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KACPER PEMPEL/Reuters
A Canadian Holocaust scholar and his fellow co-editor have been ordered by a Polish court to apologize to a woman who claimed her deceased uncle had been defamed by their book, which suggested he helped the Nazis murder Jews during the Second World War.
The court in Warsaw ruled Tuesday that University of Ottawa history professor Jan Grabowski and Barbara Engelking, founder of the Polish Centre for Holocaust Research, included “inexact information” in the 2018 two-volume historical work they co-edited,
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A University of Ottawa history professor says he’s deeply concerned about the chilling effect a Polish court ruling could have on Holocaust scholarship like his that seeks to explore the role of individual Polish collaborators.
In a telephone interview from Poland on Wednesday, Prof. Jan Grabowski said the ruling, which demands an apology for “inaccurate information” published in a 2018 book he helped edit, has unleashed a frightening backlash.
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Court rules Barbara Engelking and Jan Grabowski disseminated false information and harmed the honor of a man they said helped kill Jews in WWII; his niece brought the suit
The Globe and Mail Vanessa Gera and Monika Scislowska WARSAW, Poland Bookmark Please log in to listen to this story. Also available in French and Mandarin. Log In Create Free Account
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The Associated Press
A court in Warsaw ruled Tuesday that two prominent Holocaust researchers must apologize to a woman who claimed her deceased uncle had been slandered in a historical work, citing alleged inaccuracies that suggested the Polish man helped kill Jews during the Second World War.
Lawyers for 81-year-old Filomena Leszczynska argued that the scholars had unfairly harmed her good name and that of her family, violating the honour of the uncle. The family says he saved Jews during the German occupation of Poland during the Second World War.
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Malinowski’s niece, 81-year-old Filomena Leszczynska, accused the scholars of fabricating her uncle’s crimes, insisting that he was a hero who had saved Jews.
The court’s decision means that Engelking and Grabowski are obliged to provide Leszczynska with a written apology for having provided “inaccurate information” about her uncle and for “violating his honor.” They are expected to pursue an appeal.
Jewish leaders slammed Tuesday’s ruling as another attempt by the Polish authorities to police the research of the Holocaust so as to expunge any discussion of Polish civilian collaboration with the Nazis. Under Poland’s criminal code as well as legislation passed by the country’s parliament in 2018, anyone who examines the issue of local collusion during the Nazi occupation of 1939-45 can face a civil libel trial and possible imprisonment.