NM her resignation last week.He was previously the finance minister in the government of the right-wing ruling Law and Justice Party.
Earlier this year he spoke of his family’s Jewish connection at a ceremony at Warsaw Zoo, honouring former zoo director Jan ĩabiĔski and his wife Antonina, as well as others who rescued many hundreds of Jews.