Jewish group calls for House Speaker to step down after celebrating Nazi war veteran
A Jewish human rights organization is calling for Canada’s House Speaker Anthony Rota to step down after inviting a Nazi war veteran to Parliament.
In a statement on Tuesday, the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies (FSWC) says Rota’s decision to invite a former Nazi Waffen-SS unit member “has left a stain” on Parliament with “profound implications both in Canada and globally.”
“This incident has compromised all 338 Members of Parliament and has also handed a propaganda victory to Russia, distracting from what was a momentously significant display of unity between Canada and Ukraine,” stated the FSWC.
As the spiraling fallout caused by a former Nazi Waffen-SS unit member being invited to and celebrated on the floor of the House of Commons continues to mount, we are calling for Anthony Rota to resign from his role as Speaker of the House of Commons.https://t.co/LvoHbgDYHu
— Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center (@CanadianFSWC) September 26, 2023
“It has also caused great pain to Canada’s Jewish community, Holocaust survivors, veterans and other victims of the Nazi regime,” the group added.
The FSWC says that Rota must resign for “the credibility of the institution.”
Last Friday, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited Ottawa and was welcomed by MPs in the House of Commons.
During this visit, 98-year-old Yaroslav Hunka was introduced by House Speaker Rota as “a Ukrainian Canadian war veteran from the Second World War who fought for Ukrainian independence against the Russians” and “a Ukrainian hero and a Canadian hero.”
The Forward
However, the FSWC says the Speaker had “ignor[ed]” the fact that Hunka served in the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS, “a Nazi military unit whose crimes against humanity during the Holocaust are well-documented.”
The FSWC added it was “shocking” to see the veteran be invited to Ottawa and given a standing ovation.
Several members of Parliament are also calling on Rota to resign.
Rota released a statement on Sunday saying he regrets his decision to recognize Hunka and apologized to the Jewish communities in Canada.
The FSWC is also calling for public hearings and for Parliament to investigate vetting process failures and “propose measures to ensure that no such incident could ever happen again.”