Poland’s Minister of Education and Science has called for the 98-year-old Nazi veteran who was celebrated in Canadian Parliament to be extradited to Poland. 

This comes after Canada’s House of Commons Speaker, Anthony Rota, honoured 98-year-old Yaroslav Hunka, who served in the ranks of Adolf Hitler’s 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the Nazi SS.

Polish Minister Przemysław Czarnek said on Tuesday that Hunka should be extradited to Poland where he would face criminal sanctions. 

“In view of the scandalous events in the Canadian Parliament, which involved honoring, in the presence of President Zelenskiy, a member of the criminal Nazi SS Galizien formation, I have taken steps towards the possible extradition of this man to Poland,” he said.

Canada’s Extradition Act permits individuals to be extradited to stand trial at the request of a foreign state. A person can only be extradited from Canada if the alleged criminal conduct is recognized as criminal by both countries. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was also in attendance in Canadian parliament when Rota called Hunka a “Canadian hero” and a “Ukrainian hero.” President Zelenskyy and PM Justin Trudeau clapped for Hunka, along with every MP in the House, not realizing they were cheering for someone who participated in the genocide of Jews, many of whom were Polish. 

Gould Standard

Liberal MP Karina Gould said her party vetted the guest list from Friday’s House of Commons event, which included a Nazi veteran. However, she also said that her party is in no way responsible for his presence and had no idea he would be there.

Gould also put forward a motion on Monday to have Hunka’s presence in Parliament stripped from the record entirely, including Rota’s recognizing him, and all video evidence. The Conservatives voted against the motion and MP Melissa Lantsman chastised Gould for trying to delete history.

Prime Minister Trudeau avoided Question Period on Monday where Conservatives grilled the Liberals about their involvement in Hunka’s invitation to parliament.

When asked by a reporter for his reaction, Trudeau acknowledged the incident was extremely embarrassing to Canada. He also said that Canadians need to push back against Russian disinformation.