The Jewish institute stated, among other things, that “Poland was the first country where Jews were forced to wear a distinctive badge in order to isolate them from the surrounding population.”
Deputy Prime Minister and foreign affairs chief Radosław Sikorski was among those who reacted to the post.
The head of Polish diplomacy pointed out that Yad Vashem’s post did not mention the German occupation.
“Please specify that it was ‘German-occupied’ Poland,” appealed Poland’s top diplomat.
The post was also commented on by the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum in Oświęcim, which on X described the information provided by the institute as “a false and history-distorting message.”
The museum emphasized that Yad Vashem should be an institution that knows historical facts, meaning it should be “fully aware that Poland at that time was under German occupation and that it was the Germans who introduced and enforced this antisemitic law.”
“It is most appropriate to quote the reaction of the Auschwitz Museum: ‘It seems that if anyone should know the historical facts, it is Yad Vashem. They should be fully aware that Poland at that time was occupied by Germany and that it was the Germans who introduced and enforced this antisemitic law.
We understand that Yad Vashem plans to open a branch in Germany soon. However, we sincerely hope that this false and history-distorting message has nothing to do with that,’” wrote Polish Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maciej Wiewiór.
“This is an outrageous distortion of history. I would expect Yad Vashem to make a correction and issue an apology, as every reputable institution would do. Was the Generalgouvernement Polish? Was Hans Frank? Also, the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Tel Aviv should react accordingly,” echoed Foreign Ministry spokesperson Marek Magierowski, former Polish ambassador to Israel and the United States.
“We cannot allow history to be falsified! It was not Poland that introduced laws forcing Jews to wear identifying marks. These regulations were imposed by Nazi Germany after it invaded and occupied Poland. Poles and Polish Jews were victims of the Holocaust - never its authors,” responded Polish government spokesperson Adam Szłapka via social media.
“As noted by many users and specified explicitly in the linked article, it was done by order of the German authorities,” Yad Vashem clarified on its X profile on Sunday evening.
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Source: Polish Radio English Service/PR24/PAP
X/@sikorskiradek/@yadvashem/@adamSzlapka/@RzecznikMSZ